Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty
by Feraligreater328
Summary: After falling off of Snake Way and into Hell on his way to train with King Kai, Goku meets up with people whom he never thought he'd get to know. How will these relationships change Goku's life as he goes through the trials and tribulations of the Universe. Find out now on Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty!
1. Chapter 1: A Family Reunion

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 1: A Family Reunion**

 _Snake Way..._

Son Goku laid on the back of the Snake Way street cleaner, enjoy a welcomed respite from his endless run down the spiral stretch of road. The saiyan slumbered, trying to regain the energy needed to go and see King Kai. He had less than a year, at this point, to train and grow and learn the skills necessary to deal with the two wicked saiyans that would be invading the Earth.

He slumbered and snored, blissfully unaware of the bumps and corners that the bulky vehicle had to navigate. And, as such, the saiyan from Earth was totally unaware as one mighty bump sent him flying from the back of the vehicle and over the side of the road.

Goku snored, blissfully unaware that he was falling directly into Hell.

 _Hell, Bloody Pond..._

Goku landed with a thud, the force of the fall knocking the wind out of him. He coughed and sputtered as he sat up, groaning and rubbing his aching back. "Wh-what's going on?!"

Goku got to his feet and looked around, taking in the sights. The pond of blood, the burning red sky, the mountain of spikes. "Is this...King Kai's place?"

From behind Goku, a voice called out. "Whoa! You actually survived that fall?! I was sure that you were on your way to a second death!"

Goku turned and stared in confusion at the source of the voice: a massive, blue fella with a single horn jutting from the top of his head. "Uh...King Kai?"

The ogre shook his head. "No. I'm not King Kai. My name is Goz!"

Goku cocked his head. "Goz, huh? So... you work for King Kai?"

Goz shook his head. "No! Ya damn fool! I don't work for King Kai! I work for King Yemma. He has me stay down here and help out with torturin' all the folks that end up here in Hell."

Goku nodded. "I see. That makes sense..."

And then, after a moment for this new info to settle into his thick skull, Goku began to panic. " _HELL?!_ "

Goz smirked. "Now you're getting it. You've landed in Hell, my friend. Fell off of Snake Way from the looks of it."

Goku was in shock. As he tried to stammer out a response, Goz was joined by a fellow ogre. This red ogre, with two horns on his head, marched up and spoke to Goz. "Did I hear you right?! This guy fell off of Snake Way and didn't die a second death?!"

Goz nodded. "I know! It's crazy, huh Mez?"

Mez nodded. "Super crazy."

Finally, Goku managed to speak. "Wait a second! I can't be stuck down here in Hell! I need to get to King Kai so that I can train to fight the saiyans that are coming to Earth!"

Mez and Goz both turned to Goku. Mez scratched his head. "Saiyans huh? It's weird to think that so many of them managed to survive after the planet was destroyed...I thought we had seen the last of them decades ago."

Goz shook his head. "You can imagine our surprise when, out of the blue, a saiyan got thrown down here a month ago."

Goku flinched back. He realized that the two of them must have been talking about Raditz. But, that didn't matter. He had to think of a way out of this mess. Earth wouldn't survive unless he made it there to help. Goku spoke up. "Guys! Please! You have to help me get out of here! If I don't make it to King Kai's place, everyone I know is going to die!"

Mez frowned. "It's a pretty weird request to ask for a way out of Hell. Most of the time, when spirits are sent down here they're here to stay. But...Goz?"

Goz nodded. "Seeing as you were given permission to run Snake Way, we'll see what we can do. We'll try to get on the horn with King Yemma to see if we can get permission to let you loose. So, until then, how about I try and help you train to pass the time?"

Goku smiled. "Really?!"

Goz nodded. "You seem like a good guy, so we'll try and help you out. Mez'll go and call King Yemma and we can wrestle to help you build some strength!"

Goku was pumped. Not only were these ogres going to try and help him get back on track, but he would even get some training out of the deal. With a skip in his step, Goku followed the ogres away from the Bloody Pond.

However, as he and his new friends went off, none of them noticed the presence hidden behind a nearby tree. A fair hand gripped the bark of the tree hard enough for it to crack. Whoever this was, they were not best pleased.

 _Hell, Training Grounds..._

After hours of grappling and sparring, Goku threw his new training partner onto his back. Goz gasped as the wind was driven from his chest. Goku smiled wide and snickered. "You're pretty strong, Goz!"

Goz chuckled. "So are you! Geez...I haven't been given this much trouble since that saiyan showed up..."

Goku, tired and out of breath, fell to his butt. "That saiyan you're talking about...was his name Raditz?"

Goz nodded and took a sip from his water bottle. "Yeah. He was a pain in the ass to deal with. Took forever to beat the power out of his soul, but me and Mez eventually managed..."

Goku was confused. "Beat the power out of his soul?"

Goz nodded. "Yeah. King Yemma makes us beat all of the evil power out of troublesome souls before we throw them into the soul purifier. Some give us more trouble than others. Like, when the saiyans all died way back when, that was a full year of chasing souls around with our clubs and beating 'em into submission. Managed to get most of 'em...a few wondered off and they're just stuck in limbo now..."

Goku nodded. "I see."

Goz sighed. "So, we had just beaten the power out of that Raditz guy and we were about to do some torture and then throw him into the soul purifier...but then he just went missing..."

Goku was shocked. "He went missing?"

Goz nodded. "Yeah. His loss. He could've been reincarnated as a better person...but instead he's just stuck in eternal damnation now..."

Goku shrugged, ultimately uncaring. "Oh well. You won't get in trouble for losing him, will ya?"

Goz sighed. "King Yemma'll probably dock mine and Mez's pay, but that ain't too bad. Might lose my gym membership for a month, but it's fine."

Mez came walking up, a grim look on his face. "Eh. I'll cover ya for the month, Goz. I have some money saved up."

Goz smiled. "Thanks brother. So, what did King Yemma say about our friend here?"

Mez frowned even harder. He turned to Goku and shook his head. Goku tensed up. "Wh-what's wrong?"

Goz sighed. "Was the line busy?"

Mez sighed. "No, but King Yemma is currently really backed up on paperwork. He won't be answering any calls for the next 8 months..."

Goku gasped. " _8 MONTHS?! What does that mean?!_ "

Mez sighed and helped Goz to his feet. "That means, Goku, that we can't let you leave until we get word from King Yemma. In other words, you're stuck down here with us..."

Goku's eyes widened. "But...I have to get to King Kai's place. I have to train...my friends are going to..."

Mez shook his head in shame. "I'm sorry Goku. I wish there was something we could do...I'm so sorry..."

Goz gave Mez a pat on the shoulder and sighed. "Don't beat yourself up, Mez. I'm sure that Goku understands that you can't just break the rules. We have to do our jobs. Right, Goku?"

Goku looked miserable. He laid back and stared up at the distant yellow clouds. "Yeah...I guess I don't want you guys to get fired..."

Goz frowned. "We'll...we'll give you some privacy Goku. Me and Mez'll head back to the office and try to figure something out. Maybe...try to shave a few months off of the wait...or something..."

And with that, the ogres stumbled away, leaving Goku to stew in the bad news. Eight months. He was losing eight months of valuable time to train and try and get stronger. At this rate...he'd never meet King Kai in time. And that meant that he might not be able to deal with the saiyans properly. Discouraged, Goku laid there and tried to think about what to do.

And then he jumped to his feet. "No! I can't wait for that!"

Goku glared up at the distant sky and slapped himself on the cheeks. "It's pretty far, but I should be able to fly that high."

Fire filled Goku's eyes. "No! I have to fly that high!"

Goku powered up and, with a leap, he took to the air. He had to make it for his friends and his family. He couldn't let anything stop him. He flew at top speed and, slowly, the clouds got closer. Goku gritted his teeth as he exerted all of his power to fly high up. "I have to go and see King Kai!"

Finally, Goku reached the cloud and smiled. He was home free. But, then, to his horror, something stopped him. An invisible barrier. He could see Snake Way. It was close enough to touch...but he couldn't make his hand go through. With a massive recoil, the barrier sent Goku shooting back down to the ground.

He landed with a heavy thud and groaned in the crater that he had made. "D-dammit...what was that...?"

And then, to Goku's surprise, a distinctly female voice answered him. "That was the Morality Barrier. You cannot pass through that barrier so long as you harbor a selfish desire for getting through..."

Goku turned to the voice. "A selfish de-"

Goku stopped mid-sentence from shock. Approaching him from behind was what was clearly a saiyan. She had jet black hair, a swinging tail, and gentle yet furious eyes. She marched towards Goku with purpose. Goku took a fighting stance. "Another saiyan?! I thought Goz said-"

With all of her strength, this female saiyan reared back and slapped Goku right across the face. She screamed in desperate anger as tears streamed down her face. " _HOW COULD THE BOTH OF YOU BE SO STUPID?!_ "

Goku held his stinging cheek as the woman began to weep. She wiped tears from her face and began to hiccup. "We tried so hard for you...we did everything we could to make sure you both lived..."

The woman screamed at Goku. "How could you and your brother kill each other like that, _Kakarot_?!"

Goku flinched. This woman called him by his saiyan name. A name that only Raditz had called him by before. Goku was confused. "Wh-who are you? And how do you know that name...?"

The woman clenched her teeth, tears still streaming. "How do you think I know that name you damned fool? My name is Gine! _I'm your mother!_ "

Goku gasped in shock as Gine continued to cry her eyes out. " _M-M-MOTHER?!_ "

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	2. Chapter 2: A Family Reunion, Pt 2

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 2: A Family Reunion, Part 2**

 _In a deeper level of Hell..._

Goku followed Gine deeper into the spiky depths of Hell. The mood was silent and tense. After her initial outburst, the Female Saiyan had fallen into a sad silence. Goku didn't know what to say...but she didn't feel untrustworthy. And the intense sadness on her face and in her voice genuinely made Goku feel bad. Finally, after a long while of just walking, Goku spoke up. "So... you're name my Mom...?"

Gine nodded silently.

Goku continued. "...and... your name is Gine?"

Once again, a silent nod.

Goku scratched his head. "And you're down here with Raditz and... my Father?"

Gine nodded again, this time with a grunt. Goku nodded. "Okay then... I think I get it. So, you guys are down here because you're all as evil as Raditz was, right?"

Gine's shoulders slumped. "Yes, Kakarot..."

Goku frowned. "My name is Goku, if you don't mind."

Gine turned and looked at him, letting a small, sad laugh slip out. "Yes...Raditz told me about how you 'went native' on Earth. But...you lead a happy, peaceful life...right?"

Goku smiled wide. "Life on Earth is pretty nice. I'm happy that I got sent there as a baby. Grandpa Gohan treated me well, and I made so many friends like Bulma and Krillin and Master Roshi! I love my life on Earth."

Gine cracked a sad smile. "You left the Saiyan race behind and lived a life you were happy with. As a Mother...I guess that's all I could really ever hope you'd end up doing. Racing to make sure your pod made it off of Planet Vegeta really was worthwhile..."

And then her frown came back. "If I had just been faster...I could have told Raditz about you and we could have avoided all of this..."

Goku was really confused. He bluntly asked Gine the first question on his mind. "Okay. So... the Saiyan's are evil but...why are you down here, Mom? You don't seem like the bad sorta person."

Gine shrugged. "I wasn't ever a fighter but...I guess I just ended up down here because of my relationship to the Saiyans. Our race was made of nothing but violent killers. It's not like we didn't have our death coming..."

Goku shrugged. "I guess if you feel that way. I just don't think you deserve to be down here is all..."

Gine warmly smiled. "I appreciate that Kak-"

She paused and then cleared her throat. "Goku."

Finally, the two of them arrived at the cave that Gine was living out of. She turned to Goku and sighed. "I know that we've just met but...could you please find it in your heart to try and forgive Raditz? We're all already dead and just...I don't want our existence to be spent in-fighting. This is the first time we've ever been together, as a family, and-"

Goku placed a caring hand on Gine's shoulder and smiled. "Sure thing, Mom. We can try and talk this out if it'll make you happy!"

Gine smiled and teared up. She wrapped her tiny, soft hands around Goku's larger hand and gave it a squeeze. "Thank you so much..."

Goku and Gine both walked into the cave together and Goku was surprised. A pseudo-home had been constructed in the cave. To stone slabs for beds, a basin full of water, and a pile of chopped meat from several hell beasts decorated the cave.

Goku looked around and eventually met eyes with Raditz, bound with chains on a nearby slab. Raditz glared at his brother with contempt. Goku glared back. And then...Goku's eyes fell on _him_.

Sitting at the back of the room, an intense look filling his eyes, the scar on his cheek casting a faint shadow as the light hit it, was his apparent Father. The intense Saiyan stood and Goku could feel his power. He was much stronger than Raditz and definitely stronger than Goku himself. The older Saiyan stomped up to Goku and glared right into his eye. There was a long silence.

And then, Goku swallowed the lump in his throat. "Y-you're...my Father..."

The Saiyan nodded. "I am. And you...are Kakarot?"

Goku nodded. "Y-yeah...I go by Goku now but...yeah..."

The older Saiyan sighed and closed his eyes, he seemed very calm as he stood there. Finally, he opened his eyes and nodded. "My name is Bardock. Pleased to finally meet you, kid."

Bardock offered Goku a handshake and Goku accepted. After that, he turned and walked back to his seat, sharing a quick look with Gine as he did. Once he sat down, Gine motioned for Goku to do so as well. While Goku sat, Gine picked up Raditz's chained form and sat him on the ground between Bardock and Goku. And then she sat opposite of Raditz.

Gine smiled, in spite of it all. "Our family...sitting in a circle together..."

She lowered her head. "I never thought I'd see the day...at least...I never thought I'd see the day this soon..."

Bardock took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Gine's calm speech instantly began to waver. She trembled in place and he voice cracked. "I never had considered that...you'd both be so young...that you'd both end up down here...that..."

Finally, Gine began to openly sob. "How could you two kill each other?! We worked so hard to make sure that you both lived. Bardock fought with Frieza and I made sure that Raditz's return orders never came and that...that Kaka...Goku made it off of Planet Vegeta in time and..."

Raw sadness overcame Gine's voice and her words just turned into inelegant blubbering. She sat there, shaking and sobbing into her hands. Goku looked guilty. He glanced over to Raditz and saw that, in spite of him still feeling evil, his older brother also looked as if he felt really guilty.

Bardock had a stoic look on his face that said this was something he regularly dealt with, but he didn't say a word. The all sat there for a good 10 minutes and just listened to Gine cry.

Finally, Goku spoke. "I'm so sorry, Mom. I tried to talk to Raditz and I tried to reason with him..."

Gine wiped her eyes and glared at Raditz with utter disappointment. "I've heard..."

Goku nodded. "He kidnapped my son and-"

Bardock and Gine both snapped at that. " _SON?!_ "

Raditz groaned, clearly having left that part out. Gine's eyes were still streaming with tears, but a gentle smile crept across her face. "You have a son...I'm...I'm a grandmother...?"

Goku smiled. "Yep. You're the Grandma to my son, Gohan. You'd probably love him, he's such a gentle little guy!"

Gine was giving a full-tooth smile. This was news to her, but it was just enough to lighten up her overcast heart. Bardock couldn't help but smirk. "My bloodline has continued..."

His smirk turned into a frown and he smacked Raditz on the back of the head. "The hell is wrong with you?! What kind of stupid bastard kidnaps their own nephew and threatens to kill him?!"

Goku cocked his head. "What did he tell you he did?"

Gine frowned. "He said that he kidnapped an ally of yours and threatened to kill them..."

Bardock shook his head. "That's the appropriate thing to do, but instead he kidnaps his own blood. Disgraceful."

Raditz finally spoke up. "What the hell do you people expect me to do? If I had come back empty-handed, Vegeta would have blown me into dust!"

Raditz snarled at his family. "You all sit here and act like you have the higher ground in this argument when two of you have been dead and one of you has had a vacation on Earth! Do you know what my life is like, constantly under threat of Vegeta killing me or Nappa killing me or one of the Frieza Force getting bored and killing me?! I was nothing in life and was hoping that maybe my brother, the only flesh and blood I had left, would be willing to side with me! And then I finally find him and he forsakes me for the inhabitants of a worthless planet like Earth!"

Goku frowned. "The people of Earth haven't done anything wrong! They're innocent people who can't even fight back!"

Finally, Bardock and Raditz found some common ground as they both shouted at Goku. " _Who cares?!_ "

Goku flinched back. Bardock spoke harshly. "We didn't send you to that planet to make friends Kakarot. You could easily have dominated that planet and served as their King if you put your mind and your strength to it. How could you ever consider siding with a bunch of worthless humans over your own brother?!"

The room was silent again. Finally, Gine spoke. "We...have no right to question Kakarot's life. We sent him to that planet with no one to teach him or guide him. If he found a different life that he's happy with, we have no right to disparage him for that..."

Bardock sneered. "He's behaving like a human rather than a Saiyan and-"

Gine screamed at Bardock. " _And look where acting like Saiyans got me, you, and Raditz, Bardock!_ "

That shut Bardock right up. Gine glared at her husband. "We're in Hell! Kakarot wasn't before he fell down here! He's in the right! We weren't!"

Bardock and Raditz both fell silent, neither had anything to say in response to that. Gine stood and shook her head. "I'm...I'm sorry K-... _Goku_. I'm so sorry, Goku. I wanted to have a family reunion but...let's just get you out of here."

Goku looked at his Mom, seeing the sadness in her eyes. He took her hand and she yanked him off the ground and out of the cave, leaving Bardock and Raditz sitting in silence.

 _Hell, The other side of Bloody Pond..._

Goku was confused as Gine lead him to an open area on the other side of Bloody Pond. "I don't understand, Mom. I thought you said that the 'Morality Barrier' was keeping me trapped down here. How are we going to get me out?"

Gine took a deep breath, wiping the tears from her face. "Goku, why do you want to escape from here? Tell me."

Goku cocked his head. "I want to save my family and friends from the other two Saiyans that are coming to Earth. So, I have to get to King Kai's Planet so I can get the strength to beat them."

Gine nodded. "And that's it? That's the only reason you want to get out of here..."

Goku smiled. "Well, I mean, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to fighting with these Saiyans too! I can only imagine how strong-"

Gine cut him off. "That's the problem!"

Goku was confused. "Wh-what?"

Gine shook her head. "Goku! You have to let that go or the Morality Barrier will never let you out of here! Your selfish desire to fight, no matter how small, will keep the barrier strong against your attempts to escape it!"

Goku's jaw dropped. "B-but...how do I get rid of that? I can't stop wanting to fight strong guys! I love fighting strong guys!"

Gine sighed and shook her head. "I swear...you really are just a nicer version of Bardock..."

Gine took and deep breath and smiled. "Well, worry not son! I'm your Mother and if there's a way to get you out of Hell, we will find it! Together!"

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	3. Chapter 3: Pure-Hearted Purpose

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 3: Pure-Hearted Purpose**

 _ **A/N: Sorry it's so late. Hard week. As a reward for patience, an extra-long chapter!**_

 _On the other side of Bloody Pond..._

Gine sighed and shook her head, unsure of what to do. Her son landed on the ground again and groaned as he held his aching back. "It's...it's just not working..."

Gine frowned. " _Ka_...Goku. You _have_ to get the selfish desires out of your head. For your family! You have to push the thoughts of wanting a good fight out of your head and focus exclusively on saving your family!"

Goku sighed and stood. "I'm trying! It's hard. I do want to save my family and friends! They mean everything to me...I just can't help wanting to fight such strong opponents..."

Gine groaned and rubbed her face. "You're just like your Father..."

She shook her head. "Come here."

Goku stood up and walked over to his Mother. Gently, she grabbed his hand and stroked it gently with her thumb. She sadly smiled. "The last time I held your hand like this...you barely knew me. Just a couple of days out of the chamber...dressed in armor that was too big for you...you were barely past being a baby..."

She looked up at him. "Do you remember, Ka-"

She stopped herself and cleared her throat. " _Goku_?"

Goku frowned and shook his head. "I really don't. I'm sorry. I fell into a ravine when I was little. Grandpa Gohan said that I nearly died."

Gine chuckled and shook her head. "Just my luck, honestly. I had always hoped that you would just forget the whole Saiyan heritage thing. Violent and hateful...I never expected you to make friends with lesser creatures like humans...but I'm not upset that you did like Bardock and Raditz are..."

Gine let go of Goku's hand and clasp her hands in front of her. "It almost makes me laugh that you forgot about us and just...had a better life as a result..."

She took a serious look on her face. "That's why you have to give up your selfish desire! You have a better life than we ever could have given you! You have a wife and child! You made a family to love you! And you can't let your Saiyan instincts get in the way of that Kakarot!"

Goku flinched. But, in his heart, he felt kinda happy. He had never really desired a mother before, but this feeling he was feeling was really nice. He watched as Gine blushed and started to correct herself. "I'm sorry. I mean, you can't let your instincts get in your way, G-"

Goku gently grabbed her hand and smiled. "You can call me Kakarot if it makes you more comfortable."

Gine looked up at her son and a wave of pure relief washed over her face. Her lower lip began to tremble and tears welled in her eyes. "Are you sure?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah Mom, I'm sure."

Once again, emotion overtook her and Gine started to cry. She leaned into her grown son's chest and just cried, enjoying every second of her hugging him. Her sobs echoed out across the entire Hellscape, sobs of relief. And, behind a nearby spiky rock, Bardock and Raditz both stood there with their heads hung low.

Goku smiled as Gine backed up and wiped her face. "Okay. Let's give it one more shot! You can do this, Kakarot! I believe in you!"

Goku nodded and pumped himself up. The Saiyan closed his eyes and focused. "Okay! Family! Gotta focus on my family! Gohan and Chi-Chi! This isn't about fighting strong guys! This isn't about pushing my limits! This is about..."

Goku leapt with all of the force he could muster, taking off like a rocket. " _MY FAMILY!_ "

Goku flew up towards the Heavens, one thought repeating itself in his head. "Gotta save my family! Gotta save my family! Gotta save my family!"

Gine watched as he flew up and smiled. From behind her, a gruffer voice spoke up. "You think he'll make it this time?"

Gine turned to see her husband and eldest son walking up, both staring up at the sky. She nodded. "I think he will. Kakarot is a good person, unlike us. He'll make it out of here."

Bardock grunted and closed his eyes. He reflected on the premonition that he had had as he died. "I think your right. Kakarot still has more to do in his life. He won't die to Vegeta and Nappa."

Raditz remained silent, staring up towards his brother with a hard, but noticeably not hateful, look in his eye.

 _Near the Heavens under Snake Way..._

Goku had his eyes shut tight as he got closer and closer to the Morality Barrier. His selfish thoughts were repressed. He was screaming his only goal in his head like a mantra. "Gotta save my family! Gotta save my family! Gotta save my family!"

Goku collided with the barrier and, to his surprise, it was much softer than before. He plowed into it and it stretched. He was going to do it! He was going to break through!

Goku cheered to himself as the barrier stretched. He could see Snake Way through the clouds. He was almost there! He closed his eyes and thought to himself as he flew up. "Mom! Thank you! Thank you so much! I would've been stuck without you!"

And then, the smile left Goku's face. "Mom..."

He glanced back down at the Hellscape below. "I..."

Goku didn't notice as the barrier got more rigid in an instant. He was too distracted by the thoughts and feelings he had for Gine. " _I don't want to leave you here...I want to take you with me..._ "

And then, with a snap, the barrier regained its former rigidity. And, like a shot, Goku was rebounded back to the ground below.

 _On the other side of Bloody Pond..._

Bardock, Gine, and Raditz all turned as they saw Goku disappear into the clouds. Satisfied that he had made it out, the three of them went back to continue their existences. Maybe, now that they had learned the fates of both of their kids, Bardock and Gine could move on and be reincarnated.

But, as they were about to flee back into the spiky expanse, a loud, rumbling crash smashed into the ground behind them. The three Saiyans ran up to the new crater and waited for the smoke to clear. Once it did, Gine gasped in horror as Goku pulled himself out of the ground.

Goku growled to himself. "D-dammit..."

Gine cried out. "Kakarot!"

Goku looked up at his Mother, seeing a mix of anger and fear and sadness on her face. Gine laid into him. "What happened?! You were so close! You were going to make it! You-"

Gine squeezed her eyes shut as tears of anger filled them. " _YOU IDIOT!_ "

Goku looked down in shame, sitting down in front of his family. "M-mom...I-"

Gine shook her head. "You forgot about your Saiyan side! You forgot about us! Why can't you just forget your instinct to fight?! Why can't you-"

Bardock stopped her from shouting. "Gine...that's...not it..."

Gine turned to her husband. "This is your fault! He takes after you! His awful Saiyan instincts come from-"

Bardock gripped his wife's shoulder tight. "Gine!"

She stopped mid-shout and looked into her husband's eyes. Bardock glared down at her and pointed over to a pile of spikes with his thumb. "Come with me real quick. We need to talk."

Gine swallowed a lump in her throat and nodded. "O-okay..."

Bardock and Gine both walked off, leaving Goku and Raditz alone together. The two brothers looked at one another and just...stared. After a few minutes, Raditz sighed and sat down next to his younger brother. "Kakarot..."

Goku frowned at Raditz. "What?"

Raditz growled under his breath, thinking back to him and Bardock alone in the cave after Kakarot and Gine had left. He remembered what his father said.

 _Earlier in Bardock and Gine's Cave..._

Bardock sighed and turned to his chained son. "None of this is on you. We aren't blaming you, Raditz. We didn't tell you. We left you in the dark for your own good...and that's on us. I agree with you that Kakarot siding with the humans was utterly stupid. But that's the life we sent him to live. Kakarot can't help the circumstances that made him... _him_."

Raditz remained silent, still angry at his fate. But, perhaps, just a bit regretful for what he had done. Bardock sighed. "Son...let your old man share something with you..."

Raditz turned to Bardock and Bardock closed his eyes. "You're aware of the attack I suffered on Kanassa. The one that gave me the ability to see the future..."

Raditz nodded. "Yeah. Vegeta thinks you were insane. I can't say that I disagree..."

Bardock shrugged. "Who honestly knows? I'm not here to tell you how to think. Call me crazy if you want to. But..."

Raditz glared at his father. "But?"

Bardock looked at his son with a look of total seriousness. "But when I was caught in Frieza's Supernova and was burning up, I had one last premonition. Your Brother...facing Frieza...and killing him. That was the last thought in my head. So, call me crazy if you will, Raditz, but just know that I believe wholeheartedly in that premonition. Kakarot is going to make it out of here...he's going to kill Frieza...and then he's going to live on."

Raditz grumbled. "So, what? What does that have to do with me? I'm dead. And I doubt that that is going to change."

Bardock nodded. "I haven't had a vision that has foretold otherwise. You're probably going to rot down here until you repent and stop existing. But..."

Raditz snarled. "Again, with that word! But what?!"

Bardock knelt down next to his eldest son and broke the chains that were binding him. "But if you were being serious when you told us that you just wanted to have your brother back in your life, then this is your last chance to clear the air with him."

Bardock helped Raditz to his feet. "I don't know Kakarot. Not anymore. I have the least personal relationship with him out of any of us. I don't care if he remembers me. But, if you want to find peace in your afterlife, I'd suggest you and him have a heart-to-heart of sorts."

Raditz lower his gaze to the ground and Bardock walked to the entrance of the cave. "I'm going to find your Mother and Brother. It's up to you whether you want to follow me or not."

Bardock leapt away and Raditz stood there, silently. And then, after a moment, he raced after his Father.

 _Back in the present..._

Raditz took in a deep breath and then let it out. "I was wrong."

Goku cocked his head. Raditz didn't look at his brother, he just stared out into the distance. "My life was miserable. Vegeta and Nappa made sure it was. Neither of them has any power in their life, so turning me into a punching bag made them feel better."

Raditz spat on the ground. "I wanted someone to hold power over. I wanted someone who would listen to me. I wanted someone to look up to me. I..."

Raditz closed his eyes and shook his head. "I'm selfish. And small. And weak. And what I did to you was desperate and cowardly."

Raditz turned to Kakarot and smirked. "But I guess am I kind of proud that you stood up to me...even if it led to this..."

Raditz pointed at his Halo and chuckled. "Hell. I'm thankful to not have to hear Vegeta and Nappa's voices anymore. So, I'm not going to be angry at you for defending yourself...and I'm not going to act like a half-hearted apology like this is going to make us friends..."

The older brother looked to his younger sibling with a solemn look. "But you have to promise me that you're going to stick your foot up Vegeta's ass when you fight him."

Feeling just a small bit of understanding between himself and his estranged brother, Goku nodded. "Of course. I'll beat him, no problem!"

Raditz chuckled and shook his head. "Then I guess I can rest in peace when all of this is over."

Goku sighed. "But...I still don't know how I'm going to get out of here. I nearly made it out, but another selfish thought popped into my head and-"

"It doesn't matter. We have a plan."

Goku and Raditz both turned to see their parents walking towards them. Bardock looked serious and Gine looked sullen. Bardock held his hands out for his sons to grab and jerked them both to their feet. Goku cocked his head. "So, you have a plan, huh? What is it?"

Bardock grunted. "If your too much of a dumbass to make it through on your own, then we'll just force you through."

Goku nodded. "Force me through, huh?"

Bardock nodded back. "Yeah. Nothing is impenetrable. You're just too weak to get through on your own. At least you are right now."

Goku pouted. "I am not weak."

Bardock snorted. "You're the third strongest person out of the four people standing here. Raditz said you're currently at about 416. Raditz is still quite a bit stronger than you at 1500 and I'm on a whole different plain from Raditz..."

Bardock pointed to the sky. "So, if he and I were to launch you at that barrier with all of our power combined, and Gine were to ride up with you and direct you properly, it should blast you straight through like a missile."

Goku nodded. "Uh-huh...I guess that makes sense. But...are you really that much stronger than Raditz? You don't feel that much stronger...like...if he's a 1500 your...a 2000. Right?"

Bardock wickedly smirked and powered-up to max. "I'll have you know, brat, that my power level is 10,000. I'm stronger than anything you've faced in your boring Earth life!"

Goku flinched back at the sudden pressure that was knocking into him. He was in awe at his Father's true power. Bardock smirked. "Now, Gine, grab on to him. Let's get this shit over with."

Goku turned to Gine and watched her quickly shake a longing, romantic gaze out of her eyes. "Y-yeah. Of course, B-Bardock~"

Gine quickly hopped up onto Goku's back, adjusting herself and wrapping her arms around her son from behind. After she did that, Goku stepped onto Raditz and Bardock's cupped hands. The two of them lifted him as high as they could into the air before they both began to charge their most powerful attacks.

Bardock called up to the two of them. "Gine! You know what to do! Just like we planned! Kakarot, shield you and your mother so that we don't obliterate the two of you!"

Goku nodded and quickly formed an energy shield around himself and Gine. Gine grabbed onto her son tight. Finally, Bardock smiled. "Okay then! Happy travels Kakarot!"

The energy blasts in Bardock and Raditz's hands swelled to maximum size and they both screamed at the top of their lungs.

" _ **WEEKEND!**_ " " _ **RIOT JAVELIN!**_ "

In a massive showing of force, the two more powerful Saiyans propelled their weaker family members high into the sky, putting out as much energy as they could stand to. Once his brother and mother were out of earshot, Raditz turned to Bardock. "Do you really think we'll be able to force them through?"

Bardock smirked and shook his head. "Honestly...Hell no."

Raditz flinched. "W-what?!"

 _Near the Heavens under Snake Way..._

Goku was aghast. "W-what do you mean forcing me through won't work?"

Gine sighed. "I'm sorry to lie to you like that, Kakarot. It's just...Bardock didn't want to embarrass you...he's a Saiyan who understands the concept of pride, so..."

Goku turned to Gine. "What do you mean?"

Gine kept her face buried in her sons back. "Kakarot...were you really prevented from coming through because...you didn't want to leave me?"

Goku tensed up. "I..."

He could feel the wet spots developing on his back. "Y-yeah...that's true. I don't know you that well, but you seem like such a good person. I never really thought about it before, and I didn't get a chance to with Raditz attacking me the instant he saw me...but I want to get to know you guys..."

Gine squeezed Goku tight. Goku frowned. "Mom. Are you okay?"

Gine buried her face even deeper into Goku's back, not wanting her son to see just how hard she was crying her eyes out. She squeezed them shut and thought back to the day he was taken out of his growth chamber. How, despite the other Saiyans mocking her, she just held him as tight as she could as close as she could. And how, despite the fact that he was asleep, he held onto her as well. Everyone in the birthing center jeered her for such a weak attitude, but Gine didn't care that day. Because, in her mind and in her heart, she was feeling true love.

Gine swallowed a lump in her throat and desperately sobbed into Goku's back. " _I'm so happy that I got to meet you._ "

Goku placed his hand on top of hers. "I'm happy that I got to meet you too. But, how am I going to get out of here if I can't be forced through..."

Gine sniffled and charged an energy ball into her hand. Goku called out to her again. "Mom?"

Gine ignored him as she thought back.

 _On the day that Frieza blew up Planet Vegeta..._

King Yemma's eyes were wide as he stared down at the innocent soul in front of him. "Excuse me?"

Gine smiled up at him. "I politely refuse."

King Yemma was dumbfounded. "You refuse? But...you're the only person from that miserable, evil planet that even qualifies. You don't have a single selfish or evil desire in you. You're practically the model soul to be sent to Heaven!"

Gine nodded. "I thank you for the compliment. But..."

Out of the corner of her eyes, Gine say Bardock's soul brawling with several ogres as they forced him onto the shuttle to Hell. "You must forgive me...my soul might belong in Heaven as you say...but my heart lies elsewhere. So, I'm quite sorry, but I choose to go to Hell."

King Yemma was stunned. He picked up his stamper. "Once I make this decision, there is not much that can be done to undo it. And once you are sent to Hell, your soul will be cleansed and reincarnated. You, as yourself, will cease to exist after a while. _Are you sure?_ "

Gine smiled. "I'm positive."

King Yemma bowed his head and sighed out of his nose. And then, he pressed his stamp onto Gine's form. And so, she was, alongside the rest of the now dead Saiyan race, sentenced to burn in Hell.

 _On the other side of Bloody Pond..._

Raditz scoffed. "What do you mean Mom came here by choice?! What the Hell does that mean?!"

Bardock sighed. "That's something to ask your damn fool of a Mother, not me. But...that doesn't change the fact that she is the key to getting Kakarot out of here."

Raditz was totally confused. "How?!"

Bardock glared up at the sky. "Raditz. Never forget this. Your Mother is a gentle, kind soul. She deserves better than to have to deal with three idiots like us. And yet, she chooses to anyways."

Raditz stared over at his Father in stunned silence.

 _Near the Heavens under Snake Way..._

Goku called back to Gine again. "Mom?"

Gine smiled and gave her son one last hug. "Kakarot. I don't know if you'll understand what I'm about to say. You're a Saiyan through and through, so you might not fully grasp what I'm about to tell you..."

Goku cocked his head. Finally, Gine pulled her tear-stained face from her sons back. "I love you more than you'll ever know."

Goku flinched. "M-mom?!"

Gine pressed the ball of energy into Goku's back, enveloping him in her spirit, wrapping him in her most selfless desire: that Goku make it back to his happy life away from his Saiyan heritage. In doing so, she shoved herself off of him. Goku reached out to Gine as she free-fell, getting further and further away from her son. She smiled at him and cried out at the top of her lungs. "Save your family and live well Kakarot! That's all I want from you!"

Goku, for the second time, felt that miserable pang in his chest. He watched Gine fall, getting further and further from him and becoming smaller and smaller as she did, and he cried out. "MOM!"

The two blasts smashed Goku into the Morality Barrier and, unlike before, he went through without an issue.

 _Snake Way..._

Goku laid there on the edge of Snake Way, staring up at the sky. It took him a minute to make himself move. Finally, he stood up and looked back over the edge of Snake Way. All he saw was a sea of yellow clouds. It had only been two days since he fell over the side of Snake Way...and yet he looked so longingly at the clouds.

" _Save your family and live well Kakarot! That's all I want from you!_ "

Goku shook his head as those final words from Gine rang out. And then, he turned and continued his sprint towards King Kai's home.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	4. Chapter 4: The Renewed Dynasty

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Okay! I'm back and no longer sick! Let's get cracking at this story again! Once more, and extra-long chapter to make up for it being so late!_

 **Chapter 4: The Renewed Dynasty**

 _Over the course of the next 3 months..._

It only took Goku two weeks to finish his sprint to King Kai's planet. The Saiyan moved with more purpose that he had been initially. His mind was heavy. But, eventually, he made it to the planet of King Kai.

The deity of the Northern Galaxy was impressed by what he had seen upon meeting this new traveler. He had heard from King Yemma that a new guest was headed his way, but he never expected to see them this quickly.

King Kai still put Goku through his signature test: telling a joke that would make him laugh. Most students that came his way didn't seem to get this test, but it was vital for King Kai's training. Not only did the boisterous God love a good joke, but he had to make sure that anyone who learned his techniques had the lighthearted nature and gentle mind to be able to fully access his style. Without a sense of humor, techniques such as the Kaioken and the Spirit Bomb could genuinely strain the soul and cause all sorts of problems for the user.

It took Goku a bit, but King Kai eventually got a passable joke out of his new student. And so, Goku's training began.

The Northern Kai was amazed at Goku's progress, watching as the Saiyan quickly ran through the training with both Bubbles and Gregory. His body seemed to be working overtime in order to progress. But, in his observations, King Kai also noticed something troubling. Something was weighing on Goku, something heavy. Something deep.

As Goku's power skyrocketed (achieving the Frieza Force metric of 4000 in such a short amount of time!), King Kai began to get to know him better. He learned about Goku's wife and his son and his friends on Earth...and yet the Saiyan was leaving something out.

King Kai sighed to himself as Goku took a nap to rest and regain energy. "I have to figure out what's eating at him...or he'll never be able to master the Kaioken..."

 _King Kai's Planet (8 months until the Saiyan's arrive) …_

Goku sat at the table and ate portion after portion of food, practically sucking it down faster than Gregory and Bubbles could deliver it to him. King Kai watched, attempting to read the Saiyan's mind through his facial expressions alone.

Eventually, the Kai gave up and simply began to ask a few easy, but probing questions. "So... Goku...you're a Saiyan too, right?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. Learned that about four months ago."

King Kai nodded as Goku continued to eat. He thought for a moment and then asked another question. "Are you curious about your heritage? I watched as the Saiyans died. I know a lot about them because I try to keep tabs on their benefactor. Maybe I could tell you about your family if they were infamous enough."

Goku shook his head. "I already know about my family. My Dad's name is Bardock and my Brother is Raditz. They're both pretty strong, although I've gotten a lot stronger than Raditz since I got here. Bardock is...still a lot stronger than me though..."

King Kai nodded, taking note of the tone of voice Goku used in describing his father and brother. An uneasy mixture of pride and just a bit of disdain. But, more importantly, King Kai noticed a glaring omission. "So, you know your Father and Brother...but do you know your mother? I've heard of Bardock and Raditz, but I could always ask King Yemma is Bardock had a mate when the Saiyans-"

Goku's tone was base. "Gine. My Mom's name was Gine."

King Kai flinched, hearing sadness out of Goku's voice for the first time. He turned and saw the look on the Saiyan's face as he stared at the bowl of rice in front of him. King Kai nodded. "Right. Sorry to have brought it up. No need to dampen the mood."

Goku blinked and shook his head. "Sorry! I didn't mean to space out there!"

He quickly finished his rice and turned to King Kai. "So! How about some more training?!"

King Kai nodded. "Of course. You need to build your endurance up more so that the Kaioken does not destroy your body. So..."

King Kai snapped his fingers and, on the other side of his planet, a marble-sized sphere of Katchin appeared. It landed on the ground and made the entire planet quake. "...you have to go and grab that marble of Katchin and carry it all the way back here, over your head, to me. If you can't do it in 3 days' time, I will make you start over! Understand?"

Goku nodded and immediately ran off. "I'll do it in two days!"

King Kai smirked and shook his head as Goku rounded the horizon. After a moment, the Saiyan cried out. "Jeez! This is really heavy!"

King Kai snorted and laughed out loud. He listened intently as Goku made small, heavy step after small, heavy step. Once he was sure that Goku was distracted, he immediately retreated into his house and picked up the phone. He dialed a number in and listened as it rang.

*click*

"Hello, King Kai?"

King Kai smiled. "Hey, Yemma. I have a favor to ask..."

 _Two days pass..._

Heavy breaths in and out, Goku made the final approach to King Kai's house. His muscles were aching and fatigue was setting in, but he refused to give up. He had been through some hard training before, and this wasn't going to topple him. He grunted and growled as he got closer and closer to King Kai's doorstep.

King Kai stepped out from the doorway and smiled. "So, you're back already? I guess you did say that you'd make it in two days."

The Kai snickered and Goku nodded, his voice hoarse. "Y-yeah..."

King Kai smiled. "Well, while you've been gone, I called and got you a special set of training partners. With them, your training should be much more effective!"

Goku wearily smiled. "Th-that's nice...training partners are...fun..."

Finally, from sheer fatigue, Goku fell over onto his face right in front of King Kai. The marble of Katchin fell, threatening to crush Goku's head, but was handily caught. Goku could feel someone standing over him and struggled to look up. "Wh-wha-"

A gruff voice responded. "Unable to carry a pathetic, little marble?! What kinds of disgraces did I help make?!"

Goku's vision was blurry, but he recognized the voice above him. Soon enough, another familiar voice joined in. "Shut up, Bardock!"

A gentle hand caressed Goku's face. "Are you okay, Kakarot?!"

King Kai sounded legitimately proud as he spoke. "He managed to gain quite a bit of power for the short amount of time that he's been here. When he wakes up tomorrow, he should have gained a whole, new level of power!"

Hearing those words, weariness finally got to the Saiyan from Earth. Goku gave one final grunt, and then he passed out.

 _One day passes by..._

With a grunt, Goku woke up. He creaked as he sat up in King Kai's bed and grunted. His muscles ached from having to haul the Katchin, but Goku smiled. He did feel stronger. A lot stronger.

Slowly standing up, Goku looked over at the bedside table and grabbed the clothes that King Kai had left for him. Goku grabbed the clothes and dressed himself as he though back to before he passed out. He remembered that something important had happened, but he couldn't make out what it was. Goku tried to think of what had happened, but was quickly snapped out of his thoughts by a familiar voice.

"Come on Raditz! You can take him! He's not as young as he once was!"

Goku's eyes widened at the sound of a voice. Her voice.

Quickly, quicker than he had expected actually, Goku sprinted out of the house. He looked around for the source of her voice, jumping when it sounded behind him. "Kakarot..."

Goku turned, his eyes wide, and he smiled at who he saw. Sitting next to King Kai, cup of tea in her hand, was Goku's thought to be long-lost mother, Gine. Goku smiled and, before Gine could get out a single word, ran up to her and hugged her tight. "Mom!"

Gine had a gentle smile, lovingly stroking her free hand down her sons back. "My Kakarot...it's so good to see you again...especially after I thought that I would never get to after-"

Goku interrupted her. He gently grabbed his Mom's shoulders. "How did you get here, though?!"

King Kai smiled and raised his hand. "That would be me! I could tell that something was up with you. So, after hearing about your family, I decided that maybe I could help clear your mind and improve your training by bringing all three of them here!"

Goku flinched. "All three-"

A fist slammed into the back of Goku's head, smacking him to the ground. He grunted in pain and cried out as something grabbed him by the back of his collar and threw him across the ground and into King Kai's apple tree.

Goku groaned and sat up, looking to his left and seeing his brother, Raditz. Raditz was heaving breaths in and out and looked over at his brother. "Hello Kakarot..."

Goku nodded. "H-hey Rad-"

" _SHUT THE HELL UP!_ "

Goku flinched and he and Raditz both turned to face the gruff voice that had yelled at them. Bardock, in all of his glory, glowered over his two sons. Goku stared up at the harsh, but nearly identical face of his father. "Bardock..."

Bardock nodded. "Kakarot."

And then, without warning, Bardock sprinted forward and punted both of his sons in the ribs, sending them flying. The older Saiyan stopped short as his sons went flying and called out. "I can't believe that I died to save you two little bastards and you repay me by staying weak!"

Bardock let loose a ragged sigh and ripped off his armor, armbands, and his signature headband. And then he cracked his knuckles. "But, don't worry! Daddy is here now and he's gonna make sure his little boys grow up to become friggin' men!"

Bardock took a deep breath and then sighed. And then, with a scream, he released all 10,000 of his power. "SO, GET READY FOR THE LONGEST, EIGHT MONTH ASS-KICKING OF YOUR LIVES!"

Bardock took off from the ground, soaring at his two sons as they both stood and landing a solid punch on each of them. They went flying and he charged again. Raditz took another punch, but Goku caught Bardock's fist. Bardock smirked. "Well, at least one of my boys knows how to fight..."

Goku grumbled as he struggled to hold back Bardock's fist. Bardock smiled. "So. You said you had a son, right? Teaching him how to fight like a Saiyan?"

Goku spoke through clenched teeth. "N-no... Chi-Chi wants him to be a... _scholar_..."

Bardock's smile faded. He closed his eyes, shook his head, and sighed. "You two are both such disappointments..."

Without so much as a warning, Bardock delivered a swift kick to the bottom of Goku's jaw, sending his son into the air. And then, he turned to Raditz and charged. Raditz held up his hands in fear. "D-dad! Wai-"

Bardock smashed Raditz in the face with his elbow. After that, he grabbed his son by the hair and swung him up in the air, smashing him into Goku and sending them both crashing to the ground in a heap. Goku and Raditz both struggled to stand and stared with just a bit of fear at their father. Bardock cracked his neck. And then, he charged at them again.

King Kai watched, with just a bit of horror, as the training/beating continued. "He...uh...your husband. He's...pretty brutal..."

Gine smiled and blushed. "Yeah...yeah he is..."

King Kai cleared his throat and sipped his tea as he and Gine sat there, watching as Bardock "trained" his two boys.

 _King Kai's Planet (5 months until the Saiyan's arrive) …_

King Kai and Gine both ate chocolate-chip cookies and watched as Bardock fought with Goku and Raditz. Gine smiled with pride and King Kai watched in awe. In a short three months, Raditz and Goku had both greatly increased in power. Bardock, despite his age, had also managed to gain in power just a bit. And, although he was still stronger than either of his sons on their own, the two of them together were quickly getting to the point where they could overwhelm Bardock in a fight.

Gine closed her eyes and focused. "So... I focus on the feeling of their energy...correct?"

King Kai nodded. "Yes. Just focus deeply and it should come through."

Gine bowed her head, eventually managing to feel it...if just a bit fuzzily. "If I had to guess...Bardock is roughly at 12,000...Kakarot is currently sitting at...a little over 9,000...and Raditz is trailing behind at 7,000..."

King Kai smiled at his student and nodded. "Indeed. Those numbers are about where they would be in terms of Frieza's metrics. But, can you tell me how far you've come along in the past three months?"

Gine blushed. "I... I'm not all that great. I'm certainly not a warrior like my husband or sons...just a mere 4000..."

King Kai gently scolded. "Do not sell yourself short. You might not be a natural physical fighter, but I am genuinely impressed at how well you handle the spiritual side of things. You've managed to master more in three months than half of the people who have ever shown up on this planet just through sheer effort!"

Gine blushed. "Th-thank you sir..."

King Kai shook his head. "Don't thank me. It's all your hard work that-"

Gine interrupted. "No. I mean... _thank you_..."

King Kai noticed that Gine was no longer looking at him, but rather out at her family. The Kai turned to see a wonderful sight. Two sons and a father, although trading blows with one another, all smiling with pride and comradery. King Kai, himself, smiled. "Oh! Of course."

Soon after, the training ended for the day and King Kai called everyone in for dinner. He watched, a bit aghast, as the family of four Saiyans demolished their way through yet another meal in a matter of minutes. Goku, Bardock, Raditz, and even Gine ate as if they had never seen food before. King Kai sat down to enjoy his own portion of the food and watched as the four of them interacted.

In the intervening three months, the dispositions of all four Saiyans had changed in major and minor ways. Goku no longer seemed uncomfortable with his family, genuinely wrapping his arm around Raditz's shoulder and eagerly addressing Bardock as "Dad.

Raditz no longer held a meek and severe demeanor. He seemed at ease with himself, happily joining his brother in taunting their father.

Gine had managed to shed her somewhat miserable shell. She smiled warmly and laughed, egging her sons along and joining in their playful jabbing at her husband.

And, as for Bardock, while he maintained his serious, angry outside...something inside had shifted. His voice when speaking to his sons no longer contained any hints of radical disdain, but rather the stern pride of a father. Even though he still called them weak, his words contained none of the venom from beforehand.

King Kai finished his portion of rice and then cleared his throat. The Saiyans all ignored him, so he tried again a bit louder. Still ignored, King Kai took a deep breath and yelled at his raucous house guests. "Hey! Everyone shut up and listen for a second!"

All four of the Saiyans turned to King Kai and King Kai smiled. "I am quite impressed with how much each of you has progressed. So much so that I think I'm definitely going to tell King Yemma that you deserve a place in the Other World, rather than Hell..."

Bardock, Raditz, and Gine all looked shocked. Goku smiled wide. "Oh! That's so cool!"

King Kai nodded. "Indeed. And, as an added bonus, I'm going to let you all in on training that I was originally going to reserve for Goku...I am going to teach you all how to do _the Kaioken!_ "

Goku pumped himself up. "Yes!"

Raditz was confused. "The...Kaio...what?"

King Kai nodded. "Yes. I think that all of you are ready. One of you has already gotten a rudimentary grasp of it! So, now, all you need to do is pass my test..."

Bardock raised an eyebrow. "Test?"

 _The remaining 5 months pass..._

And so, King Kai's training began. After some difficulty, and with a little help from Gine, Raditz was able to pass King Kai's test and tell a joke that made the deity laugh. Bardock, on the other hand, was a little less receptive of the challenge.

"Hell no! Jokes are stupid. I'd rather train myself than take part in some pathetic...comedy night!"

After her husband had stormed off, Gine smiled and shook her head. "Well...for obvious reasons...I think I am going to pass as well..."

Gine walked up to each of her sons and gave them a kiss on the cheek. "Good luck, boys. Just know that I know you can do it!"

King Kai was secretly happy that Bardock and Gine had chosen to abstain. It would be easier to focus on two students at once rather than four.

And so, the training began!

Goku and Raditz worked hard on utilizing the Kaioken. Their Saiyan endurance allowed them to test with and train in the form for much longer. They ran circles around the planet for hours on end, sparring with one another as they broke more and more hurdles. As their training wore on, they each managed to hit a hard limit. Raditz was able to reach a max of Kaioken x4 and Goku a max of Kaioken x6.

Bardock, meanwhile, trained on his own. The rebel Saiyan was used to honing his skills in private. His exceptional power had always made him unable to train with his inferior peers. He pushed himself closer to his limit each time he trained, breaking it quite a few times and finding a new basin of power to draw from. But, all the while, Bardock made sure to keep a wandering eye on his sons' training, observing their continued gains and the techniques they were learning.

And, as for Gine, she made sure to keep up a strict schedule of her own. 50 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, a 10-mile run every other day, and several hours of meditation.

Soon, before anyone had realized, 5 months had passed.

 **Final Power Levels** : Goku ( **11,000!** ), Raditz ( **8,500!** ), Bardock ( **15,000!** ), Gine ( **5000!** )

 _King Kai's Planet (The Day of the Saiyan Arrival) …_

Goku placed his hand on King Kai's back and called out. "Master Roshi!"

The Earthen Saiyan smiled wide upon hearing the familiar old voice of his teacher. "Goku! It's been a year! Are you ready to come back?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah, Master Roshi, I'm a lot stronger now! The Saiyans won't stand a chance!"

Master Roshi nodded. "Good good. We were a bit worried about all of this, but we all knew that you would come through, Goku!"

Goku smiled, listening through King Kai's telepathy as Master Roshi gathered the Dragon Balls from the chest in his closet. While he waited, he turned to look at Bardock, Gine, and Raditz. Gine stepped up to her son and smiled, gripping his hand. "We got to spend more time with you that I had ever expected to be able to..."

Goku nodded. "Yeah! It was a lot of fun!"

Soon, Gine was joined by Bardock and Raditz. The two male Saiyans were terse, allowing Gine to talk. The matriarch of the family sighed and squeezed Goku's hand. "It was nice to see you Kakarot...but please don't let us see you again for a long while. You have a full life ahead of you. Please, live it and don't die..."

The smile didn't leave Goku's face as he stared down at Gine and listened to Master Roshi summon Shenron. Finally, once the dragon was summoned, Goku bent down and hugged his mother. And, happily, he whispered into her ear. " _We_..."

Gine was confused. "We?"

Goku, turned from his family, spoke and interrupted Master Roshi mid-wish. "Master Roshi!"

Roshi responded. "Y-yes Goku?!"

Goku smiled. "I want to change the wish a bit. Instead of asking Shenron to just wish me back...please ask him to wish back me, Raditz, a man named Bardock, and a woman named Gine!"

Bardock's eyes widened. Raditz and Gine both flinched in shock. Master Roshi, on Earth, was shocked as well. "You want me to wish back Raditz?! But...he kidnapped Gohan and tried to kill you and-"

Goku smiled. "Please, Master Roshi. I know Raditz did wrong but...I want him and the other two to come back with me! They're my family!"

Bardock, Gine, and Raditz were all stunned speechless. Master Roshi shook his head. "Boy. Sometimes you just aren't right...but...okay..."

Roshi looked up at Shenron and called to him. "Eternal Dragon! I wish that Goku, Raditz, Bardock, and Gine were all returned to life!"

Shenron's eyes flashed. " _ **Your wish has been granted!**_ "

Goku took his hand off of King Kai's back and smiled at his family. After a moment, the halo above Goku's head disappeared. And then so did Raditz's. And then, after a moment, so did Gine and Bardock's halos.

Gine fell to her knees and placed her hand on her chest. "M-my heart...I can...feel my heartbeat again..."

Goku smiled. "Well yeah! You're alive, silly!"

King Kai warmly smiled as, with tears in her eyes once again, Gine immediately ran up to her son and hugged him tight. All the while Raditz and Bardock stood there looking genuinely stunned. Goku grinned from ear-to-ear. "All right, King Kai! Teleport us back to Earth please! We have Saiyans to fight!"

King Kai's smiled faded and he gasped. "W-wait a minute...teleport you...but..."

Goku frowned. "What's wrong?"

King Kai swallowed a lump in his throat. "I... I can't teleport you. The only way to teleport people here is one way, from Yemma's office to my house. It doesn't work in reverse..."

Goku's eyes widened. "B-but...it took me so long to get here in the first place. If it takes me that long to get back, the Saiyans..."

King Kai held up his hands. "N-now, it shouldn't take you that long to get back! Just a few hours at most."

Raditz interrupted. "In a few hours, Vegeta and Nappa could raze the Earth to the ground!"

Goku's face went white. "Oh no! Oh no! This is-"

Seeing the writing on the wall and now feeling fear all too real for his youngest son's home, Bardock immediately rocketed off down Snake Way. " _GODDAMMIT!_ "

Without so much as a pause, Goku took off in hot pursuit of his faster father, hoping that he would be able to make it in time. With a determined nod, Gine immediately hopped onto Raditz's back. "You're faster than me! We have to hurry!"

Raditz turned to face his Mom and Gine shouted. "Go Raditz! _I didn't get brought back to let my new family die!_ "

Raditz nodded and immediately took off as well, chasing after his father and brother.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	5. Chapter 5: The Return

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 5: The Return...**

 _Over Snake Way..._

Bardock shot over Snake Way like a bullet. He had no time to look back or to check whether he was leaving the others behind. He just knew that he had to make it over this endlessly long road and quickly. He hadn't seen Prince Vegeta since the man was a toddler, but he knew all about that idiotic thug, Nappa.

" _Chi-Chi wants him to be a scholar._ "

Bardock snarled. "Dammit..."

As Bardock flew, to his surprise, several more visions assaulted his brain all at once. He saw two battered bodies and ashes flowing in the wind. The older Saiyan shook his head and began to fly even faster. " _Dammit!_ "

Quite a ways behind him, Goku was flying along. He was surprised at how much faster Bardock was than him. Furthermore, he was equally as shocked that Raditz had managed to catch up, despite carrying Gine. Goku turned to his brother. "You're moving pretty quick!"

Raditz grimaced. "I've known how to fly for much longer than you have. But, it's not like it matters, Dad is beating us both in terms of speed. He's going to arrive before any of us do."

Goku nodded. And then, King Kai came into mental contact with him. "Goku!"

Goku looked around. "King Kai?!"

King Kai sighed. "Mental communication. I'm talking to you telepathically. I'm just letting you know that Kami is waiting for you at the Check-In Station. So, hurry! The Saiyans are already on the Earth and they're causing havoc!"

Goku nodded. "We're flying as fast as we can, King Kai. My Dad is probably going to arrive before any of us can. So, at least he can go and hold the Saiyans off while the rest of us rush to get there!"

King Kai nodded. "Okay Goku! Best of luck to you!"

Goku pushed the gas, trying to fly even faster. "Right!"

Up ahead, Bardock snarled as he flew. Another vision crossed his mind and he shuddered. " _DAMMIT!_ "

 _At the Check-In Station..._

Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all stood before King Yemma, their faces grim. Next to them was Kami, the Guardian of Earth. The old guardian stared up at King Yemma, speaking to him in a reverent tone. "Yes, King Yemma. Much like Goku, I believe that these three warriors are deserving of a trip to King Kai's planet to receive the same special training Goku has."

King Yemma nodded, glancing over all of the papers before him. "Yes. Each of them has died a valiant and noble death. Truly, they all display the spirit of a warrior. Furthermore, _both_ of Chiaotzu's deaths are quite honorable. I do believe that, given this, they-"

With a burst of pure power, a familiar form flew into the Check-In Station. Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all flinched back, trying to see through the dust that this person's landing had kicked up. Upon initial view, Yamcha smiled. He called out to the silhouette he saw. "Goku!"

Chiaotzu smiled wide. Tien was sterner. "Goku! Be careful when you get back to Earth, that big Saiyan Nappa is-"

Bardock roughly emerged from the dust and pushed past the three, dead warriors. "I know who Nappa is!"

He grabbed Kami by the collar. "Take me to Earth now, Namekian! I have to hurry or my grandson is going to die!"

Chiaotzu was confused. "G-grandson?"

Kami, while also confused, did not sense any dishonesty from this more intense version of Goku. He nodded, took Bardock's wrist, and immediately teleported them both back to Earth.

After they disappeared, Tien and the others were all left dumbfounded by what they had just seen.

 _On the Lookout on Earth..._

Mr. Popo flinched in shock as Kami and what appeared to be Goku wearing Saiyan Armor appeared from within the Lookout. "Goku" didn't even take a moment to address Popo as he threateningly grabbed Kami by the collar. The man snarled at him. "Which way?!"

Kami pointed to the southwest and Bardock immediately took off. Mr. Popo turned to his master. "Kami, who was that man?!"

Kami grumbled. "From what I can determine...that was Goku's biological father..."

Mr. Popo gasped. "Oh my!"

Kami sighed. "It has been an enjoyable life spent with you, Mr. Popo. I look forward to the day we meet again, old friend..."

Popo flinched. "K-Kami?"

But, before saying another word, Kami disappeared.

 _Back at the Check-In Station..._

Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu still stood confused. Who was that man that Kami had just taken back to Earth? Before this question could be thoroughly discussed, Goku arrived at the Check-In, accompanied by two other Saiyans, Raditz and an older-looking female.

Yamcha ran up to Goku. "Goku! What the heck is going on? Who was that other guy?!"

A frown spread across Goku's face. "Yamcha...Tien...Chiaotzu...I was too late...?"

Tien shook his head. "That doesn't matter right now, Goku. Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan are all still alive, but they're fighting that massive bastard, Nappa. I don't think they'll last very long, so I'm warning you to be careful!"

Goku nodded. "Right!"

Chiaotzu frowned. "Even if they somehow manage to beat that Nappa guy...I have the sinking feeling in my stomach that-"

Raditz interjected. "Your feeling is correct. Vegeta is _much_ more powerful that Nappa is. That's why we need to hurry!"

Raditz glanced around, looking angry. "Where the Hell is our way back?!"

Kami appeared before the Earthlings and Saiyans. "I am here. Your Father is already heading to the battleground as quickly as possible. I will now transport you three back to the Earth as well."

Goku nodded. "Right!"

He ran up and placed his hand on Kami's shoulder. Raditz and Gine did the same. As the three of them teleported away, Goku called over to his friends. "Yamcha! Tien! Chiaotzu! Don't worry! I promise that I'll find a way to bring you all back as quickly as possible!"

And then, they were gone.

Yamcha turned to Tien and, in spite of it all, he chuckled. "So... Goku found his family in the afterlife, huh?"

Tien nodded. "It looks like it, yeah..."

Above them, King Yemma's voice boomed. "That Goku is certainly something else. Such an increase in power in such a short time..."

The massive ogre picked up his stamp and stamped three papers. "Now then! You are holding up my line. You three are approved for the long walk of Snake Way. You may go and visit King Kai's Planet."

Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all looked at each other and nodded. And then, they all walked towards the back exit towards Snake Way.

 _Back on the Lookout on Earth..._

Kami arrived with his three Saiyans in tow and smiled. "It does me proud to see how strong you have become Goku. It is up to you to protect the Earth now."

Goku smiled. "You can count on it!"

And then, waving goodbye, Goku ran from within the Lookout, summoned the Flying Nimbus, and took off towards the massive powers he felt. Following behind him, Gine and Raditz departed as well. Kami sighed as they all took off. He had hoped they would make it...but he knew in his heart of hearts that it was too late. So, rather than force Mr. Popo to watch the inevitable, the Guardian of Earth simply slipped away back to the Check-In Station.

 _The Paprika Wasteland..._

Nappa stared in horror at what Vegeta had just said. "F-f-f-f..."

Vegeta's face was grave. "15,000. A power level of 15,000 is flying right towards us..."

Nappa shuddered. "15,000! But, that's ridiculous! How could-"

The scouter beeped again and Vegeta's pupils shrank. "11,000...8,500...and 5,000!"

Nappa's jaw dropped. Vegeta shook his head. "It must be Kakarot!"

As the two Saiyan's were freaking out about these new power levels, Piccolo and Krillin both gathered in front of Gohan. While the promised 3 hours weren't up, Piccolo could tell that the Saiyans would be breaking their agreement very shortly. The Namekian looked back at the scared young boy he had bonded with over the past year and snarled. "Gohan! Just...run!"

Gohan flinched and looked up at Piccolo. "Wh-what?"

Piccolo shook his head. "Krillin and I will cover your escape! Just leave! Now!"

Gohan's face dropped. He stood up and stared at Mr. Piccolo and Mr. Krillin's back. Both of them were fairly beaten up, but they both stood firm. Krillin nodded. "I agree with Piccolo, Gohan. Get out of here! That power that they're scared of...I don't know who the other three are, but I'm willing to bet that the strongest one is Goku! He'll take care of these guys once he gets here!"

Gohan trembled. "But, Mr. Krillin..."

Krillin shook his head. "No buts! Goku is my best friend, Gohan. I can't just let his son die! So, you get out of here as fast as you can and Piccolo and I will hold this big, ugly bastard off!"

Gohan was speechless. Fortunately, Vegeta spoke in his place. "There's no way in Hell we're letting any of you flee! Nappa! Kill all three of them, the sight of the corpses will throw Kakarot off guard when he shows up! Do it now!"

His face white, Nappa snarled and charged at the three warriors. He was fighting with an extra purpose now. He would be no match for 3 of those powers that had just shown up. He needed to do as much damage as possible to make it easier for Vegeta to work.

With his heavy right arm, the Saiyan brute smashed Krillin aside. The Earthling Warrior slammed into a rock and coughed up blood. Rather than worry about his counterpart, Piccolo immediately acted, vanishing behind Nappa and grabbing his tail.

Rather than be weakened, however, Nappa smashed his elbow into the top of Piccolo's head. The Namekian dropped like a stone and smashed into the ground. Nappa turned to Gohan and snarled, coating his hand with energy and going to behead the child.

He was stopped, however, by a Destructo-Disc smashing into his arm and slicing it completely off. Nappa roared in pain and was quickly booted in the face by a weakened, stumbling Krillin. The little human cried out. "That was for Tien, you bastard!"

Now one-armed, Nappa was livid. He moved to punch Krillin in the face, but was shoulder tackled by Piccolo. The Namekian screamed at the top of his lungs and sent Nappa sailing back with a Destructive Demon Wave.

Nappa landed on the ground, his entire front smoking. Vegeta, annoyed, called out to his subordinate. "Nappa! You damned idiot! Kill them now or I will do it myself!"

Vegeta leered at subservient partner. " _And you will be joining them!_ "

Nappa, terrified and angry, stood back up and faced the three warriors. Blood spurted from his missing arm and he roared. "You little pricks! I'll kill you all!"

Nappa took a deep breath and, with a scream, he fired his Break Cannon at the three of them. Piccolo's eyes widened. He knew that they couldn't stop that. Thinking fast, the Namekian threw himself in front of the blast, shielding Gohan and Krillin much to their surprise.

Piccolo braced himself for the worst, clenching his eyes shut. But the worst never came. Piccolo cracked his eyes open and stared in shock as it appeared that Goku was standing in front of him. However, something was off about this Goku. He was radiating something the Goku that Piccolo knew never had before: malice.

The light of the Break Cannon disappeared and Nappa gasped at what he saw. He recognized that face. The now one-armed Saiyan gasped in shock. "B-bardock?!"

Bardock sneered at Nappa and charged a blast in his hand. "Piss off, Nappa!"

Bardock flung his arm forward and launched a massive Riot Javelin at Nappa, engulfing the other Saiyan and blasting him into the nearby mountain range. He turned around to face Piccolo, Gohan, and Krillin and snorted.

Gohan looked up at the intense older man looking down at him and, to his surprise, didn't feel fear. The older man, in turn, didn't smile at the boy...but his eyes softened just a bit. Bardock glared at Piccolo and pointed in the opposite direction. "Take my grandson and get out of here."

Piccolo flinched. "Grandson?"

Bardock didn't answer. He turned away from Piccolo and glared at Vegeta. The Saiyan Prince was clearly livid. "Bardock, eh?! I've heard your name before, you low-class wretch! Just who-"

Bardock charged, mid-monologue, and booted Vegeta in the stomach. And then, he immediately launched the Saiyan Prince away with a heavy blast. Once Vegeta was gone, Bardock turned to Piccolo and gave the Namekian a solemn nod. And then, he chased after Vegeta.

Piccolo was still for a moment. And then, after swallowing hard, the Namekian turned to Gohan and Krillin. "We had better take his advice and retreat."

Krillin nodded, grabbing Gohan's wrist. Together, the three warriors beat a hasty retreat from what was surely soon-to-be a warzone. However, in their retreat, they did not notice the nearby rubble shifting.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	6. Chapter 6: Grandson

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 6: Grandson**

 _To the east of Paprika Wasteland..._

Piccolo, Gohan, and Krillin were all slowly flying away from the battleground. With a grave look on his face, Krillin stared down at Tien and Yamcha's corpses. "We...we have to go to Kame House and get Bulma and Master Roshi to come and pick those two up. They at least deserve a proper burial of some kind..."

Piccolo sneered. "What are you talking about? The Dragon Balls will be active again in a year. Why bury them when you can just preserve them and wish them back?"

Krillin nodded. "I guess that that's a good point..."

Piccolo turned his attention back at Gohan, who was trailing a bit behind them. "Gohan? Are you okay?"

Gohan nodded. "Y-yeah...I'm fine..."

The little half-Saiyan said he was alright, but there was something else going on in his head. That guy that showed up and saved them was getting to Gohan. He looked like his Daddy but, something was harsher about him. His eyes were cold and his voice was different. Who was that guy?

Gohan continued to fly behind Piccolo and Krillin as the two of them talked. Krillin glanced over at Piccolo. "So... that guy that looked like Goku..."

Piccolo shrugged. "I have no idea who that was. He did look like Goku, yeah, but he felt a lot different. And his fighting style was certainly not Goku...that idiot would've fought Vegeta one-on-one, fair and square. He wouldn't have sneak attacked like that to start a fight..."

Krillin nodded. "So, if that wasn't Goku, then where is-"

As if on cue, Krillin's question was answered as Goku quickly soaring up to the three of them. Krillin, Piccolo, and Gohan all reacted to the friendly, familiar face of Goku. Goku smiled at his friend, his son, and his former enemy. "Gohan! Krillin! Piccolo! It's nice to see that the three of you are alive!"

Krillin, ecstatic to see his friend again, flew up to Goku and hugged him tight. "Goku! It's good to have you back, buddy!"

Goku smiled. "It's good to see you too, Krillin. And Piccolo! You're looking great, buddy. You got a lot stronger too!"

Piccolo grunted as Goku complimented him, silently intimidated by how much stronger his mortal enemy had gotten in under a year. Finally, Goku looked past Piccolo and smiled at his son. "Gohan! It's been a while. You're looking good, buddy! You got a lot stronger too!"

Tears built in Gohan's eyes. "D-daddy..."

Goku smiled wide. "I'm proud of you, Son."

Gohan started to sob and flew forward at top speed, smashing into Goku's chest. "Daddy!"

Goku hugged his son as the little guy sobbed. "Daddy! I missed you so much! Mr. Piccolo trained me to fight, but I was so scared! Those ugly, green monsters came and Mr. Yamcha and Mr. Tien and Mr. Chiaotzu...they all..."

Goku hugged his son tight. "I know, Son. I'm sorry. I wasn't fast enough..."

Gohan sniffled and looked up at his father. "And then...a man that looked like you showed up and beat up that mean Nappa guy and then he-"

Goku smiled wide. "Oh yeah! I have to catch up to him!"

Krillin looked up at his best friend. "Goku...who was that guy?!"

Goku smiled and spoke bluntly. "That was my Dad!"

Piccolo's eyes widened. "Your...Dad?!"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. My Dad. His name is Bardock!"

Goku gave his son a gentle pat on the head. "Gohan! Once all of this is over, I some people to introduce you to! You have two grandpa's now! And a grandma!"

Gohan stared up at Goku. "Two grandpa's...and a grandma?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. They're going to love getting to meet you! But, for now..."

Goku's turned a bit more serious. "Which way did my Dad go? You said that he beat up that Nappa guy, so he must be fighting Vegeta, right?"

Krillin nodded and pointed. "Yeah. He kicked him hard and they both went that way..."

Goku looked to the northeast and nodded. "Got it. I have to go and help him fight. Piccolo! Krillin! Could I ask you guys to watch over Gohan for just a little longer, please?"

Krillin nodded. "Of course! We'll keep an eye out for him, right Piccolo?"

Piccolo grunted and nodded, seemingly shaken by something. Goku cocked his head briefly, and then he smiled. "Don't worry, Piccolo! I'm sure you'll be able to train and catch up in no time! Then we can duke it out again!"

Piccolo snarled and glared at Goku. "Piss off and don't pity me!"

Goku nodded. "Right right. Sorry. I catch up with you guys later! Stay safe!"

Goku immediately flew off in the direction of the Gizard Wasteland. Krillin and Gohan both stared at him with pride while Piccolo mainly looked angry. Krillin turned and glanced up at Piccolo. "Are you okay, Pic-"

Piccolo sneered. "Shut your mouth before I break your neck!"

Krillin immediately clammed up. Gohan glanced up at the friend he had made over the past year. "Mr. Piccolo?"

Piccolo sighed. "I... I'm sorry. Let's just go. I get the feeling that things are-"

Coming from behind, a shadowy figure smashed Piccolo in the back of the head, sending the Namekian sailing to the ground below. Piccolo smashed into the ground hard, blood gushing from his mouth and his back cracking, and his did not move.

Krillin and Gohan both screamed in terror as they stared up at Piccolo's attacker. With only one arm and a menacing sneer on his face, Nappa glared at Gohan and Krillin. "Did you little bastards...really think...I'D LET YOU ESCAPE?!"

Nappa reached down to grab Gohan by the throat, but Krillin shoved the boy out of the way. Nappa shrugged. "Ah well. Killing you first won't be a problem!"

Nappa wrapped his massive, remaining hand around Krillin's head and began to squeeze. A sickening crunching could be heard as the saiyan brute's hand squeezed tighter and tighter. Krillin's eyes were squinted in utter pain, but he glared over at his best friend's son. "G-Go-Gohan..."

Gohan was trembling. "M-Mr. Krillin!"

Krillin screamed as at the scared, young boy. " _GO!_ "

Tears of fear running down his face, Gohan followed his orders. He turned and attempted to fly away. Nappa snarled. "Like Hell!"

He dropped Krillin's limp form and immediately charged up a massive Murder Grenade. He heaved the killing blast at Gohan and smirked as the charged shot made contact. In a mass of flames, a form fell from the sky and collided with the ground. Nappa was raggedly breathing as he followed it. "I'm gonna enjoy this... _slowly_..."

On the ground, Krillin struggled to get up. He stared over at the burning heap on the ground and heard the sounds of loud crying. He called out. "Gohan!"

Across the field, Gohan's crying continued. But, not for the reason Krillin thought. The young boy was burning his hands as he attempted to pat out the fires, tears running down his face as he begged at the top of his lungs. "Mr. Piccolo! Please! Please wake up!"

Laying on the ground, his body still smoldering, Piccolo was barely able to open one eye. "G-Gohan..."

Gohan whimpered. "M-Mr. Piccolo..."

Piccolo took a deep breath and coughed up a spurt of purple blood. "Y-you have to run...kid..."

Piccolo's eye was glazing over as the life was slowly leaving his body. "Krillin and I... we can't stop him...Krillin's too weak and... I can't...feel...my legs..."

Gohan was sobbing as Piccolo talked to him. "You...you have to stop crying and run...he's coming..."

Nappa quickly interjected. "Wrong. I'm already here!"

Piccolo frowned and pushed himself up with his remaining, good arm. "I... I'll try to hold him off...just run Gohan..."

Gohan was terrified as Nappa loomed over him and Piccolo. The saiyan brute had murder in his eyes and Gohan knew he was no match...but the boy put himself in-between Piccolo and Nappa. "I... I won't let you kill Mr. Piccolo!"

Nappa smirked. "Oh really?! Well then, brat, hit me with your best shot!"

Piccolo grunted. "G-Gohan..."

Gohan had tears in his eyes, but he screamed at the top of his lungs. "MASENKO!"

Nappa flinched, but he beaten form was unable to dodge as the younger Saiyan's blast smashed him in the face. The saiyan brute toppled back and flopped onto the ground. Gohan was heaving breath in and out and as he stared at the fallen Saiyan. "Did...did I-"

Nappa immediately got back onto his feet and roared in rage. His face was burnt and he was missing two teeth. "YOU LITTLE BASTARD!"

Gohan had no time to react as Nappa launched at him, his remaining arm drawn back for a slice. "I'LL KILL YOU!"

Krillin cried out. "Gohan! RUN!"

Gohan screamed in terror and feebly tried to block. Piccolo and Krillin both tried to get up but to no avail. All looked to be lost. But, as the massive arm of Nappa came crashing down, it suddenly stopped. Gohan cracked his eye open and looked up. And then, the young boy stared in awe at what he saw. It was a woman, and older woman. She had a tail just like Gohan used to have that swayed to-and-fro and she stood. Her form was petite, but she was standing strong as she gripped Nappa's arm tightly.

Gohan stammered. "Wh-who...?"

The woman didn't hear him. Her mind was elsewhere. She seethed at Nappa as she wrenched his arm back. "How dare you attack my grandson?!"

Gohan flinched. "Grandson?!"

The woman kicked Nappa in the gut and, with a mighty swing, she tossed the lumbering oaf across the battlefield. And then, with a flourish, she turned and faced the boy behind her. The two of them stared at one another, both of their eyes gently looking over each other. Gohan's jaw trembled as he looked up at this peaceful looking woman that had saved his life. "M-my name is Gohan..."

After a moment, tears built in the woman's eyes and she smiled. "Y-yes...I'm heard so much about you...my name is-"

Nappa roared, getting back up and charging from behind. "GINE! YOU LITTLE WEAKLING BITCH!"

Nappa's charge was stopped short by another arrival. The saiyan brute snarled. "Wh-what?! Raditz?!"

Raditz smirked. "Hi Nappa."

And then, with another massive kick, Nappa was sent flying again with Raditz giving a quick pursuit. The older brother of Goku only had one thought on his mind, and that was how sweet revenge would be!

As Raditz used Nappa as a punching bag, Gine turned back to her grandson and smiled. "Gohan..."

She knelt down and gently gripped his hand. "You don't know me. But, my name is Gine and... I guess I'm..."

Gohan finished. "You're my grandma, right?"

Gine flinched and then nodded. "Yes. I am your grandma~"

Gohan smiled and nodded. "D-daddy told me about you when we saw him a few minutes ago. He said that I was going to get a grandma. I've never said a grandma before, so...this is strange...but in a good way."

Gine gently smiled. "Gohan...may I hug you?"

Gohan hesitated at first, but after a moment and a quick look into Gine's genuine eyes, the young boy nodded. "Yeah. That would be nice!"

Slowly, the older Saiyan woman wrapped her arms around her newly met grandson. She held him in a tight embrace, pulling him close and squeezing gently, but firmly. And, after a moment, Gohan hugged her back. Gine closed her eyes and let it sink in, this feeling that she never thought she would be allowed to experience: Gine was officially a grandmother.

The moment, however, was interrupted by a ghastly cough. Gohan and Gine both flinched as Gohan looked over at the dying form of Piccolo. "Mr. Piccolo!"

Separating from his grandma, Gohan ran over to his dying friend and protector and began to sob again. "Why did you do that, Mr. Piccolo?! Why did you jump in the way like that?!"

Gine ran up as well, kneeling next to Gohan. Piccolo coughed again and raggedly answered. "H-how should...I know? My body...it just...moved on its own. I just...I didn't want you...to die..."

Gohan began to sob, placing his hand on Piccolo's back. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Piccolo...please don't die..."

Gine laid her hand on his shoulder. "You poor Namekian...you gave up your life to save my grandson?"

Piccolo glared over at Gine. "You're Goku's mother?"

He sneered and rolled his eyes. "I... I see where that idiot...gets his vacant expression from..."

Meanwhile, Nappa and Raditz fought. Nappa roared and screamed as he attempted hit after hit after hit on his former punching bag, but with no progress being made. Nappa screamed as loud as he could. "GODDAMMIT! WHY CAN'T I HIT YOU?!"

Raditz caught Nappa's fist and slammed his elbow into the side of the older Saiyan's skull. "The days of you hitting me are over, you aging embarrassment!"

Raditz wrenched Nappa's hand and twisted his wrist. "I am no longer weakling fodder for you to scoff at and push around! I am Raditz! Son of Bardock! And you are nothing!"

Raditz kicked Nappa in the chest and sent his massive form flying back. The cocky Saiyan smirked until he saw what he had done. Nappa was flying right towards Gine, Gohan, and Piccolo. Raditz panicked and called out. "Mom! Look out!"

Gine turned and saw Nappa flying at them. She cried out. "Gohan!"

Gine grabbed her grandson, but Gohan was not willing to go along, pulling himself from Gine's grip, the boy launched himself right into the fray. "Mr. Piccolo!"

A loud crash erupted as Raditz quickly ran up to join his Mother. "Mom, are you-"

Gine slapped Raditz on the arm. "Raditz! You just launched that bulky bastard at your own nephew! How could you be so careless?!"

Raditz struggled to come up with a response, but he luckily didn't have to. Nappa was more than happy to speak for him. "I'm not complaining!"

Gine and Raditz both glared over at Nappa, but then Gine gasped. Gripped tight in his hand, Nappa was holding Gohan by the throat, choking the boy. The battered Saiyan stepped over Piccolo's body and sneered at Gine and Raditz. "Now, let's discuss how I'm getting out of this. You two let me go back to my Pod, with this boy as my hostage, or I'll kill him right here!"

Gine was cowed. Raditz was furious. "Put the boy down, coward!"

Nappa snorted. "Like you're one to talk, weakling! You took this brat hostage just as easily as I did. Now, start flying in the other direction! I don't want you f-"

" _ **SPECIAL BEAM BLAST!**_ "

Nappa screamed in pain as blood erupted from his mouth. The purple, drilling beam flew through his body like a knife through butter and staggered the brute. Piccolo, nearly out of lifeforce, called out. "Krillin! Use your Destructo-Disc!"

Krillin leapt up, still heavily damaged, and tossed his Super Destructo-Disc as hard as he could

The flying disc of cutting energy soared through the air and sliced through Nappa's remaining arm, robbing the Saiyan of his other hand. Piccolo caught Gohan mid-air and tossed the boy away. And then, knowing that his time was up, Piccolo screamed at Raditz and Gine. "Kill him, dammit!"

Raditz didn't hesitate, charging up a massive blast. Gine briefly did, sadly glancing at Piccolo and mouthing a silent "thank you". And then, mother and son both launched their blasts towards Nappa. " _ **DOUBLE SUNDAY!**_ " " _ **MOTHER'S BLAST!**_ "

The two massive blasts went flying right at Nappa and Piccolo. Nappa screamed in terror, but Piccolo merely closed his eyes and smiled. The blast engulfed them both and, once all was said and done, there was nothing left of either of them. Nappa and Piccolo were both dead.

Gine sighed and immediately ran towards Gohan. She and Krillin both arrived to the boy at the same time to check on him. Raditz stood stalwart, watching from a distance. He flinched and sighed as, once they had finally noticed him, Gohan and Krillin both scowled. Raditz nodded. "I guess I deserve that..."

The Saiyan turned and looked towards the bevy of explosions erupting on the horizon. His Father, Kakarot, and Vegeta were having a war. Raditz glanced over his shoulder and called to his mother. "Mom. I'm going to help Dad and Kakarot in their battle. Are you going to-?"

Gine waved at him. "I'll catch up in a moment, Raditz. I just need to check-up on Gohan!"

Raditz nodded and sighed. "Right..."

And then, the brother of Goku took off, leaving Gine alone with Gohan and Krillin. Gine knelt down and placed a gentle hand on her sobbing grandson's back. The boy whimpered and wiped his eyes. "Mr. Piccolo..."

Gine frowned and tried to gently comfort the boy. "I'm so sorry, Gohan..."

As Gohan continued to cry, Gine turned to Krillin. "Excuse me, would you mind taking my grandson to safety? I don't wish for him...or you for that matter...to be caught in the crossfire..."

Krillin was trying to fight back tears himself. Piccolo was gone. As far as he could think, at least at the moment, there was now no way for them to wish any of their friends back. Vacantly, Krillin placed a staying hand on Gohan's back and nodded. "Of course, I'll watch him...but I need you to do me a favor too..."

Gine looked at Krillin and Krillin stared back at her. "I've watched all of my friends die today...please don't let Goku die again, too..."

Gine swallowed a lump in her throat and nodded. "I promise you that, as long as I can fight, my son will not die again."

Krillin nodded and Gine nodded back in solidarity. And then, knowing she was headed for a war, Gine took a deep breath and then flew off. Once she was gone, Krillin helped Gohan to his feet and sighed. "Let's get back to Kame House, Little Buddy."

But, as the two of them were about to take off, another voice called out. "Wait a minute, Krillin!"

Krillin and Gohan both turned and Krillin flinched in surprise. "Yajirobe?!"

 _Meanwhile, on the far, far side of Gizard Wasteland..._

Vegeta was livid as he angrily stood above Bardock. The lower class Saiyan was powerful, yes, but Vegeta still stood slightly above. The Saiyan Prince was dirty and scuffed, but he looked down on Bardock with prideful contempt. "I will give you this, trash...you are certainly a lot stronger than Nappa."

Vegeta stepped forward and aimed a charged blast at Bardock. "Now, I give you an option as the second strongest being on this planet...you can either join me, the strongest being on this planet, or you can die!"

Vegeta snarled at Bardock. "Make your choice!"

Bardock, beat and battered, stood up and glared at Vegeta. No matter what the Saiyan Prince thought, this fight wasn't over yet. Vegeta roared at Bardock. "Well?! What is your choice?!"

Bardock glared up at Vegeta and gave a blunt response. " _Kaioken!_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	7. Chapter 7: Bardock vs Vegeta

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 7: Bardock vs. Vegeta**

 _A few minutes earlier, the Gizard Wasteland..._

Vegeta hit the ground with a thud, sliding on his back and eventually collapsing into a tumble. The Saiyan Prince rolled along the ground, catching a rock with his hand and using it to get himself back to his feet. He skidded to a halt and then looked at the sky with disdain. Vegeta sneered and fired a massive Garlic Breaker into the sky. Bardock, coming in for a hot landing, cursed under his breath and fired a blast to his right, using it to propel himself out of Vegeta's line of fire. Bardock landed on a rocky spire across from Vegeta and the two Saiyans glared at each other.

A long pause followed.

After a few moments of dusting himself off and surveying the damage to his armor, Vegeta glared over at Bardock and smiled. "I must admit, for a piece of low-class trash, you've managed to become quite a bit stronger Bardock. What hole have you been cowering in for the past 20 years to gain such strength?"

Bardock snarled and spat at Vegeta. "Shut the Hell up!"

Vegeta raised a placating hand. "Now now. Don't get testy. I'm not trying to insult you, I'm genuinely impressed. So impressed, in fact, that I might actually consider replacing Nappa's useless ass with you if you'll hear me out..."

As Vegeta droned on, Bardock looked over the damage that he had managed to do. Other than scuffing the Prince's clothes and cracking that armor on his stomach, Bardock's surprise attack had done very little. Vegeta might have been slightly injured in the initial scuffle, but he wasn't all that hurt. Bardock narrowed his eyes and began to mull over what he would have to do. Vegeta felt like he was about an 18,000 compared to Bardock's 15,000. Bardock would be able to hold him for a bit, but Kakarot and Raditz would need to show up to finish him off safely.

Bardock gripped his fist tight and sighed. Once again, he launched forward hoping to catch Vegeta off guard, but the Saiyan Prince was prepared. He smirked and grabbed Bardock by the wrist, heaving the older Saiyan into the sky and slamming him onto his back. He launched a fist forward, but Bardock caught it and held tight. He threw out his hand and fire a barrage of ki blasts at Vegeta, doing light damage to the Prince. Vegeta snarled, annoyed, and kicked Bardock hard in the side and smashed him into a rocky spire.

Bardock coughed up blood and tumbled down to the ground. He quickly pushed himself up and wiped his mouth, whipping another large blast at Vegeta and catching the Prince on his right arm. Vegeta's armor was wrecked and his arm numb, Bardock was pissing him off!

Vegeta flew forward and punched Bardock hard in the stomach. Bardock shuddered in pain, but he grabbed Vegeta's wrist again and twisted the Prince mid-air. Vegeta sneered as Bardock kicked him in the face several times before pulling Vegeta under him and using his falling momentum to grind the younger Saiyan into the ground. Bardock flipped off of Vegeta and drew his hand back. With a roar, Bardock shot forth a massive Riot Javelin. Vegeta stood and glared, but didn't back down. Taking a deep breath, the Prince took the attack head on. The energy of the blast engulfed him, but Vegeta smirked. He drew out his own power and overrided Bardock's energy with his own, taking control of the blast and reversing it, firing it back at Bardock.

Bardock's eyes widened and he was barely able to cross his arms in front as some sort of meager defense before the blast connect and sent him flying back, burying him in rubble.

Vegeta glared down at the rubble pile with a sour look on his face and watched as Bardock, face covered in blood, pulled himself back to his feet. Bardock smirked and he heaved for breath. "Is... that all you have...runt?!"

Vegeta was livid as he angrily stood above Bardock. The lower class Saiyan was powerful, yes, but Vegeta still stood slightly above. The Saiyan Prince was dirty and scuffed, but he looked down on Bardock with prideful contempt. "I will give you this, trash...you are certainly a lot stronger than Nappa."

Vegeta stepped forward and aimed a charged blast at Bardock. "Now, I give you an option as the second strongest being on this planet...you can either join me, the strongest being on this planet, or you can die!"

Vegeta snarled at Bardock. "Make your choice!"

Bardock, beat and battered, stood up and glared at Vegeta. No matter what the Saiyan Prince thought, this fight wasn't over yet. Vegeta roared at Bardock. "Well?! What is your choice?!"

Bardock glared up at Vegeta and gave a blunt response. " _Kaioken!_ "

Vegeta's eye twitched. "Kaio _wha_ -?"

Bardock launched at Vegeta like a missile and buried his foot into the Prince's stomach. Vegeta coughed up a jet of blood and went flying back. Bardock zipped past the Prince's speeding body and stopped behind him, using another hefty kick to smash Vegeta into the ground.

Bardock roared and flew down towards Vegeta. However, as he launched himself at the Prince, a very loud and angry voice screamed in Bardock's mind. " _WHEN DID YOU LEARN THAT TECHNIQUE?!_ "

Bardock slapped the side of his head and snarled. "Shut the Hell up, Kai! I'm busy!"

 _On King Kai's Planet..._

King Kai shook his head. "No! You must stop! You don't understand! You haven't been taught how to properly use the Kaioken! You don't know the intricacies or the form! If you keep using it-"

Bardock interrupted. "If I keep using it, I put a stop to Vegeta right here and right now! Now shut up and let me do my job!"

King Kai clenched his teeth. "You need to listen to me you idiot!"

Nothing in response. King Kai shook his head and screamed as loud as he could. " _ **IF YOU KILL YOURSELF USING THE KAIOKEN, THEY CAN'T WISH YOU BACK, YOU FOOL!**_ "

 _Back on Earth..._

Bardock shook his head as he mentally shut King Kai off. So, what if it was a dangerous technique?! That didn't matter!

Bardock landed knee-first on Vegeta's ribs and growled. He grabbed the Saiyan Prince by the arm and tossed him as hard as he could into a rocky encampment.

Bardock raced after him. He smiled as he gave chase! Saiyans lived for risk and danger! They craved it! They only ever improved under it! That Kai had no idea what he was talking about! Bardock would beat this little brat all by himself!

Bardock caught up to Vegeta and caught the Saiyan Prince's waiting punch. He twisted Vegeta's wrist until the bones cracked and then he punched Vegeta in the face. And then he did it again. And again! And then he whipped Vegeta around and kicked him into the air.

Bardock gave chase again. He was ready! The next hit would finish this fight and then Bardock could begin his new life. He could improve, he could grow stronger, he could use this power to kill Frieza himself without the need for Kakarot's help!

Bardock coated himself in Ki and roared. "Tyrant Lance-"

And then everything stopped. A shudder ran up Bardock's body and twisted energy erupted from his frame. A jet of blood erupted from Bardock's mouth and he fell from the sky like a rock, smashing hard into the ground.

Vegeta growled and he shakily pushed himself up. He glared down at Bardock and watched as the older Saiyan convulsed in pain. Just what the Hell was this piece of low-class trash playing at?!

On the ground, Bardock grunted and snarled as he tried to will his muscles to work. His entire body was killing him, out of nowhere, and he just didn't know why. "D-dammit...what the Hell...?!"

In Bardock's head, King Kai scolded him. "I told you to stop! You have no idea how the Kaioken actually works! You're just copying what you saw your sons learn, you fool! And now you've overloaded and overstrained your body!"

Bardock grunted and shook his head. Eventually, he managed to get to his feet at the very least. Bardock stared up at Vegeta and he could see it on the Prince's face, the period of trying to win Bardock was over. Now, Vegeta was just furious. The Saiyan Prince gripped his fist tight, making his broken armor pulsate. With his other hand, Vegeta reached up and wiped his face, grimacing at the sight of so much red on his crisp, white glove. "You..."

Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "I'll kill you..."

The Saiyan Prince snapped. "I'LL KILL YOU! _I'LL KILL YOU!_ _**I'LL KILL YOU AND THIS ENTIRE DAMNED PLANET!**_ "

Vegeta flew up to the sky, energy erupting from his body. Twisting his body around, the Prince glared down at Bardock. "You could have joined me! We could have ruled this entire Universe together! _NOW YOU DIE!_ "

Vegeta roared as loud as he could. " _GALICK GUN!_ _**FIRE!**_ "

Bardock watched as the massive beam of energy came straight at him. "...shit."

He gripped his aching fist and glared at the approaching beam. Bardock knew that if that beam hit the planet it might not destroy it, but it would damage it irreparably. He was in pain, he would probably die...but he had to keep Vegeta from ruining this planet. Bardock drew his hand back, charging a blast, and then he fired. " _ **RIOT JAVELIN!**_ "

Bardock's blast hit Vegeta's and the two beams of energy began to struggle against one another. Bardock was pumping all of his power into the blast, tearing up the muscles in his arm. Vegeta was clearly stronger than him, but that didn't matter to Bardock. He had to hold Vegeta back.

However, Vegeta was relentless. He pushed harder and harder into the blast and smiled wickedly as Bardock slowly began to give ground. In mere moments, this low-class scum would know oblivion and Vegeta would have the last laugh.

Bardock's knees began to buckle. He was about to give out. Overusing the Kaioken, a technique that he didn't know, was a mistake only a damned fool would make. Bardock was struggling to keep his arm steady. He had to hold out just a bit longer. Just a bit longer.

The Galick Gun began to overtake him and Bardock's eyes slowly shut. But he had to hold out for just...a bit...

The sounds of two sets of feet landing on either side caused Bardock to open his eyes. He looked to his left and to his right and smirked. "You brats are too damn slow..."

Goku twisted his hands to his side and began to chant. "Ka...Me...Ha...Me..."

On the other side, Raditz held up a single hand. "Shining..."

Goku and Raditz both called out and added onto their father's blast. " _ **HA!**_ " " _ **FRIDAY!**_ "

Vegeta shuddered as, from some force he couldn't see, his Galick Gun was halted. Vegeta snarled. "What the Hell?!"

Bardock got back up and began to push more energy into his blast as well. Goku and Raditz both turned to each other and nodded, and then they both glared back at the Galick Gun and shouted in unison. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWO!_ "

With extra power added onto the collective blast, Goku and Raditz pushed back against Vegeta's Galick Gun very hard. The Prince recoiled in horror. "Wh-what...?!"

The Prince had no time to react as not only did the Kamehameha, the Shining Friday, and the Riot Javelin smash right into him. He also took the brunt of his own Galick Gun. The combination of the four blasts sent him soaring high into the air, above the clouds, and then they exploded in a bevy of multi-colored lights.

As the smoke cleared, Raditz and Goku both released the Kaioken and smiled at one another. Goku chuckled and glanced over at Bardock. "Nice job holding him off for so long, Da-"

Bardock collapsed to his knees and screamed at the top of his lungs. " _GODDAMMIT!_ "

The smile instantly left Raditz's face as he knelt next to his ailing father. "Father! What's wrong?!"

Bardock clutched his aching, convulsing body. "Shit...that was a bad idea. I really bad idea... _DAMMIT!_ "

Bardock smashed his fist into the ground. " _ **DAMMIT!**_ "

As Goku and Raditz gathered around Bardock to try and help him to his feet, Gine landed behind them. She walked up with an annoyed look on her face. Goku turned to her. "Mom! Something's wrong with-"

Gine sighed and delivered a light slap to Bardock's back. She watched and shook her head as her husband fell to the ground screaming in pain. "Ya see, Bardock? This is why you listen when King Kai tells you something! Overuse of the Kaioken can destroy your body! You need to be more careful!"

Bardock convulsed on the ground and Goku flinched. "Wait...you know the Kaioken, Dad?! That's amazing!"

Raditz nodded. "Our Father was always regarded amongst the rank-and-file as a talented learner. It's not surprising that he learned the Kaioken just from observing us..."

Gine walked past her family and shook her head. "He's also famous for having a head so hard he could crush rocks with it! I swear...if it weren't for Fasha and Toma being so savvy, your Dad would've probably died long before Frieza came around..."

Gine looked up at the sky and gently smiled. "You have to be more careful Bardock...I want you and I to live long enough to enjoy this beautiful, blue sky togeth..."

Gine stopped speaking. Bardock, Goku, and Raditz all stared over at her as she started to lightly pulse. Raditz cautiously stood up. "M-mom...?"

Goku carefully stepped towards Gine. "Mom, are you okay?"

Walking around her to see her face, Goku recoiled in shock at Gine's eyes. Her pupils had gone from standard black to bright pink. Her chest was heaving in and out as her eyes stayed locked on the sky. Goku

Raditz was shocked. "Father, what's going on?!"

Goku turned and stared up in the sky, cocking his head. "What is that glowing orb?"

Raditz gasped. "A Power Ball?! But that means-"

Suddenly, the Power Ball exploded. Goku was confused. "Something just blew up that energy ball..."

The Saiyan from Earth instantly entered a battle stance. "That Vegeta guy must still be alive!"

Bardock removed his hands from Raditz and Gine's faces. Gine fell to the ground in a cold sweat. "That was a Power Ball. That can only mean that-"

Raditz entered a combat stance as well. "D-dammit..."

Aching, but aware of what was coming, Bardock entered a battle stance as well. "This isn't good..."

Gine stood up and Goku backed up to her. "What's going on?! I suddenly feel such a massive power. This is unreal!"

Gine entered a fighting stance as well. "Prince Vegeta has turned into an Oozaru..."

Goku turned to his Mother. "What does that mean?!"

Suddenly a deep, grave voice rumbled from the heavens. "That means..."

And then, dropping from the sky like a lead weight, Vegeta's massive Oozaru form crushed the Earth beneath its feet. The giant monkey evilly sneered down at Goku, Bardock, Raditz, and Gine. " _ **...THIS IS END FOR YOU!**_ "

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	8. Chapter 8: Dynasty vs Prince

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 8: The Son Dynasty vs. The Saiyan Prince**

 _The Gizard Wasteland..._

Gine yelped as she barely dodged a massive, crashing fist. She was desperately trying to not only keep herself safe, but was also trying to carry the strained and exhausted Bardock as the Oozaru form of Vegeta rampaged above her. Nearby, her two sons were both also desperately trying to avoid being hit by the rampaging ape while also fighting back. Raditz and Goku both dodged and managed to get off some basic ki blasts at Vegeta, but they were unable to concentrate long enough to fire off any of their more advanced techniques.

Gine dodged another stomp from Vegeta's massive foot, nearly dropping Bardock. She grabbed her husband by the back of his armor to avoid losing him and leapt up onto a rocky spire. "Jeez..."

Bardock groaned and shakily looked up at his wife. "Gine. Just drop me and save yourself. I don't want you getting stepped on..."

Gine shook her head, charging a Mother's Blast. "No! I'm not abandoning you! But I'm going to give you such an earful for crippling yourself later!"

Gine fired off the blast and it hit Vegeta dead on in the back of the head. The enraged Prince turned to her and snarled. " _What the Hell was that?!_ "

He drew back his massive arm and swung it down at Gine. She and Bardock both would have been dead if not for, at the last second, Raditz jumping in front of the two of them and firing a Saturday Crash. The three of them were sent flying while Vegeta roared in pain, holding his tingling hand.

Watching his father, mother, and brother fall into a crevice, Goku knew that he had to cover for them for a bit. The Saiyan gave himself a double slap on the face and took a deep breath. And then, Goku shouted. " _Kaioken Times Three!_ "

Goku flew up like a rocket and smashed his foot into Vegeta's massive stomach. The Oozaru wretched and fell to his knees and Goku landed next to him, charging up a Kamehameha and firing at Vegeta. The force of the blast knocked Vegeta over and singed his face. Seeing a moment for rest, Goku released the Kaioken and smirked at Vegeta as the lumbering ape pushed himself up. "You know...I've been thinking..."

Vegeta snarled. "About what?!"

Goku shook his head. "You won't care. But...I think I finally realized who the monster was that killed my Grandpa Gohan. Next time I die...I need to find his soul and apologize to him..."

Vegeta roared. "Let me help you!"

The Oozaru raised his fist into the air and smashed it down at Goku. Goku dodged and jumped onto Vegeta's arm, running up it and blasting him right in the face. Goku leapt up again, thinking that Vegeta was stunned, but was surprised when the Saiyan's massive hand shot up from the smoke and grabbed hold of his leg.

Goku cried out in pain as Vegeta tightened his grip around his smaller leg. His lower leg was definitely broken. Vegeta roared and began to swing Goku around, smashing him into various rocky spires. "I've been thinking too, Kakarot! I've been thinking about this entire trip throughout this fight! I lost my remaining Saibamen!"

Goku was smashed into another rocky spire, tearing his shirt and cracking one of his shoulders. "I lost that idiot Nappa!"

Goku was smashed, head-first, into a rocky spire. "And I've lost a modicum of my pride by lowering myself to fighting you low-class pieces of garbage in this ugly form!"

Vegeta raised Goku high in the air for one final smash. " _This trip has been a massive waste of my time and I will kill all of you for this!_ "

Goku coughed up a bit of blood and called out. "Kaioken Times Four!"

The force of Goku's power blasted Vegeta's hand open. The sheer power of the Kaioken bursting from Goku's body burned away his shirt and allowed the Saiyan to raining down a heavy kick onto Vegeta. Goku was running on pure adrenaline. He charged forward at the staggered Vegeta and delivered another kick right to the Oozaru's jaw. Goku could full the power pulsing through his muscles. He had to release the Kaioken or else he wouldn't be able to move anymore.

Goku let the Kaioken go as Vegeta stood back up. The massive Saiyan drew back his fist to punch Goku out of the air, but was met by a blast from left field. "Dynamite Monday!"

The blast hit Vegeta's face and exploded, knocking the Prince onto his ass. Goku looked down to see where the blast came from, but was surprised as a bloodied Raditz leapt up, snatching him from the air, and plunged both of them into a nearby crevice.

Vegeta stood up, dazed and angry, and shouted at the top of his lungs. " _Where did you cowards go?!_ "

 _In the caverns under the Gizard Wasteland..._

Raditz landed and set Goku on the ground. The younger brother screamed as his leg touched the rocky floor of the cave. Raditz quickly covered his mouth. "Shut up, Kakarot! Vegeta will hear you if you're too loud..."

Raditz and Goku both looked up at the felt Vegeta's rumbling footsteps above them. The Prince was almost feral he was so angry. And his actions were proving it. Raditz glanced back down at Goku as the rumbling footsteps got softer and farther away. "So... where are you hurt?"

Goku groaned. "My leg is broken...and so is my shoulder...and my back too...and several of my ribs..."

Goku winced in pain and looked up at Raditz. "How about you?"

Raditz held up his left hand showing five broken fingers. "This hand won't be good for much for a while...and I busted my knee when we fell into this cavern."

Goku's eyes widened. "Oh yeah! What about Mom and Dad?!"

Gine groaned. "W-we're alive..."

She came walking up to her two sons, carrying Bardock on her back. "I... I have a...a...uh..."

Raditz chimed in. "Mom smashed her head against a rock really hard. She has a concussion. And Dad..."

Bardock snarled. "I can still fight. I just need a minute to rest my...unh...my muscles..."

Raditz chimed in again. "Dad overdid it with the Kaioken and most of his muscles are strained or torn."

Raditz helped his mother and father to sit down and then sat down himself. The family of four all sat there, in silence, listening to Vegeta rampage above. The rampaging and rioting only got worse and worse as Vegeta got angrier and angrier. Eventually, Raditz spoke up again. "I know I'm the only person here that ever really tries to be cautious...Mom is too optimistic and Dad and Kakarot both have devil may care attitudes, but..."

Bardock, lying flat on his back, spoke up. "If any of us try to face Vegeta alone, he'll kill us. No need to sugarcoat. It was a damned stupid move to not take into account that he might turned into an Oozaru..."

The older Saiyan cringed. "I almost wish I hadn't covered our eyes. The three of us would be mindless beasts, but at least we would be _stronger_ , mindless beasts..."

Gine shook her head. "No. That was a good call. Prince Vegeta is able to maintain his awareness as an Oozaru. We would've been sitting ducks against a person that would have still been stronger than us. And, we might have killed Kakarot on accident..."

Goku sighed. "So, what do we do then? He's so strong that not one of us can take him on single-handedly. Normally, I would be excited...but this could turn out really bad for the Earth..."

Raditz nodded. "One option to consider is to just wait down here until his Oozaru form runs out, but that would leave the Earth susceptible to Vegeta's wrath. So, the way I see it, we only have one other option..."

Gine turned to her eldest son. "Teamwork, right?"

Goku and Bardock both visibly cringed. Raditz nodded. "Yes. Teamwork. It'll hurt us, but if we each use our maximum Kaioken and combine our power together, we might be able to kill Vegeta once and for all. But, we would need a move to really finish him off..."

Suddenly, King Kai forced himself into the conversation. "That is a very bad idea! The Kaioken could kill all of you! Why don't any of you understand that?! That technique is not a toy to play with! You can't just all go to maximum and expect-"

Bardock snapped at King Kai. "Are you going to come off the miserable little planet of yours and help?!"

King Kai was stunned. Bardock shook his head. "Unless you are, then shut your mouth! We aren't trying to break ourselves on purpose! We don't have much of a choice here..."

King Kai swallowed a lump in his throat and sighed. "If you die, you can't blame me..."

Goku smiled and chuckled. "We wouldn't blame you, King Kai. And, don't worry, none of us plan to die here...we just need to beat Vegeta!"

King Kai nodded. "Okay then...well, I wish you all the best. I'll be watching."

Goku nodded. "Right. Talk to you later, King Kai!"

Once King Kai was gone, Goku, Bardock, and Gine turned to Raditz. Gine nodded at her eldest. "You're the strategist here Raditz, what do we do?"

Raditz smiled at his mother's vote of confidence. "Okay then...listen closely..."

 _Back on the surface..._

Vegeta rampaged in such a tantrum at his inability to locate his enemies. He roared as loud as he could and smashed a mountain with his fist. "Dammit all! The cowards must have run off!"

Vegeta turned and sneered. "Fine. If they refuse to show themselves, maybe I have to convince them to show up..."

In the distance, Vegeta could see the small outline of a city. "Maybe a few corpses will convince them to show their-"

Quick as a flash, Raditz leapt in front of Vegeta and smirked. "Hey Prince!"

Vegeta flinched. "Wha-"

Before his larger opponent could react, Raditz fired a blast right into Vegeta's eye, severely damaging it and bringing the Oozaru to his knees. Vegeta roared in pain. "Raditz! _You damned, cowardly bastard!_ "

Wiping his face, Vegeta glared down at the ground and saw Goku, Bardock, Raditz, and Gine standing in front of him. Raditz stood confidently. Bardock looked like Hell. And Goku and Gine were tightly holding hands. Vegeta sneered. "So good of you to all line up for me to kill you! Now..."

Vegeta raised his fist into the air. " _ **DIE!**_ "

Calmly, all four members of the family said it together. "Kaioken..."

Goku's body flashed red. " _TIMES SIX!_ " ( **Power Level: 66,000** )

Raditz flashed red. " _TIMES FIVE!_ " ( **Power Level: 42,500** )

Bardock flashed red. " _TIMES TWO!_ " ( **Power Level: 30,000** )

And, finally, Gine flashed red. " _TIMES TEN!_ " ( **Power Level: 50,000** )

The force of the Family Kaioken pushed Vegeta's fist back. He stared down at the power raging before him. He didn't know why, he didn't have his scouter anymore, but some feeling in the back of his head vaguely told him that, if they all came at him at once, he would be dead. Vegeta picked up at rock and tossed it at the four of them, but Raditz and Bardock quickly responded. The two of them burst through the rock and slammed into Vegeta's stomach, sending him flying back.

Bardock charged up a Riot Javelin and fired it at Vegeta's face while Raditz delivered a solid kick to the Oozaru's massive throat. Gine quickly followed up, still holding Goku's hand and delivered a heavy kick to the side of Vegeta's head, sending the Oozaru tumbling across the wastes.

Goku was still in awe as he and his Mom flew together. "How did you manage to reach TIMES TEN?!"

Gine fired off several ki blasts, all the while maintaining focus on what she and her younger son were doing. Gine felt the energy of the Earth flowing into her and she was quickly pushing all of it onto her son, who was also gather the Earth's energy. Gine landed and fired another blast, impacting Vegeta's back and leaving him open to an assault from Bardock and Raditz. "I might be weak, Kakarot, but King Kai helped me get around that by focusing on the spiritual side of things! Now, hush up and focus! This plan fails without the _Spirit Bomb!_ "

Goku nodded. "Right!"

Bardock and Raditz both hammered into Vegeta, their tired bodies screaming for a break. Raditz was cringing at the pain, but Bardock was powering through it. The older Saiyan delivered a solid kick to Vegeta's snout and knocked out one of his fangs. The Saiyan Prince took a swipe at Bardock, but Raditz was quick to meet his arm with another powerful blast.

Vegeta held his singed hand and screamed in pain. Bardock flew high up into the air and quickly descended back down, slamming his knee into Vegeta's back and flooring the Oozaru. He bolted around the wasteland, bouncing from rock to rock and waiting for Vegeta to get back up. Once the Prince did manage to get into a kneeling position, Bardock flew under him and hit him at max speed, sending the Prince flying upward and following after him to assault him with ki blasts.

Raditz landed next to his mother and brother and called over to them. "Fly after Dad! Now!"

The three of them took off in hot pursuit of Bardock. High up in the sky, the older Saiyan flew up above the dazed form of Vegeta and smashed him back towards the Earth. Bardock turned towards his family. "How's the Spirit Bomb?!"

Goku nodded. "It's nearly ready!"

Bardock nodded back and then held his hand high. " _Riot Javelin!_ "

Raditz charged a massive blast. " _Weekend!_ "

Gine formed a ki ball in her hand. " _Mother Blitz!_ "

Goku charged up his signature move. " _Ka-Me-Ha-Me..._ "

All four of them threw their attacks down at the crumbled form of Vegeta. The four of them screamed in unison. " _ **Family Kaioken Barrage!**_ "

A massive explosion engulfed Vegeta and the four Saiyans quickly raced back down to the ground. The four of them were still wreathed in the Kaioken. They all landed and, with a massive burst, their power finally ran out. Gine and Raditz both fell exhaustedly to their knees and Bardock totally passed out. But, Goku held firm. In spite of the aching and pain surging through his body, he was ready to finish this. Goku held out his glowing hand and produced the Spirit Bomb.

As the smoke cleared, Goku smiled. "Now Vegeta! Take this!"

Goku readied his throw, but then the smoke cleared and he, Raditz, and Gine all gasped in horror. Right in front of them was Vegeta, with a massive Great Ape Beam charged in his mouth. Before any of them could react, Vegeta fired.

Acting quickly, Raditz leapt on top of his unconscious father and Gine ran up behind Goku, grabbing his hand. The blast impacted and all four Saiyans were blown away.

The dust settled as Vegeta stood up, his massive form battered and bloodied. He roared as loud as he could, sending waves of his power surging and blowing the dust away. On the ground were the broken forms of Bardock, Gine, Raditz, and Goku. Vegeta sneered and swiped his hand across the ground, sending Bardock's body flying, smashing it into a rock and letting it fall into a crevice. Bardock was so out of this fight that Vegeta decided to save him for last.

Gine shakily stood up as well. She was injured, yes, but she had avoided the majority of the damage due to the intervention of Kakarot. Gine looked up at Vegeta with tears in her eyes. "Damn you...Kaioken TIMES-"

Vegeta quickly reacted by slapping Gine aside. She hit a rocky spire so hard that it made it crack. Gine fell to the ground and was quickly buried in rubble. Vegeta sneered and turned his attention to the remaining two. Reaching down, he picked up Kakarot in his left hand and Raditz in his right.

The two brother both came to and glared up at Vegeta. Vegeta laughed at the both of them. "You see?! This is what happens when the low-class think they can rise up!"

The Oozaru sneered at Raditz. "You dare to turn your back on me, Raditz?! That's fine..."

And then, with all of his strength, Vegeta squeezed Goku. Raditz flinched back in horror as he heard bones snap. Goku screamed in agony. Vegeta laughed at Raditz. "You will die for betraying me, Raditz! But first...I will make you watch your beloved brother die!"

Raditz cried out. "No!"

Vegeta gave Raditz a light squeeze and the elder brother cried out in pain. And then, the Prince turned his attention to Goku. "And as for you, Kakarot! You're a disgrace to the Saiyans! Befriending this pathetic planet of lesser creatures is a blemish on our race that I cannot let go unpunished!"

Goku was stammering through the pain. "Sc-screw you..."

Vegeta gave Goku another heavy squeeze to shut him up. Goku screamed out in pain and Vegeta laughed. "And now... _ **LET THE EXECUTIONS BEGIN!**_ "

The Saiyan Prince leapt into the air and screamed as loud as he could, clearly having snapped a while ago. "You love this miserable planet so much, Kakarot?! Then you may join it in death!"

Vegeta raised Goku high into the air and prepared to spike him in to the ground. "And after I am done with you, I'm going to kill your family, your friends, and every last miserable lifeform on this enti-"

A snap and a severing noise rang out through the wasteland. Vegeta gasped in shock and pain at what had just happened. Goku and Raditz both opened their eyes and looked down to see a most welcome sight. Vegeta's severed tail was plummeting to the ground...and a massive Destructo-Disc flew past them and into the atmosphere.

Vegeta screamed in pain as his grip around Raditz and Goku loosened. "D-dammit! M-my... _TAIL!_ "

Vegeta was stunned as he shrank back down to his normal self. He, Goku, and Raditz were all plummeting to the ground from high in the sky. But, Goku and Raditz were fortunate enough to be saved. Vegeta's body hit the ground with a hard thud, but Goku and Raditz were both carried down to safety.

In pain, Goku looked up to his savior and smiled wide. "H-hey Krillin...nice save!"

Krillin smiled down as Goku and chuckled. "Anytime, bud. You know I have your back. Although, you should probably thank Yajirobe for bringing us those two Senzu Beans!"

Yajirobe, cowering behind a rock, called out. "L-leave me out of this!"

Raditz grunted in pain as he looked down at his savior. The elder brother gasped when he realized whose back he was laying on. "Y-you?!"

Gohan, still looking sheepish and a bit fearful, carefully placed his uncle on the ground and ran over to his Dad and Krillin. Raditz and Gohan stared at each other for a moment before Raditz finally spoke. "Th-thank you for..."

Raditz grimaced and, shocking Goku, immediately lowered his head to the ground, bowing to his nephew. " _I am so sorry for what I put you through! Thank you so much for saving my life!_ "

Gohan was shocked, but the politeness his mother taught him shined through. "O-of course...I couldn't just let a member of...m-my family fall..."

Raditz lifted his head and looked at Gohan. He prepared to say something, but was cut off before the words could come out.

" _ **You didn't save his life...you just delayed the inevitable!**_ "

Goku, Gohan, Krillin, Yajirobe, and Raditz all turned and stared in shock as Vegeta pulled himself from the crater his fall had made. The Saiyan Prince shakily stood up and gripped his blood-stained gloves tight. " _ **I will kill every last one of you!**_ "

Raditz was stunned, but Krillin and Gohan quick ran up to either side of him and took fighting stances. Raditz turned to Krillin and Krillin glanced up at him. "On Earth, we stand and fight together even if the odds seem like we can't beat 'em! Will you fight with me and Gohan to put a stop to this guy?!"

Raditz took a deep breath and nodded. "Yes! Let's end this!"

The elder brother took a fighting stance alongside Krillin and his nephew and the three of them stared down Vegeta. Practically frothing at the mouth, Vegeta screamed like a madman and charged at the three of them!

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	9. Chapter 9: Triumph

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 9: Triumph**

 _The Paprika Wasteland..._

Bulma stared sadly as Master Roshi and Oolong rolled the containers containing Yamcha and Tien's bodies onto the airship. Tears built up in her eyes, but she was trying her best to maintain composure. Puar was already doing enough crying for the both of them. The miserable talking cat was laying on top of Yamcha's coffin and hysterically weeping.

Another explosion rang out and Bulma turned her attention to the north. The battle in the Gizard Wasteland was heating up. Master Roshi and Chi-Chi both stepped over to Bulma and stared along with her. Chi-Chi's face was filled with a silent fear for her child. Master Roshi's face was full of concern. "We really shouldn't go that way while the fighting is going on...but Baba says that it should all be over by the time we get there..."

Bulma wiped her eyes and nodded. "R-right...then, let's go."

Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Master Roshi all went back into the airship and took off towards the Gizard Wasteland.

 _The Gizard Wasteland..._

Vegeta lunged at Gohan, Krillin, and Raditz. The Saiyan Prince was rabid and eager for blood. His fist connected with Raditz first and busted the weaker Saiyan in the jaw. Raditz went tumbling and Vegeta went to charge a blast, but Gohan quickly headbutted the Saiyan Prince in the stomach.

Vegeta coughed up blood and stumbled back, only to be met again by a swift kick from Krillin. Raditz got back to his feet and charged at Vegeta, slugging the Prince in the face twice before sweeping his feet. Krillin then capitalized on this with a lightning-fast stomp to Vegeta's chest.

Vegeta bounced off of the ground and Gohan flew at him with another kick, smashing into the Saiyan Prince's back and sending him flying into a rock. The rubble collapsed on Vegeta and his three opponents all stood in waiting. They knew this wasn't over yet.

Sure enough, Vegeta screamed out and blew away all of the rubble in a display of raging power. He charged at the three of them again with a series of heavy blows and frantic swipes. Gohan and Krillin were each dealt a punch and sent flying back. And then, Vegeta focused his attention of Raditz.

Raditz tried to defend himself, but he was just as injured as Vegeta was. It didn't take long for the Raditz to be overpowered and taken to the ground. And then, his face contorted with rage, Vegeta began to wail on his former subordinate. Several punches smashed into Raditz's face, breaking his nose and busting his teeth. He was defenseless against Vegeta's assault. "This is all _your_ fault!"

Vegeta punched him hard. "If it wasn't for you wanting to come to this damned miserable ball, Nappa would still be alive to serve me!"

He punched him again. "My armor wouldn't be tarnished in such an unsightly manner!"

Vegeta stood and stomped on Raditz's throat. "And my pride wouldn't be in tatters you miserable-"

He stomped again. "Worthless!"

He stomped again. "Low-class!"

He delivered a final, heavy stomp. "Wretch!"

And then Vegeta kicked Raditz hard in the side, sending he weaker counterpart flying. As Raditz splat against a rocky face and tumbled to the ground, Vegeta turned to Krillin. "And now you!"

Shaking, Krillin took up a fighting stance and yelped in fear as Vegeta charged at him.

From the sidelines, Goku shakily sat up and watched as Vegeta and Krillin fought. He looked all around the battlefield and groaned. He looked over to a nearby crevice and saw one of Bardock's arms sticking out. He wasn't moving.

Goku looked over at the pile of rubble that Gine was buried under, hoping that maybe she had dug herself out. But not a single rock had been displaced.

He looked over at Raditz and cringed. His brother was beaten and bloodied and totally out of it. Raditz wouldn't be getting back up to help.

Goku was shaking as he endeavored to even stay sitting up. He watched, helpless, as Vegeta beat on Krillin. Right as Goku was about to try to get to his feet, however, Gohan came running over. The boy was scared as he ran up to his father. "Daddy!"

Goku grunted in pain. "G-gohan..."

Gohan tightly grabbed his father's arm, sending waves of pain all throughout Goku's body. Goku stifled back the screams of pain and gently tried to comfort his child. "I-it's alright Gohan...everything is going to be okay..."

Gohan stared up at Goku, tears streaming down his face. "B-but...how are we going to stop Vegeta? He's so strong! And everyone is hurt! Even Mr. Krillin is hurt! And I don't think he can last much longer!"

Goku glanced over at the fight between Vegeta and Krillin. He cringed as he watched the Saiyan Prince take out all of his frustrations on Goku's best friend. Krillin was trying to fight back, but he was hardly able to defend himself.

Goku shuddered in pain and stared down at his hand. Faintly glowing from his skin was what little bit of the energy from the Spirit Bomb that Goku had left. The broken Saiyan from Earth sighed and motioned to his son. "Gohan..."

Gohan looked up at his father. "Y-yes Daddy?"

A wave of pure agony ran up Goku's entire body as he lifted his arm. "G-give me...your hand..."

Gohan nodded. "O-okay. Here you go. But what are you going to-"

Goku tightly gripped Gohan's hand and transferred the energy of the Spirit Bomb from himself to his son. And then he collapsed back to the ground in a heap. "L-listen carefully Gohan...that energy is our last shot at beating Vegeta..."

Gohan was trembling from the power running through his body. "But...if it's our last shot, then why did you give it to me?!"

Goku winced in pain. "B-because...you're the only person left who can use that power, Gohan. Your Grandpa...and Grandma...and Uncle are all down for the count from the looks of it. And... I'm too injured to move..."

Gohan knelt next to his father. Goku smiled at him. "You've grown so much over the past year. I'm so proud of you..."

Goku chuckled. "Now, all you need to do is wait for the right moment and throw that at Vegeta. And then, this will all be over and we can go home..."

Gohan sniffled and nodded. "O-okay Daddy...I'll do it. I'll beat Vegeta!"

Gohan got up and turned, running towards the fight. Gohan smiled and watched as his son ran into the fray. "G-good luck...Gohan..."

Krillin yelped in pain as Vegeta continued to beat him. He had held his own for a bit against the Saiyan, but even in his injured state Vegeta still far overpowered the meek Earthling. Now, Krillin was functioning as little more than a punching bag. Vegeta was holding him by the neck like a ragdoll and just laying furious punch after furious punch into Krillin's ribs.

Vegeta stopped punching Krillin and quickly pulled him in for a massive headbutt. As Krillin's blood ran down Vegeta and Krillin's faces, the Saiyan Prince snarled at the human. "Tell me something, trash! Did you really think you could stand up to me?! You're nothing! Absolutely nothing!"

Vegeta lifted Krillin above his head and smashed the human into the ground. He held up his hand and charged a blast. "Now! Die trash!"

Gohan called out to Vegeta. "Hey!"

Vegeta turned to Gohan, his neck audibly cracking. "And now the brat wants a taste, does he?!"

Gohan gripped his fists. "W-why don't you...why don't you fight me?! Huh?! Are you sca-"

Vegeta charged at Gohan, getting right into the boy's face. "I'm sorry, what?!"

Gohan gasped in terror and Vegeta punted him in the chest. The boy was sent flying over Goku and tumbling across the wasteland. Once he came to a stop, Gohan shakily tried to get up, but he couldn't make himself. Vegeta sneered at him and cruelly laughed. "You think you have the right to ask me if I'm scared, you little half-breed?! I am the Saiyan Prince! I am _your_ Prince!"

Vegeta held up his hand to charge a blast. "And you will _**DIE**_ for defying me!"

Vegeta began to charge a blast, but was instantly cut off. The Prince gasped in pain and the blast dispersed. He fell forward, with a giant, bleeding slash mark across his back. And, behind him, was the shaking form of Yajirobe.

The fat samurai held his sword and stared at Vegeta's prone body. "Did...did I kill him?!"

Yajirobe stepped forward. "I-I think I killed him..."

He nudged Vegeta with his foot. " _HELL YEAH! I KILLED-_ "

Vegeta sprung up and smashed his fist into Yajirobe's face, punching the samurai through a rock. The Prince gasped in pain. He was shaking. "D-dammit...now even the lowest of the low are damaging me?!"

Vegeta placed his hand onto his back and seethed. "He...cut my armor!"

Krillin, trying to be sneaky, crawled forward and reached out for Yajirobe's discarded sword. But that didn't go unnoticed by Vegeta. The Prince reached down and grabbed Yajirobe's katana, busting it over his knee. And then, for added measure, he delivered a swift kick to Krillin's jaw, sending the human tumbling across the rocks.

And then, he turned his attention back to the last remaining combatant. Gohan recoiled in terror as Vegeta began to stalk towards him. The Saiyan Prince was fuming as he charged up a massive ki blast. "I'm going to enjoy killing you, brat!"

Gohan was shaking in terror. Goku, on the ground but still conscious, grabbed Vegeta's ankle once the Prince got close enough. "Wait! Please! Don't-"

Vegeta stomped on Goku's stomach and smashed his ribs even further. A jet of blood came shooting out of Goku's mouth and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He was out cold. Vegeta continued his death march towards Gohan and the boy was panicking. He didn't know what to do. It was just him and Vegeta, all alone. He was going to die! Vegeta was going to kill him! He was going to die! He was going to die!

But, as Gohan was panicking, a voice suddenly called out into his head. " _Gohan! Listen to me!_ "

Gohan called out. "Wh-who's there?!"

King Kai spoke calmly within Gohan's mind. "Listen to me. My name is King Kai! And, right now within you, you have my most powerful technique: The Spirit Bomb!"

Gohan nodded, backing up to a pile of rubble to make space between him and Vegeta. "R-right...my Daddy told me about that! But I don't know how to-"

King Kai interrupted. "You must concentrate. The Spirit Bomb is of no use if you can't give it form. You must concentrate on forming the Spirit Bomb, and then you can use it to attack Vegeta!"

Gohan was confused. "Concentrate...to give it a form?"

King Kai nodded. "Indeed. Picture that you are trying to use this energy to make a miniature sun. Get the image in your head. And then, you must release the energy into that shape!"

Gohan closed his eyes and concentrated. He held his hand opened and focused the energy. And then, after a moment, the Spirit Bomb was floating above his hand. Gohan stared at the warm ball of energy in awe. "This is...amazing..."

King Kai nodded. "Indeed. That is the power that the Earth gave your father and grandmother in order to stop Vegeta. Now, it is up to you to use it! Now, do it Gohan! Toss the Spirit Bomb and put an end to Vegeta's reign of terror!"

Shakily, Gohan stood and stared down Vegeta. "Y-you might be big and mean...and you might be scary...but I won't let you hurt and kill anymore! I'm going to put a stop to all of this right now and save my family! It's over Vegeta!"

Gohan drew his arm back and tossed the ball of energy at the advancing, Saiyan Prince. "Spirit Bomb!"

Vegeta glared as the Spirit Bomb shot right at him. But, rather than panic, the Prince calmly tossed his own energy blast at it. In a massive explosion, the Spirit Bomb was gone and Vegeta stood unharmed. "Once again, boy...all bluster and no bite..."

Gohan's face went white and he fell to the ground. Vegeta continued his approach and the boy was scared utterly still.

 _On King Kai's Planet..._

King Kai's arms fell limply to his sides. Vegeta had beaten his ultimate technique and, now, Gohan had no way of defending himself. "The Spirit Bomb's power..."

King Kai thought back to point-blank Great Ape Cannon that Goku had absorbed. "Vegeta's attack...it must have dispersed all of the energy that Goku and Gine had gathered..."

King Kai tightly gripped his fists. He had no idea what to do now. "Gohan...I am so sorry..."

 _Back at the Gizard Wasteland..._

Vegeta laughed as he continued to walk towards Gohan. "You aren't going to let me hurt or kill your family, eh?"

Gohan was shaking as Vegeta got closer. "You're going to stop me, huh? Put an end to this, are you?!"

Vegeta's smile quickly became a frown. " _ **I AM SICK OF THESE GAMES!**_ "

The Saiyan Prince lunged at Gohan, drawing his arm across his chest and cloaking his hand with a blade of pure energy. He was going to take this insolent little brat's head off and then he was going to kill all of the other and blow this planet to Kingdom Come! Vegeta didn't even take the time to spout a one-liner. This boy didn't deserve a final address. He just deserved a swift death.

Vegeta began to swing his arm at Gohan's neck. But, as he did, he was caught off-guard by one final surprise.

 _A few moments ago..._

As the Great Ape Cannon shot towards the four of them, Gine knew that she had to act fast. Raditz was defending Bardock, so she had to do her part to preserve their chance of victory. Gine grabbed Goku's hand tight and siphoned as much of the Spirit Bomb's power as she could from her son. Gine barely had time to brace for impact, but she was lucky that Goku was there to shield her from the majority of the blast.

 _Back in the present..._

Vegeta stared in shock as, from underneath the rubble behind Gohan, Gine popped up. Her face was bloodied, but her eyes were steel. For the first time in her life, Gine felt a real urge to fight. She drew her fist back and formed a massive Spirit Bomb with all of the energy she had taken from her son.

Gohan stared up at his grandmother. The initial shock of her showing up had distracted him from his fear. But, then, something more welled up within him. Gohan looked down and felt a sense of relief as Gine wrapped her arm over his chest, almost as if to tell him that everything would be okay.

Gine gripped her grandson tight and snarled a simple five words at the Saiyan Prince: "Stay away from my Grandson!"

And then, before Vegeta could react, Gine flung the Spirit Bomb forward and smashed it directly into his face. The impact with the vile Prince caused a massive explosion. Gine and Gohan were both blown back, smashing against a rocky wall and knocking them both unconscious.

Vegeta, meanwhile, was sent screaming across the battlefield at high speeds. The Spirit Bomb carried the Prince over the horizon, and then it exploded.

The battle was over. Everyone on the side of good was out cold, but they had won. Vegeta was defeated and they had triumphed.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	10. Chapter 10: The Next Adventure

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 10: The Next Adventure**

 _In Bulma's Airship..._

The Capsule Corp Airship buzzed away from the battlefield with both the wounded and their loved ones loaded aboard. Chi-Chi gently cradled her unconscious, but only moderately injured son in her lap. Master Roshi stood vigil over both of his injured pupils, Goku and Krillin. And, in the back of the ship, Oolong and Puar stared in fear at their other three passengers.

Everyone on the ship knew who Raditz was. He was that bastard alien that showed up and started all of this Saiyan Invasion nonsense. No one trusted him and very few could comprehend why he was being taken to the hospital or, more importantly, why he was even wished back in the first place.

As for the other two, they were total enigmas. One was a gruff, older man who looked strikingly like Goku. And the other was a delicate, older woman with a surprisingly gentle face for a saiyan. No one wanted to admit it, but they could all see a lot of Goku in these two. Whether what they saw was fighting spirit or genuine innocence depended on whom they were looking at.

Chi-Chi, in particular, focused hard on these two strangers that reminded her so much of her husband.

 _Earlier, at the Gizard Wasteland..._

Chi-Chi was the first one out of the airship, making it out of the hangar before the door had even fully opened. The worried mother scanned the field until, to her relief, she saw the familiar face of her little boy in the distance. Chi-Chi covered 40 feet in under a second and came to a screeching halt to an incredibly odd sight: it was Gohan, but he was tightly wrapped in the arms of some strange woman!

Chi-Chi's mama bear instinct immediately kicked in and she snatched her little boy from this stranger. But, once she had, Chi-Chi caught sight of the woman's face and something immediately felt...off.

This woman that was so tightly holding on to Gohan gave off such a "Goku" feeling. The soft, innocent look on her face was so much like Chi-Chi's husband that, in spite of herself, she found herself immediately trusting her.

As Chi-Chi stood there, gawking at this new person, the other got to work. Oolong and Puar immediately rolled out a stretcher for the injured Krillin and Yajirobe, rolling their friends on and pushing them back into the airship. Roshi and Bulma, meanwhile, each came to a sight of their own.

Roshi grabbed on to the arm that was sticking out of the ground and gave it a hefty pull, extracting Bardock from beneath a pile of rubble. This man, who looked like a gruffer version of Goku, gave the Turtle Hermit pause. Was this one of the people that Goku had requested be wished back?

Bulma, on the other hand, was horrified to see that monster that had started all of this was somehow back among the living. Raditz laid on the ground, beaten and bloodied, his chest heaving. Bulma's face was green at the sight of him. If it weren't for him showing up, then Yamcha and everyone else would still be alive. Bulma scanned the area and eventually came across Yajirobe's broken katana. She went and picked it up and glared back at Raditz with hate in her eyes, only to be immediately stopped by Master Roshi. Bulma glared at Roshi and Roshi shook his head. "No."

Bulma snapped at Roshi. "Why?! This is all his fault to begin with! Why shouldn't I send him straight to Hell where he belongs?! I thought he was already there anyway! I don't-"

Roshi interjected. "Goku specifically requested that Raditz be wished back alongside him. As well as two other people named Bardock and Gine...who I can only assume are the other two people laying here injured."

Bulma was totally confused. "But, why would Goku want so many of these evil saiyans wished back to life?!"

Roshi shook his head. "I don't know. That's something to ask Goku once he's awake again. For now, we just have to honor his wish and bring all three of them with us..."

 _Back in the present..._

An hour passed and, soon enough, Gohan, Krillin, and Yajirobe were all awake. Krillin was injured, but not nearly as badly as he would've been thanks to Yajirobe and the two Senzu Beans that he had brought. Krillin looked over and sighed at the sight of Gohan, and a worried Chi-Chi, kneeling next to the cots that Goku and Gine had been placed on.

He looked over at the other two cots, the ones holding Raditz and Bardock. And then, he looked over at Bulma and Roshi. "So, yeah...that about sums it up..."

Bulma was totally perplexed. "So, this is Goku's family from space? His Mother and Father and Brother...?"

Krillin nodded. "Yeah. And, honestly, we might not have won this without them. Each of them worked their hardest to put a stop to Nappa and Vegeta. Even Raditz did..."

Roshi nodded. "Yes. I don't think Goku would ever ask me to wish back an evil person, so it doesn't surprise me that all three of them defended you like that. If only they had arrived a bit sooner..."

Krillin clenched his fists, his hands trembling. "Yamcha...and Tien...and Chiaotzu...and Kami and Piccolo..."

Roshi sighed. "Those last two, in particular, sting really badly. Without Piccolo and Kami, the Dragon Balls are gone. And now, our chances to bring any of them back are gone too..."

An air of dread fell over the airship. Silently, Bulma began to weep again. But, after a moment, Krillin interjected. "They called him a namekian..."

Bulma and Roshi both turned to Krillin. Bulma wiped her eyes. "What?"

Krillin said it again. "Piccolo. They called him a namekian. Nappa did. Vegeta did. Even Goku's Mom called him a 'poor namekian'...and Vegeta even mentioned there being a Planet Namek..."

Bulma eyes widened at that implication. "So, what you're saying is...there might still be Dragon Balls out there?!"

Krillin nodded. "That seemed to be what Vegeta thought. During the three hours we were waiting for Goku to show up, he joked with Nappa that if Nappa accidentally killed Piccolo, then they could just go to Planet Namek and find another namekian to make Dragon Balls for them..."

Bulma leapt from her seat. "So where is this planet?! How do we get to it?! Is it in our solar system or-"

Krillin held up his hand. "C-calm down Bulma. I don't know..."

Bulma's shoulders sagged, but then Krillin pointed at Bardock, Gine, and Raditz. "But, one of them might..."

Bulma sat back down and stared at the unconscious family of Goku. The airship continued its flight to the hospital in West City with just a bit more hope swirling within. Perhaps, their friends weren't dead...not quite yet...

 _Two Days Later, West City Hospital..._

Side-by-side, Goku and Raditz both laid in their hospital beds. Raditz grumbled as he pressed his hand against his broken, aching face. "Earth healing technology is so damned primitive...if I were on Frieza Planet 79, I would be back on my feet by now..."

Goku chuckled at his brother. "It doesn't normally take this long! Usually, we have Senzu Beans to eat. But I guess the next crop isn't quite ripe yet..."

Raditz shook his head. "Relying on magic beans... _ridiculous_..."

As Raditz and Goku laid in their beds, Chi-Chi and Gohan both sat in the corner of the room with Gine and near feverishly grilled their new family member. Gine was all too excited to get to know her daughter-in-law and grandson and happily answered their questions. "So, yes, Kakarot was an adorable baby! He had such fat, little legs when he was born~"

Chi-Chi happily giggled and smiled. "He still does sometimes. I think he must just store all of his body fat in his legs sometimes!"

Gine chuckled right alongside her daughter-in-law and picked up her glass of tea to take a sip. "Now, is there anything else you wanted to ask, Gohan?"

Gohan glanced up at Gine and blushed, and then he looked away. Chi-Chi sighed and gave her son a loving pat on the head. "He's always been pretty shy. I'm sorry Gine."

Gine shook her head. "No no. It's fine. I can tell that he's a shy, little guy. I'm just glad I got to meet him!"

Gine smiled at her grandson and Gohan, after a moment, gave a happy smile back. "I-I'm happy that I got to meet you too!"

Gine reached over and gently ruffled Gohan's hair. "See? All you have to do is draw him out of his shell and he's just fine!"

Gine and Chi-Chi both shared another laugh as Bulma and Krillin both entered the room. The two of them quickly hurried to the nearby TV and turned it on, flipping to the news. Bulma looked incredibly excited, but Krillin had a look of dread on his face. Bulma turned to the others in the room and pointed to the TV. "Watch this!"

On the TV, the reporter was standing in front of a sealed room that contained a single Saiyan Battle Pod. The reporter spoke. "Found in the ruined section of East City, this lone pod is the only thing that remains of the alien attack on the Earth. It is unknown what happened to the occupant of this pod, but representatives of King Furry have reached out to the media to say that the situation is being closely monitored."

Bulma smiled at Goku and Goku smiled back. Together, then two old friends both expressed their excitement. "We have a spaceship!"

Meanwhile, Raditz turned to Krillin, sharing the human's dread. "...they only found _one_?!"

 _In deep space..._

Lying unconscious in his Battle Pod, only two thoughts ran through Vegeta's head: he must gain immortality...and then he must gain revenge!

The Prince's Battle Pod rocketed through space, tumbling back towards Frieza Planet 79 so that he could get himself healed. And, once he was, his plans would-be set-in motion anew.

 _Back on the Earth..._

Bulma smiled as she pulled out a remote from her pocket. "Pop quiz! Does anyone in this room know what this is?!"

Raditz dryly answered. "That would be the remote control for a Battle Pod."

Raditz thought for a moment, and then he reacted in shock. "W-wait a minute! Where the Hell did you get that?! Vegeta had to have had his to call his ship to him and Mom and I obliterated Nappa!"

Bulma smirked and shot a peace sign at Raditz. "I stole if off of your corpse!"

Raditz's face turned blue. "Th-that's morbid..."

He turned to his brother. "Kakarot! What kind of ghouls have you befriended on this planet?!"

Goku chuckled at his brother as the others all watched on. Bulma was in full showman mode now as she levied the remote at the TV screen. "After a year of study, I have deciphered what each key means and what combinations do what! And now, watch as I summon that Pod back to Capsule Corp for our very own use!"

Bulma was so into her presentation that she didn't notice the door open behind her. She pressed three keys on the remote and prepared to press the bright green button at the bottom, but a large hand quickly reached over her shoulder and stopped her. Bulma turned and came face-to-sour face with Bardock. She flinched in fear. "H-hey! What are you doing?!"

Bardock grunted and snatched the controller from her. "You're about to blow Nappa's Pod into pieces. Now, if that's what you wanted please tell me. But, if you want the damned thing to study it, give the coordinates you want it at."

Sheepishly, Bulma told Bardock the coordinates and the older saiyan nodded, entering the proper key code and turning to the television. After a moment, the Pod whirred to life and took off from its confines to the shock of the reporter.

Bardock threw the remote back to Bulma with a snarky look on his face. Bulma sneered. "Arrogant ass..."

Bardock responded. "You're welcome, sport."

And then, he went and sat down next to Gine. However, no sooner did Bardock sit down than an angry doctor ran into the room and glared at him. "There you are! Get back to your room at once!"

Bardock glared at the doctors and, quickly and vulgarly, flipped him off. Chi-Chi gasped and covered Gohan's eyes and Gine, annoyed, slapped Bardock on the arm. But, to her surprise, Bardock didn't react in pain. Gine rubbed her husband's arm. "Your muscles?"

Bardock shrugged. "Achy, but not painful. I've healed and absorbed my zenkai for this fight. I don't feel great, but I feel stronger."

Gine smiled at her husband. "C-can you believe that we're actually alive again, Bardock?"

Bardock sighed and shook his head. "Too damned sentimental..."

He glanced over at Gine and saw the combination of a warm smile and happy tears on his wife's face. Bardock sighed again, but then he smiled. "It is nice to be alive again and _MMPH_!"

Overcome by emotion, Gine tackled into her husband and gave him a passionate kiss on the lips. Raditz blushed and Goku stared on in confusion. Chi-Chi smiled warmly at the sight of her in-laws so happy, as did Krillin. Even Bulma, in spite of Bardock making her look like a fool, couldn't help but smile at how happy Gine was to be alive.

Once Gine finished kissing him, Bardock turned to Bulma with a slightly more serious look on his face. "That Pod is useless, you know. It can only hold one person. And if you're going to go out as far as Namek, you at least want to take a group with you..."

Bulma nodded. "I had already figured that. How far away is Namek from her anyway?"

Raditz cut in. "Much less distance than the system that Vegeta, Nappa, and I were in. I would say a month, maybe a month and a half by current Battle Pod standards."

Bulma nodded. "Hmph. Give me and my Dad a month and we'll make something four times as fast!"

Bardock scowled. "So, you're saying you want to wait two months?! In that time, Vegeta could have been to Namek and driven the namekians to extinction! We don't have that long!'

Bulma snapped back at Bardock. "Well, what do you want me to do?!"

Breaking up their fight, the suddenly appearing Mr. Popo spoke up. "I might have a suggestion..."

 _Yunzabit Heights..._

Bulma and the accompanying Bardock both stared in shock at what Mr. Popo had to show them. It was a massive spaceship just sitting among the peaks of Yunzabit Heights. Bulma was amazed. "So... this is the ship that Kami and Piccolo came to Earth in, is it?"

Mr. Popo nodded. "Indeed. According to Kami, this ship is the first thing he remembers having seen when he first woke up on the Earth. He had no idea how to make it work, but he told me that he sometimes came to it to remind him of home."

Stepping past Popo and Bulma, Bardock walked up to the ship and gave it a light kick. "This is some old, Namek tech. I haven't seen a thing this archaic sense I met that bastard my brother used to hang out with..."

Bulma turned to Bardock. "So, is it any good?"

Bardock took a deep breath and nodded. "It's decent. Could probably make it a lot better with some more modern tech. You said that you and your Dad could make some improvements, right?"

Bulma nodded. "Yeah, we could...but I just need to know how fast it actually goes for a benchmark..."

Bardock nodded. "Well, why don't we give the old clunker a spin and see if she can still go?"

 _One Day Later, Back at the Hospital..._

Krillin was shocked. "What did you say?!"

On the phone, Bulma was giddy. "Saturn, Krillin! Within five minutes we were at Saturn! This ship isn't just fast, it might be the most advanced piece of technology on the planet next to the Saiyan Battle Pod!"

Krillin glanced away from the phone and across the hospital room at Bardock, who was doing push-ups at a rapid rate. Krillin spoke again. "If you went that far, they why didn't Goku's dad say anything?!"

Bulma was quick to respond. "Bardock is a prick. That's why."

Bardock called out to Krillin. "Tell that dumb bitch that she can-"

Gine slapped the back of her husband's head. "Not in front of our grandson, Bardock!"

Krillin sighed and returned to his conversation with Bulma. "So, tomorrow is it?"

Bulma nodded. "Yup. Tomorrow. Me and my Dad will be done retrofitting this thing tomorrow. And then, you and I will be heading to Namek to see if we can find some Dragon Balls, Krillin."

Krillin nodded. "O-okay then...sounds good."

Bulma smirked. "Good! Have your stuff ready and be at Kame House tomorrow, 8 am sharp!"

Krillin nodded. "8 am sharp. Got it."

The sound of a phone click ended Krillin and Bulma's call and the bald monk shakily stood up. "Well...guess I have to go and prep for another adventure. I'll see you guys later!"

Goku called out from his bed. "Later Krillin!"

Once the door shut, then it was just Goku and his entire family again. All was silent except for the sound of Bardock grunting as he did push-ups. Finally, after a long silence, Raditz spoke up. "It sucks that we can't go along with them."

Goku smiled over at his brother. "Yajirobe came by yesterday and said that the Senzu Beans would only be another week. Once they're ripe, we'll be able to heal up and follow them in the ship that Dr. Briefs is cooking up!"

Raditz grunted. "A week is a long time, Kakarot."

Another silence. No one knew what to say. Chi-Chi was too distracted to care about this conversation, trying to help Gohan catch up on his studies. But even the boy was taciturn in the face of this upcoming mission to Planet Namek. Chi-Chi gave her son a light nudge. "Gohan?"

Inside Gohan's head, he thought only of Piccolo and how the former Demon King had given up everything to save the boy's life. After a long pause, Gohan reached up to the bandages on his head and ripped them off to the shock of Gine and Chi-Chi. Against the wishes of his mother and grandmother, Gohan stood up and walked over to the open window of the hospital room. He turned to everyone in the room who was staring at him and spoke in a very serious tone. "I'm going with them to Namek."

And then, leaping from the window, Gohan flew off in the direction of Mt. Paozu.

Chi-Chi cried out as she saw her son fly off. "Gohan! Wait!"

Immediately, Gine stood and grabbed Chi-Chi's hand, motioning for her daughter-in-law to climb onto her back. "Come on! Let's follow him!"

Chi-Chi nodded and climbed onto Gine's back, and then the two women were off after Gohan. Once the women and children were totally gone, Bardock took a break from push-ups to chuckle at what he just saw. "Hey Kakarot! Your son has some spine. I'm impressed..."

Goku could only smile at Gohan's convictions. "Yeah. He's grown a lot over the past year...I'm proud of him!"

 _Later that night, Mt. Paozu..._

Chi-Chi sobbed as Gine gently rubbed her back. "I don't know what to do, Gine! I tried everything! I tried talking to him! I tried scolding him! I tried reasoning with him! I even tried begging him..."

Chi-Chi sniffled and wiped her tears, only for them to be immediately be replaced. "...I just got him back after a year. I don't want my little boy to die out in space..."

Gine didn't know what to say. She continued to gently rub her daughter-in-law's back while trying to think of anything to make Chi-Chi feel better. Finally, after a long few minutes, Gine spoke. "Chi-Chi...Gohan is a half-saiyan young man...he's starting to gain that infamous saiyan pride and he's starting to develop convictions. It's not anything to be sad about, he's just growing-"

Chi-Chi turned to Gine, her eyes puffy and red. "P-please just tell me that nothing out there will try and hurt him..."

A lump grew in Gine's throat. She had just met Chi-Chi, and she wanted Chi-Chi to trust her. So... she didn't want to have to lie to her so early in their relationship. Gine thought of all of the dangers in the Universe that she had seen: hostile planets, hostile space environments, pirates, the Frieza Force...

Gine looked out the window and saw Gohan, his travel bag packed. The boy was standing next to a fire that he had made all on his own and he was practice sparring with himself. Gine swallowed the lump in her throat and turned back to Chi-Chi. "Wh-why don't we get some sleep, Chi-Chi? We have to wake up early tomorrow..."

The older saiyan woman smiled. "I would love to see the bed you said you had prepared for me and Bardock..."

 _Several hours later..._

Gine lied awake in her bed, staring at the ceiling. After so long, Chi-Chi had finally cried herself to sleep. And now, Gine was left with a moral conundrum racing through her head. She knew two things: 1) As a saiyan, Gohan couldn't be reasoned with, and 2) As a Mother, she knew just how Chi-Chi felt right now.

It was, indeed, a dangerous universe out there. And there were no guarantees that Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma wouldn't be attacked somewhere along the way. Her head getting the better of her, Gine stood from her bed and walked out from the house. She looked around and eventually found Gohan slumbering on top of a log. Even in his sleep, the boy had a determined expression.

Gine stood there and thought back to Piccolo. She thought back to the sacrifice that Piccolo had made for Gohan and the bond she could feel between the two. And then, Gine came to a definite conclusion. "...no one can stop you from going, huh Gohan?"

Gine reached down and gently brushed the hair from her grandson's face. And then, she turned away from him. "But you can't go alone..."

Gine went back into the house and grabbed a blanket for Gohan. And then, after covering him up, she took off in the direction of West City.

 _The next day, Kame House..._

Everyone had gathered at 8 am. Bulma in her new adventurer outfit, Krillin with his travel clothes and a bag of personal belongings slung over his shoulder, and Gohan, accompanied by Gine and Chi-Chi, with several bags of clothes and books and a new haircut.

The three of them all stood in front of the newly remodeled Namekian Ship, preparing themselves for this new adventure. The entire while, Gine was staring off into the distance, as if she was waiting for something. She had an annoyed look on her face.

Finally, Bulma took a deep breath and called out. "Okay! Let's get going!"

Gine held up her hand. "Wait! Please wait just a minute!"

Bulma turned to Gine. "Why, what's up?"

Gine was nervous. "I'm just...someone isn't here yet and-"

"I'm here."

Everyone turned and glanced over at this new voice. Bulma and Krillin were shocked. Gohan was confused. Bardock stepped up to the group with his repaired armor and a bag slung over his shoulder. "Okay, so are we ready?"

Bulma flinched. "Ready for what?"

Bardock grunted. "Ready for the trip. Gine spent all last night yelling at me, so I'm ready to go. Let's head out to Namek."

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	11. Chapter 11: The Journey to Namek

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 11: The Journey to Namek**

 _Within the Mental Plane..._

Bardock leapt back twice, dodging a punch from his grandson and a kick from Krillin. The older Saiyan charged up two ki blasts and tossed them at his opponents. Gohan and Krillin both dodged, but Bardock quickly sped towards the human and kicked him in the head. Krillin went flying, but Gohan quickly grabbed his grandfather into a headlock.

Bardock struggled as Krillin recovered. The human charged a Kamehameha and fired it at Bardock, but Bardock smirked. Lightning fast, the Saiyan elbowed his grandson in the gut and used him as a shield. He tossed the boy aside and charged at the surprised Krillin, punching him in the throat and headbutting him hard.

Gohan was getting frustrated and, his anger getting the better of him, he charged a Special Beam Cannon and fired it at Bardock, Bardock snorted and turned around, deflecting the blast right back at Gohan and taking out the boys shoulder.

Behind Bardock, Krillin react quickly and tossed a Destructo-Disc, but Bardock was prepared. He leapt over the ki blade and allowed it to fly right under him and straight towards Gohan. The young boy gasped as the disc cleaved right through him.

Krillin was shocked, but Bardock took advantage. He appeared behind Krillin, grabbed him by the head, and kneed him in the back, snapping his spine. Bardock threw Krillin like a football at the sputtering Gohan, leaving the two of them as a heap.

Bardock charged a Riot Javelin and prepared to throw. "Better luck next time, bra-"

 _An image flashed through Bardock's head: a golden warrior burned bright before him. And then, with a scream, the burning energy of this being overwhelmed him._

 _On the Namekian Spaceship..._

Bardock's eyes snapped open and he rubbed his hand over his face. Shakily, he opened his eyes and realized that he was pouring with sweat. What the Hell was that?!

Bardock shook his head and looked over at Gohan and Krillin, both of whom were opening their eyes as well. Krillin and Gohan both looked over to Bardock, and then they both smiled and began to laugh. Krillin shouted. "That was so intense! But it felt so rewarding!"

Gohan smiled. "Yeah! You're a hard to fight as Piccolo!"

Bardock was confused, but he smirked. "Y-yeah..."

Regaining some bravado, Bardock punched his chest. "Hell yeah! A nice workout is good every so often! And you two-"

The door to the sleeping quarters flew open and Bulma stormed out with a twisted look of anger on her face. " _Will the three of you shut the Hell up?!_ I'm trying to sleep and you're all being too loud!"

Bardock rolled his eyes and sighed. "Oh great...this shit again..."

He turned to Bulma and snorted. "Could you shut your bitch off for five minutes? You've been acting like this sense we started this goddamned trip!"

Bulma snapped at Bardock. "Oh, you are the last person I want to hear from! I made Krillin come with me, and Gohan has a reason to come with us at least...but I don't even know you! You're just some bum that decided to tag along where he isn't wanted!"

Bardock snapped back. "Shut your trap! Believe me, I didn't come along on the 'Bitch-Out Express' by choice!"

 _A few days earlier, West City Hospital..._

Bardock flinched as Gine backed him into a corner. "You have to, Bardock! You're the only person healthy enough _and_ strong enough to accompany them out there!"

Bardock was wavering in the face of his wife's sudden, aggressive behavior. He shook his head. "Come on, Gine! I barely know any of them! The two humans are practically strangers to me and the boy is-"

Gine retorted. "Your Grandson! He's your grandson, Bardock! And he's going into space! _Frieza's_ space!"

Bardock shook his head. "What are the odds he'll actually run across Frieza?! Besides, I don't want to yet. I'm not fully healed. And I want to go with Kakarot and Raditz once they've healed so that we can train on the way there!"

Gine planted her fists onto her hips. "Gohan is a Saiyan too! You can train with him! Make him strong! Keep him safe!"

Bardock rolled his eyes. "If the boy were a real Saiyan he'd-"

Gine grabbed Bardock by the chest plate of his armor and physically yanked him down to her eye level. "Gohan is a gentle boy. He's not a true, Saiyan warrior. And that's not a bad thing, Bardock! He's not going out because he wants to fight, he's going out because he feels guilty about that Namekian dying in the fight with Nappa! He's hurt..."

Gine glanced away from Bardock with shame in her eyes. "If Raditz and I were a bit faster, we could have prevented all of this from ever happening to begin with. We failed..."

Gine's eyes were starting to get misty and Bardock sighed. Gently, he removed her hands from his armor and then pulled her into a hug. "Fine. I'll go with them, okay? I'll keep 'em safe, even if it costs me my life."

Gine looked up at her husband and smiled, hugging him back. "Try not to let it cost us your life. Just...be careful, guide them safely, and maybe try to bond with your new grandson a little, okay?"

 _Back in the present, the Namekian Spaceship..._

Krillin and Gohan cowered behind their luggage as Bardock and Bulma shouted back and forth at each other. Two massive tempers were clashing and they threatened to blow the ship apart. Bulma snarled at Bardock. "I swear! You're like a worse Goku! No manners! No tact! No class! Acting like a lumbering brute and being loud and making a constant mess, and-"

Bardock rolled his eyes and shouted as loud as he could. " _How is it that Hell was better than dealing with you?!_ "

Bulma glared at Bardock before storming off in a huff. "You belong in Hell, you massive ass!"

Bardock shot back at her. "Well so do you, ya hard-nosed bitch!"

Bulma responded to that with a massive slam of the sleeping quarters door. Once she was gone, Bardock let off a tired sigh and leaned against the wall. After a few moments of awkward silence, the older Saiyan turned his head and glanced over at Gohan and Krillin. "So, let's talk about you two and how you fight..."

Emerging from their hiding place, Gohan and Krillin both sat in front of the veteran warrior. Bardock nodded and glared at the two of them. "I guess, starting with the good...you both have some real fighting prowess for a couple of young bucks."

Bardock pointed at Gohan. "Kid, you have some real skill for someone who only started a year ago. Your instincts shine through and you have good reaction time."

Bardock pointed at Krillin. "And you...you've been training with my son since you were both little, right?"

Krillin nodded and Bardock continued. "That comes through. You have a solid head on your shoulders and the variety of moves you try out when facing down a stronger opponent is great. You're like utility knife that knows how to fight..."

Gohan and Krillin both smiled and nodded, turning to each other and sharing a fist bump. But then, Bardock's voice grew harsher. "But, don't let that go to your heads, cuz you two have some problems that are easy to exploit!"

Gohan and Krillin both flinched as Bardock came down on them. "Boy! You're too damned reckless. You let your anger get the better of you jump head first into things. You need to learn to keep your head cool and take advantage of any rage you feel in order to outwit and overwhelm your opponent."

Bardock turned his attention to Krillin. "And you!"

Krillin held up his finger. "M-my name is Krill-"

Bardock smacked his hand down. "I don't give a shit! You have a real problem with attack syncing! You don't seem like you're even trying to keep up with the flow of a fight! I mean...you cut the boy in half! If that were a real fight, you would've murdered your partner because you didn't read the situation correctly! And then you'd be dead because you didn't have any back-up!"

Bardock glowered over the two as they both lowered their heads in shame. After a tense moment of silence, the two of them turned to each other and began to mumble amongst themselves. Bardock looked annoyed. "That conversation too important to let me in?!"

After another small conversation, Gohan and Krillin both glared up at Bardock with determination. Gohan stood up and shook his fist at his grandfather. "We want to go again! We think that we could put up a better fight this time around!"

Bardock cocked his head. "Oh really? A brat and a human think they can-"

Krillin stood up and glared at Bardock. "We're not just a 'brat' and a 'human'! We're Gohan and Krillin and we want another shot at you!"

Bardock flinched. But then, with a chuckle, he smiled. "Fine then. _Gohan and Krillin_...let's give this another go!"

 _Back in the Mental Plane..._

Bardock retreated back from several approaching blasts, dodging each and backflipping before throwing one of his own. Gohan and Krillin rushed towards him, matching up their footsteps perfectly and kicking off of each other just as the blast exploded, avoiding damage and bouncing about.

Gohan landed in the front and charged at his grandfather, landing two punches on the older Saiyan before eating a fist to the face. Bardock smirked and went to smash his grandson over the head, but his arm was stopped by a sudden Krillin from behind!

Krillin wrestled Bardock's arm into an armbar and delivered a momentarily paralyzing kick to the older Saiyan's spine. This maneuver allowed Gohan to unload several heavy blasts into Bardock's chest, followed by a devastating headbutt.

Once Bardock was properly tenderised, Krillin heaved the larger man over his shoulder and slammed him hard into the ground. And then, as Bardock struggled to collect himself, the two weaker warriors leapt away and peppered their more experienced opponent with ki blasts.

They both landed and distance away and gave each other a hardy high five. However, Bardock soon stood up with barely a scratch on him. "Nice! Nice! You two certainly catch on quick! I had to hammer lessons into Panbukin and Totepo for weeks before they would finally start getting it together!"

Bardock took up a fighting stance. "But, just because you too are getting some basics down, that doesn't mean that you have everything!"

Gohan and Krillin both took up fighting stances and Bardock charged. The three warriors shared a back-and-forth brawl, constantly trading punches and kicks. Bardock smiled wide as he traded blows with these two. It was like a puzzle piece had fallen into place! As the match reached a fever pitched, Bardock was positively giddy at the pressure that these two were putting on him. He felt alive!

However, as Bardock went to counter a kick from Gohan, his focus wavered. The kick connected to Bardock's jaw and his vision flickered. In the void in front of him, he saw two things...the same golden warrior from before...and a very familiar-looking silver ghoul. A dark chuckle emerged from the ghoul, a laugh that Bardock recognized in the back of his head. As the laughter grew more and more high-pitched, Bardock's temper snapped. He screamed at the top of his lungs as, once again, the power of the golden warrior washed over him.

 _Hours later, on the Namekian Ship..._

Bardock's eyes snapped open and he sat up with a start. Sweat poured down Bardock's face and he looked around. "Wh-where..."

A hand touched Bardock's shoulder from behind and the Saiyan quickly whipped around, fist drawn. He stopped short once he realized that this person behind him was, in fact, his grandson. Gohan and Krillin both looked unnerved as they stood in front of Bardock, canned food in hand.

Anxiously, Gohan spoke. "G-grandpa...are you okay?"

Bardock shook his head and sighed. "Y-yeah. I'm...fine..."

As Bardock wiped his face, Gohan handed him a can of food. Bardock opened it and began to eat as Gohan and Krillin sat next to him. The older Saiyan looked over at the two, annoyed by how they were staring at him. "What the Hell are you two looking at?"

Krillin spoke up. "Um...we're just...d-do you know how long you've been out?"

Bardock raised an eyebrow and Krillin quickly informed him. "Two hours. You've been out cold for two hours. So...Gohan and I were just concerned over whether you were okay or not..."

Bardock sighed. "Y-yeah. I'm fine. Just...headaches and shit, I guess. Gotta put breaks in-between training or you'll overwhelm yourself..."

Krillin nodded. "Y-yeah. Master Roshi used to say the same thing. We should probably take a break..."

A long silence filled the ship. Gohan, Bardock, and Krillin all ate their food wordlessly. Once they were done, Krillin got each of them a bottle of water and they drank in silence. No one said anything for at least an hour, but then Gohan spoke up. "G-grandpa?"

Bardock turned to Gohan. "Sup?"

Gohan nervously smiled at the gruff Saiyan. "I-I was wondering...could I ask you some questions?"

Bardock was blunt. "Questions about what?"

Gohan nodded. "Questions about...well...you! I just met you a couple of weeks ago. So, I would like to get to know you some seeing as you're my grandfather and all..."

Bardock sneered, but then he remembered what Gine had said to him. The older Saiyan was never one to enjoy talking about the past, but answering some of the boys questions couldn't hurt, he guessed. "Fine. Ask away."

Bardock turned towards Gohan, leaning his back to the wall and crossing his arms. Gohan smiled wide. He was practically bouncing as he tried to think of some questions for his grandfather. "Okay...so..."

Gohan tapped his chin. "You're an alien from a different planet from Earth, so...what was the Saiyan homeworld like?"

Bardock grunted. "Planet Vegeta sucked. The people sucked. The climate sucked. The cities sucked. And the royalty was made up of pompous dumbasses like Vegeta. King Vegeta and his bitchy wife both deserved exactly what they got for their arrogance in thinking they could ever deal with King Cold in the first place..."

Gohan flinched at such a blunt summation. "O-okay...so..uh..."

He thought for another moment, turning to Krillin for help but receiving a confused shrug in response. Gohan turned back to his grandfather and smiled. "H-how did you meet Grandma Gine?"

Bardock sighed and rolled his eyes. "Gine was a member of my squad when I joined the Saiyan Army. She was a runt and a terrible fighter, they thought she'd die after her first mission. She lasted for longer than that and we became great allies. We stayed allies and battle partners for the longest time and then...Raditz happened and that changed..."

Gohan and Krillin both blushed. Gohan nervously chuckled. "O-oh...that's...heh..."

Gohan shook his head and continued. "What was your family like?"

Bardock sneered uncomfortably. He mulled around what to say for a bit, but then he spoke. "My family..."

The older Saiyan shrugged. "Mom and Dad were both assholes. Dad died when Mom killed him in a barfight. Mom died on the campaign to genocide the Klorfors. Most of our time with them was spent with them whooping our asses for all sorts of shit, when we'd act out, when they'd get drunk, when they felt like it...I raised us for the most part I guess..."

Bardock tapped his bicep. "Had a brother, he was weaker than me by a pretty wide margin. He's probably face-down in a ditch on some backwater planet by now..."

Gohan glanced down. "Oh, I see...well-"

Krillin placed a hand on Gohan's shoulder. "Gohan, why don't we let Bardock rest for now? He seems tired..."

Gohan turned to Krillin and Krillin pointed out the tense look on Bardock's face. Gohan nodded in agreement. "Perhaps that would be for the best..."

Krillin nodded. "Yeah! Why don't you and I train some more together, you never know when the next fight might land on top of us!"

Gohan nodded. "R-right!"

And then, as the other two trained, Bardock stared out the viewing window into the depths of space. The older Saiyan shook his head and sighed, eventually nodding off as Gohan and Krillin mentally sparred with one another.

 _Meanwhile, on Frieza Planet #79..._

The thoughts of his battle on Earth ran through his head as he sat in the healing chamber. The various pratfalls and embarrassments that he had suffered shot through his brain like a bullet. The sheer rage that he felt was boiling within him, threatening to rise to the surface and explode everywhere. He remembered them, those four low-class nothings standing up to him, and then his eyes shot open. Energy erupted from the healing chamber and obliterated the several technicians standing before him. And then, wet and fully healed: Vegeta emerged!

The attending doctor ran into the room and glowered at the fully healed Saiyan Prince. "Vegeta! Those were some of my best men!"

Vegeta glared at the doctor and the doctor sneered. "Hold that attitude while you can..."

The doctor tapped a pad on the wall and a nearby locker opened up containing a new set of armor for Vegeta. The Saiyan Prince smirked and walked over, beginning to put it on. "Expendable. That's what they all were. None of you fools can even throw a punch, much less conquer a planet. I'm sure that Frieza will easily replace you and forget all about the rest of them..."

Vegeta touched the base of his back. "Not that it would be hard to find doctors would could do a better job than you anyway..."

The old doctor shrugged. "We are unable to discern what exactly removed your tail, but it did such hefty damaged that we are unable to properly repair it with the technology available."

Vegeta nodded as he fit his gloves onto his hands. "Mhm. Mhm. You're incompetent, yes."

The doctor narrowed his eyes at Vegeta. "At least my life has no guaranteed end in sight. I was only ordered to heal you because Lord Frieza demanded it. Otherwise, I would have left you to die in that Battle Pod."

Vegeta smiled at the doctor. "Oh, is that what you think?"

The doctor nodded. "Indeed. Lord Frieza wants you alive to punish you himself, once he gets back from Planet Namek."

Vegeta's ear perked up at that little tidbit. The doctor continued. "So, now that you are healed, you are to report to Staff Sergeant Cui at once to be detained until you-"

Vegeta rushed forward, clamping his hand over the doctor's mouth and squeezing tight. "No, doctor, I meant... _do you really think that your life has no guaranteed end in sight?!_ "

Vegeta picked up the older man and wickedly smiled before quickly turning and ramming his head into a nearby coat hanger. The metal spike popped out from behind the doctor's left eye and blood poured down the old man's face. Eventually, the twitching stopped and Vegeta smiled, letting his mouth go.

Vegeta picked up the scouter from the nearby table and placed it onto his ear. And then, the left the medical bay, locking the door behind him as he did.

Vegeta walked down the hallway towards the office of the base's commander, Staff Sergeant Cui, with a devilish smile on his face. He thought about the machinations that had been going through his head since he had woken up in that pile of rubble on the Earth. Those low-class scum were able to transcend their place and become strong enough to fight him head on. After that had sunk in, Vegeta realized just how complacent he had allowed himself to become.

He had let the status quo get the better of him. Waiting until Frieza's own arrogance led to his death rather than going about matters the Saiyan way. Vegeta was ready to take the bull by the horns now, though. He was stronger, much stronger than before...he could feel energy like those fools on Earth could...and he could mask his energy to the point where no one could see him coming.

Vegeta was more powerful that Zarbon and Dodoria now, no doubt about it. He wasn't more powerful than Frieza, but he could remedy that. After that fool of an emperor gathered the Dragon Balls, Vegeta could sneak in under his nose and take them for himself. And then, once he wished for the ultimate trump card, _**IMMORTALITY**_ , then he could triumph. Frieza would die...and then he would go back to Earth and put those four nothings back under his princely boot where they belonged.

Vegeta smiled as he stood in front of the door to Cui's office. And then, he politely knocked.

 _Within Staff Sergeant Cui's Office..._

Cui smiled as he polished the cuffs, he would be placing Vegeta in. He couldn't wait to see the cowed look on that arrogant little bastard's face as he was placed in restraint and held until Frieza got back. He was already making side bets with Zarbon and Dodoria over how many minutes it would take their terrifying master to break Vegeta's spirit.

Cui sickly chuckled. "Two minutes. If it's two minutes or less, Dodoria and Zarbon both owe me 20,000 credits. Hehehehehe..."

A knuckle wrapped against Cui's door and he called out. "State your business!"

Vegeta called back. "You wanted to see me, Staff Sergeant?"

Cui sneered. Vegeta was clearly thinking that a bit of faux politeness would save his skin, but it wouldn't work. Cui pressed the button on his desk and the door to his office began to open. "Vegeta, get your ass in-"

A beam of energy shot into the room and pierced Cui's chest. The staff sergeant bent over onto his desk and coughed up blood, dropping the cuffs onto the floor. "Ve...Vege...taaahhhh..."

Vegeta smirked as he stepped in. "Hi Cui."

 _Frieza Planet #79 Communication Hub..._

No one in the communication hub took notice as the window to Staff Sergeant Cui's office lit up several times. They were all too busy providing support to the various squads out on patrol. In addition to being a hospital base, Frieza Planet #79 was also a hub for collecting the taxes that Lord Frieza had placed upon the puny races he had chosen to spare. They needed to stay in constant contact in order to make sure that all credits were brought through the proper channels and safely deposited into the lord's account.

The people of this communication hub were so busy, in fact, that no one took notice of anything strange until, to their shock, the mangled body of Staff Sergeant Cui landed on top of the main server, restrained in stasis cuffs and coughing up a mixture of blood and smoke.

The lot of them looked up in horror as, on the balcony above, stood the disgraced Vegeta with an energy ball in hand.

The lot of them could barely muster more than a scream of terror before that energy ball came down and took all of their lives.

 _Frieza Planet #79, Travel Dock..._

Various armed soldiers ran towards the massive explosion that had occurred right before all of their communications had cut out. The only functioning communicator left on the planet was the scouters, and they only functioned within a certain range and level of interference.

Many soldiers ran into the smoke pluming from the communications bay, only to scream and not come out. A bastion of the troops all gathered and waited, only to be surprised by a massive energy beam blasting out and wiping them all away.

The few remaining soldiers scrambled to get back on their feet, but many could only manage that before a beam shot through their chests and killed them. They all stared in horror as the disgraced Saiyan, Vegeta, emerged and came at them. They tried firing their meager blasters, but Vegeta simply deflected the bolts and killed them on the spot.

Vegeta approached the docking bay and smirked at Greep, the base coordinator. "Hey, Greep. Prepare a Battle Pod for a trip to Planet Namek."

Greep stammered. "P-p-planet Namek?! Are you insane?! Lord Frieza is there and if he sees you after all of this-"

Vegeta's smirk faded and he summoned a ball of energy into his hand. Greep screamed in terror and immediately did as ordered, summoning a fresh Battle Pod for Vegeta to use and inputting the proper coordinates. Vegeta smiled and gave his terrified hostage a pat on the back. "Thanks, Greep."

Greep stammered. "N-no prob-"

Vegeta grabbed Greep by the back of the head and smashed his face into the control panel. He did it again and again and again until there was nothing left of Greep's head and the panel was sufficiently destroyed. Vegeta had a good chuckle to himself and climbed into the Battle Pod, smiling as it took off. The end of Frieza was near, and Vegeta would be the one to deal the fatal blow, all by himself.

 _Weeks later, On Planet Namek..._

The elevator from the Kami's old ship slowly descended and the four travelers from Earth took in their new surroundings. Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma all marveled at the amazing, rolling fields of Planet Namek. The air smelled different, the atmosphere felt different, and the three party members who had never left Earth before were all quite impressed.

Bardock, however, was barely whelmed at the sights. If he had seen one planet like Namek, he had seen a million like Namek. He took a deep breath, tightened his bandana around his head, and then he turned to the other three. "Okay, listen up! Standard procedure!"

Bardock pointed at each of them. "We need to split up, find Namekian settlements, and establish a chain of communication with these slugs in order to earn their trust and achieve our goals as quickly as possible. Once that is done, we can open a dialog about our demands and-"

Bulma, her face red, shouted right at Bardock. "Who the Hell said you were the leader of this mission?!"

Bardock sneered and got ready to make a retort, but then his eyes widened and he raced right at Bulma. The human woman screamed in terror, afraid that Bardock might hurt her, but was surprised when she felt a hot explosion very close to the back of her head.

She looked up and saw that Bardock had pulled her close to his chest, his other arm extended behind her head to block it from being stricken by an energy blast. Bulma turned to see that Gohan and Krillin had already taken up a fighting stance. Bardock shoved her behind him and then he did as well.

Bulma scanned around for the problem and eventually found it hovering in the air. Two aliens wearing the same armor as the Saiyans glared at the four of them. And then, the one on the left spoke. "Who the Hell are you people and how dare you enter a restricted area?!"

Bulma's face turned blue. "R-restricted? Why is-"

Not letting her finish, the two aliens charged at the four of them with their hand-mounted blasters drawn.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	12. Chapter 12: The Hunt Begins

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: So, I'm 12 chapters into this and I just wanted to say that I appreciate all of the love and support for this story! I've been really busy, holidays and all, and haven't been able to respond to every review as I normally like to, but I just wanted to say I appreciate it when you all leave your reviews and criticisms. I have big plans for this story, so I hope you all stick around to read what I have cooked up. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!_

 **Chapter 12: The Hunt Begins**

 _On Planet Namek..._

The two soldiers in Saiyan Armor charged at the new arrivals to Namek. Gohan and Krillin immediately charged back, meeting these two new foes with a punch and a knee strike. The two soldiers, stunned, were sent flying back. They glanced at each other and charged again, this time meeting Gohan and Krillin for close combat. The fight seemed even for only a moment before Gohan and Krillin overwhelmed the two of them and sent them flying back again.

In the meantime, as this brawl raged on, Bulma immediately ran back towards the ship to hide. The mustache-bearing soldier glared over at her and motioned to his partner. "Sui! Destroy that ship!"

The purple reptilian smirked. "Right, Banan!"

He quickly turned his blaster towards the Namekian spaceship and fired. The beam launched right at the front of the ship but, just before it could hit, it was handily deflected away. Sui gasped. "Wh-what the hell?"

Bardock landed and glared at the soldier. "Just what the hell is the Frieza Force doing on this hick planet?"

Sui sneered. "If you know that we're part of the Frieza Force, then you should know that you ain't getting an answer to that!"

The soldier aimed his blaster at Bardock, but Bardock quickly closed the gap between them. He clamped his hand around Sui's blaster and crushed it into nothing. Sui cried out in pain, but Bardock quickly silenced him with a fist through the chest.

Sui dropped dead and Bardock turned his attention to Banan. The Frieza Force soldier was stuttering and terrified, turning tail and attempting to fly away. Bardock quickly overtook him kicked him in the jaw. Banan plummeted back to the ground and slid into a nearby rockface. He struggled to get up, but Bardock landed on top of him and wrapped his hands around his throat. After a moment, Banan stopped moving altogether and Bardock stood up. "Goddammit...why the hell is the Frieza Force here?"

Before Bardock could think any harder, Krillin, Gohan, and Bulma came running up to him. Krillin and Gohan was both in awe. Krillin chuckled. "That was amazing, Bardock! You took those guys out like it was nothing!"

Gohan added on. "Nice moves, Grandpa!"

Bardock looked down at his two, younger travel companions and smirked. "Yeah. It wasn't all that hard. They were just fodder."

After a moment, Bulma spoke up as well. "Y-you saved the ship too! If that beam had hit it, then we would have been stuck here!"

Bardock glanced over at Bulma and nodded. "Yeah. Gotta protect valuable assets. That's Rule #1 when dealing with a planet that is possibly full of hostiles."

Bardock turned from the group and walked over to Banan's corpse. As he messed with it, Bulma began to fret. "Th-those guys were wearing the same armor as the Saiyans. And... they tried to kill us the moment they saw us! I have a bad feeling about all of this..."

With a grunt, Bardock pulled the hand blaster off of Banan's arm and tossed it to Bulma. "Listen to that feeling. It'll keep you alive."

Bardock picked up Banan's corpse and then walked over to Sui and began to mess with his crushed hand blaster. Bulma glanced down at the weapon. "Wh-what's this for?"

Bardock tore open the side of Sui's blaster and shouted to Bulma over his shoulder. "Self-defense. We can't be babysitting you for this entire trip. That blaster is powerful enough to kill any weakling if you place the shot well enough. You have decent aim, right?"

Bulma nodded. "Y-yeah...I landed a shot on Goku right between the eyes when I first met him."

Bardock snorted and threw the battery from Sui's hand blaster at Bulma. "Well then, just pretend every enemy you see is Kakarot and you should be just fine."

Bulma stared down at her new weapon and began to fiddle with it. Bardock, meanwhile, slung Sui's corpse on top of Banan's and carried the two dead soldiers over to the water, tossing them in. Once their bodies had safely sunk into the depths, Bardock walked back over to his group. "Well guys...five minutes in and we've already started a body count of two. I'd say this trip is off to a decent start."

Bulma slotted the blaster over her hand and fitted it to her arm. "Y-yeah...I guess so."

Gohan and Krillin both nodded and Bardock smirked. "Now...let's start out by finding a Drag-"

Bardock looked up into the air and sighed. "Ah shit..."

Krillin and Gohan both cocked their heads. Bulma, meanwhile, began to panic. Gohan and Krillin both turned to look up into the sky and gasped in terror. A Saiyan Space Pod was falling from above. Bulma stammered. "Is...is that...?"

Krillin, Gohan, and Bardock all closed their eyes and felt out the energy in the pod. Krillin and Gohan's faces turned green. Bardock merely sighed. "Vegeta..."

 _Quite a way away on Namek..._

The hatch to the Battle Pod opened and out stepped Vegeta, looking smug. The Saiyan Prince knew what a good position he was in at the moment. His new knowledge that Frieza was listening in through the scouters played to his advantage. He had no one on his tail and he could leak whatever information, or misinformation, he wanted to directly to his enemies.

Vegeta chuckled to himself and took a deep breath of Namekian air. "I smell blood in the air. I wonder who will die first?"

 _Back with Group Bardock..._

Bardock, Krillin, and Gohan flew with Bulma tightly holding on to Krillin's back. All four of them were scanning the ground for a cave big enough to allow them to hide out in. Bardock turned to his travel mates and shouted. "Hey woman! I'll admit, it was a pretty smart move to make sure that we could store the ship so easily."

Bulma called back. "Well duh! My father is the owner of Capsule Corporation, why wouldn't I make our only means of travel easy to store and hide?!"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah..."

Gohan and Krillin both scanned the various islands of Planet Namek intently. Krillin piped up. "So, once we find a place to make our base of operations, what's the plan Bardock?"

Bardock called back. "We start hunting for Dragon Balls! There are four of us and seven of them. So, if we all put our best effort into it, we should be able to gather most of what we need in under a day!"

Gohan smiled. "I can't wait to meet some Namekians. I wonder if they're all like Mr. Piccolo?"

Bardock grunted. "Just be wary, Boy. You never know how locals will react to alien life..."

The four of them flew for another five minutes before Bulma finally called out. "I see a cave!"

They all came to a stop and landed on the island that Bulma was pointing towards. In front of them was a massive rockface with a gigantic hole in the side. Bardock motioned to Gohan. "Stay here and with the woman. Krillin and I will check it out."

The two older warriors walked into the cave, leaving Gohan and Bulma waiting outside. Bulma, finally having a moment alone with Gohan, turned to the boy. "So, that grandfather of yours..."

Gohan looked up at her. "Yes?"

Bulma put on a sour face. "He's a rude, gruff, overly macho, smelly, angry, prickish dick..."

Gohan nodded. "Uh-huh..."

Bulma sighed and her shoulders sagged. "But if you look past all of that...he's basically Goku but older...so I can't be _all_ bad..."

Gohan smiled. "I don't think so either. He just seems tired most of the time...at least to me."

Bulma glanced away from Gohan and at the blaster on her hand. "Hmm..."

After a few moments, Krillin and Bardock re-emerged from the cave. Bardock pointed at it with his thumb. "The thing goes pretty deep. Deep enough that we could set up a proper hiding spot. Vegeta shouldn't be able to find us with a scouter in a hole that deep."

Krillin smirked. "Yeah, and no hostile wildlife. So, that's a plus too!"

Bulma reached into her vest and pulled out a capsule case. "I have a Capsule House we can set up in there. So, we can at least have some level of comfort while we're here."

Krillin nodded. "Sounds good. Let's-"

Krillin stopped dead in his sentence and his jaw dropped. "Wh-wha...?!"

Gohan's face turned a ghostly white. Even Bardock was rendered utterly speechless by what he felt coming right towards them. Bulma looked confused as her three travel mates all stood there, rendering utterly dead by what they felt. "What's going on?"

No response.

Bulma's voice got a bit more frantic. "Guys?!"

Suddenly, a quick as a bolt of lightning, Bardock shoved Krillin and Gohan into the cave. And then, he grabbed Bulma, clamping his hand over her mouth, and pulling her in as well. Bulma attempted to cry out under the hand, but Bardock held firm.

Carefully, the four of them peeked out of the cave and towards the approaching force. And, after a moment, they were met by the sight of several more soldiers flying by. Immediately after these soldiers was the source of the power: a purple, pink, and white demon with sharp, black horns flew by in a hover pod.

Flying right next to him was two other aliens, a tubby ball of pink spikes and a green, princely-looking fellow. Both of them carrying a set of two very familiar looking orange spheres. Krillin and Gohan were both aghast at this massive army of super powers. Bulma, under Bardock's hand, was panicking at the sight of these people holding four Dragon Balls.

As for Bardock...a piercing ringing noise was screaming through Bardock's head. He hands were firm, but chilly and white. All at once, bitter memories of the past flooded through his head. Pain and agony and rage and heat and death all at once. Bardock's voice wavered as he mumbled a single word to himself. "Frieza..."

Once the threat had well passed, Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma all spilled from the cave, heaving for breath. The three terrified travelers all looked at once another and spoke in wavering tones. Gohan gasped. "They were all so strong..."

Krillin nodded. "And there were so many of them..."

Bulma swallowed a lump in her throat. "And they had _FOUR_ Dragon Balls..."

The three of them turned to look at Bardock for advice on what to do next, but they were met by an even more unsettling sight. Bardock was standing there, in the entrance to the cave, with the most unsettling, unhinged smile on his face he could muster. " _Frieza..._ "

Gohan was a bit worried. "G-grandpa?"

But, Bardock didn't hear Gohan at all. Instead, the gears were turning in the veteran Saiyan's head. It was time for him to right a wrong that had happened so long ago. If Bardock played his cards right...then maybe he might be able to leave this planet with the bastard Frieza's head!

That thought gave Bardock more joy than nearly anything in his life. This time he would-

Bardock's eyes widened as another vision ran through his head: this vision was much clearer than the visions prior. He saw Vegeta massacring an entire village of Namekians, taking the Dragon Ball that they were guarding, and tossing it into the Namekian sea.

Gohan called out again. " _Grandpa Bardock!_ "

Bardock snapped back into his senses and shook his head, staring down at the fearful look on his grandson's face. Gohan stared up at him. "Are you okay?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah, kid. I'm fine. Just thinking..."

Krillin spoke up. "Well...can you think of a single thing we can actually do right now? Those smaller soldiers would be easy to beat, but the two that were holding the Dragon Balls are way out of our league. You're probably the only person here who can stand up to them! And that's not even mentioning the little guy in the middle..."

Bardock gave Krillin a hearty slap on the back. "Ah, shut the hell up! Have some confidence! We aren't dead yet, we just have to be a bit sneaky..."

Krillin cocked his head. "Sneaky?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. We have to be the smart people in the face of the strong. At least for now."

Bulma, significantly cowed by the sheer power they had just faced, stepped up. "So... what do we do?"

Bardock cleared his throat. "It's simple, kids. We each have a job to do that plays to our strengths!"

Bardock pointed to Bulma. "You stay here and set up our base! Get that Capsule House up and establish contact with our people on the Earth. When you do, you need to let everyone know that Frieza is on this planet. And don't worry, Raditz and Gine will know what that means..."

Bulma nodded and immediately ran into the cave to begin set-up. Bardock smirked and turned to Gohan and Krillin. "Here's your job, you two. It's dangerous, but I think I can count on the both of you to handle it."

Krillin was a tad unsure. "O-okay..."

Gohan was listening intently, determined to do his part. Bardock pointed in the direction that Frieza and his troops had flown. "You need to follow them and gather as much intel as you can without being seen. Account for every Dragon Ball and every piece of information they let slip! We need to know every bit of information we can get our hands on if we wanna come out on top here. Got it?!"

Gohan nodded immediately. "Yessir, Grandpa Bardock!"

Krillin swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded as well. "O-okay...I think...I think we can handle that..."

Gohan spoke up again. "What are you going to be doing, Grandpa?"

Bardock smirked and turned away from the two of them. "We need a competitive advantage here. If we don't hurry, Frieza is going to clean sweep this planet before we even get a point in! So, I'm going to use my free time and higher level of experience on dealing with alien life to go and hunt a Dragon Ball for us to have and hold!"

Bardock sounded confident as he stretched and walked away. "We'll regroup in an hour or so. You two had better stay safe..."

Bardock squatted down, stretching his legs, and then took off with a shout. "Gine would kill me if anything happened to you!"

And, with that, Bardock was off. As he got smaller and smaller over the horizon, Gohan and Krillin turned to each other. Krillin was unnerved, but Gohan was ready to go. After some goading between the two of them, Gohan and Krillin took off in the direction that Frieza had flown.

 _Meanwhile, with Vegeta..._

Vegeta took an easy stroll across the plains of Namek, being in no particular rush. The Saiyan Prince was smug as he listened in on his soon-to-be prey. Dodoria and Zarbon were running their mouths to each other. Zarbon sounded as haughty as ever. "I swear, I am going to skin Banan and Sui alive when they return! They were supposed to be back with reports of more Namekian villages by now!"

Dodoria chuckled. "Knowing those two losers, they probably got taken out by the worthless slugs! Hell, maybe they got taken out by one of those Cold-forsaken giant crabs!"

Zarbon shuddered. "You puffy, pink dolt! Don't take King Cold's name in vain! It is very disrespectful to Lord Frieza!"

In the background, Vegeta could hear Frieza chime in. "Calm down Zarbon. I don't care about my father enough to let a simple blaspheme bother me. Honestly, the old fool would probably take pride that Dodoria is substituting him for God..."

Frieza sighed. "But that doesn't matter. I see a Namekian settlement ahead. Prepare for engagement."

Vegeta smirked as he listened to Dodoria, Zarbon, and Frieza continue to talk. None of them realized that this planet was going to be their grave!

 _Meanwhile, with Gohan and Krillin..._

After a short time of flying, Gohan and Krillin finally got to the point where they could feel the insane power level of that Frieza guy once again. The two travelers from Earth chose to land on the furthest reach of the landmass they felt Frieza on and walk the rest of the way in order to totally avoid detection by their more powerful foes.

Gohan and Krillin crept up to the top of a nearby ledge. Creeping to the very edge of this ledge, the two of them came upon a horrifying display. Several Namekian corpses were strewn across the burnt fields of Ajisa and, clustered nearer to the buildings, the final three Namekians were huddled in fear. Two children and an older Namekian stared at Frieza and the tyrant glowered right back at them.

Krillin shivered at the display and turned to check on Gohan, only to be shocked by the boy's already mounting anger. Krillin whispered to his partner. "G-gohan...calm down. Remember what Bardock said, you can't let your anger get the better of you..."

These pleas were falling on deaf ears. The more Gohan examined the situation, the apoplectic he was becoming. He knuckles were white as he gripped her fists around two shocks of grass.

Down in the village, Frieza smiled a polite, venomous smile as the Namekians. "Hello there. It is very nice to meet you. Now, now that I have made my ways perfectly clear to you...perhaps you might be willing to divulge the location of your Dragon Ball?"

 _Meanwhile, with Bardock..._

The village of the Four-Star Ball was functioning in peace, blissfully unaware of all of the horrors that were ravaging their planet. Children played in the fields are farmers tended to the Ajisa. The several warriors that Lord Guru had assigned to guard the Dragon Ball stood and ever constant vigil. All was calm, as far as they were concerned, on Planet Namek.

And then, like a lightning bolt from the heavens, Bardock dropped to the ground below. The entire village was shocked into silence by this non-Namekian intruder. The warriors all took up fighting stances, ready to strike on this invader. However, they stayed their hands. In their stead, the village elder marched right up to the still crouched down Bardock. The older Namekian had a concerned grimace on his face as he approached this visitor. "Pardon me...might I ask who you are and why you have come to this village?"

Bardock grunted as he stood up straight, towering over the older being. "Sorry to say, pops..."

Bardock summoned an energy ball into his hand and steeled his gaze at the old man. " _But you all are going to die over that Dragon Ball..._ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	13. Chapter 13: Score One

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 13: Score One**

 _Over with Gohan and Krillin's Group..._

Gohan and Krillin trembled as they watched the Frieza Force work. Their hearts went out for the three, terrified Namekians that were currently surrounded, but they knew that they didn't stand a chance against these guys. The troops would be easy to beat, but the pink one, the teal one, and Frieza himself were all a lot stronger than them. Gohan was shaking with fury, but Krillin placed a calming hand on the boy's back. He had to keep Gohan from losing his cool here.

Down in the settlement below, two shiftless Frieza goons pointed their blasters at the three Namekians. Frieza, maintaining an air of politeness, asked once more. "Your Dragon Ball. Where is it?"

The older Namekian sneered and began to speak in Namekian tongue at Frieza. The Emperor chuckled at this act of defiance. "I'm unsure whether the four Dragon Balls we already have are a dead giveaway or not, but we are well aware that your planet has adapted the common tongue. So, please, once again in a language that I can understand."

The older Namekian flinched, trying his best to glare at Frieza. He remained silent until one of the soldiers behind him smacked him in the head with their blaster. "O-okay...we-"

Before he could continue, all of the scouters in the settlement went off. Dodoria and Zarbon both turned and stared in the direction of the approaching powers. Zarbon snickered. "Oh my...power level 3000, 5000, and 7000..."

Dodoria snorted. Frieza chuckled to himself. The rest of the soldiers glared over as the three Namekian warriors all landed in the nearby Ajisa field. The leader of the group glared at the corpses of all of his murdered clansmen and snarled. "Bastards! How dare you kill the weak and defenseless?!"

The Frieza soldiers all laughed at this and the three warrior Namekians glowered. The one of the left roared. "Laugh while you can!"

And then, the three warriors raised their battle powers. Zarbon once again called out. "5000, 7000, and 9000."

Frieza chuckled. "Ohohohoho! How novel! They can hide their true power! Such an interesting race these Namekians are!"

The three warriors charged and began to fight Frieza's troops. The battle started as even but quickly began to become a one-sided squash for the Namekians. Frieza Force soldiers screamed out as their Namekian foes ended their lives with a combination of keen martial skill and applied energy attacks.

Up on the hill, Gohan and Krillin were both smiling. The Namekian's were fighting back! Maybe they would be able to drive the Frieza Force away from killing anymore innocents.

Down in the settlement, the elder Namekian smiled as his brothers battled these demons. The two young ones cheered on their older counterparts while the elder glared over at the invaders. He began to count those machines on their faces and eventually came to a total of 5 of them. In secret, the summoned five energy spheres onto his left hand. He had to time this perfectly...

The elder Namekian watched and waited for the appropriate opportunity, he just needed to two that were holding the Dragon Balls to both turn the machine side of their faces towards him. He just had to wait.

Soon enough, the opportunity came along. One of his warrior brothers kicked a screaming soldier over the other three's head and they all turned. The elder roared in defiance and launched all five of his finger blasts. Three of them hit their corpse targets and destroyed the machines. The other two flew right at Dodoria and Zarbon's faces and blasted their Scouters to pieces as well.

Frieza merely chuckled at this development. "Oh dear! It appears as if the old one is a keen strategist. How interesting~!"

Dodoria and Zarbon both glared over at the slug that had dared attack them. They each put their Dragon Balls down, and then Dodoria disappeared from sight. Zarbon, meanwhile, wiped the burn mark from his face. He calmly walked up to the elder, smacking the two children out of the way, and then he began to batter the older Namekian to the horror of the two children.

In the air, the lead warrior Namekian cried out. "Elder Moori!"

But, before he could rush to the elder's aid, Dodoria appeared. The fat, pink bastard wasted no time in shoving his hand through the Namekian warrior's chest, killing him. He then ripped his dead opponent in half and tossed his pieces at the other two, knocking them out of the sky.

Zarbon, meanwhile, continued to wordlessly pummel Moori. Eventually, after the older Namekian was sufficiently broken, the suave sadist spoke. "Now, the Dragon Ball. Or else I turn my attention to the children..."

Moori coughed up blood, looking past Zarbon to see the gruesome sight of Dodoria murdering the other two warriors. Their screams etched into his brain as Dodoria slaughtered them. Finally, Moori relented. "Okay...okay...I'll get it for you...just please leave the children alone..."

Zarbon smirked and pulled Moori to his feet as Dodoria stumbled over, coated in purple, Namekian blood. Dende and Cargo both cowered as these monsters loomed over them.

Meanwhile, Gohan and Krillin were still up on the hill, their moods have sunken even lower than before. Krillin was filled with dread at the sight of the mutilated Namekian corpses and Gohan...was barely holding it together. Krillin gave the boy a firm pat on the back. "Stay calm! Remember what Bardock said, stay calm! Your anger gets the better of you and you get yourself into all kinds of trouble! Just stay calm, Gohan!"

But, Gohan couldn't hear Krillin over the sound of the piercing ringing in his ears.

Back in the village, the busted up Moori emerged from his dwelling with the requested Dragon Ball. He handed it to Dodoria who smiled wide. Zarbon glared down at the elder as Dodoria took the Dragon Ball over to Frieza.

The Emperor held the ball in his hands and chuckled. "Such a splendorous bauble. To think, I only need two more and eternal life will be mine..."

Moori shuddered as Frieza coveted the sacred Dragon Ball in his grasp. Zarbon and Dodoria both merely smiled at their Master's mirth.

Up on the hill, Krillin was shaking. "S-see...they have the Dragon Ball...they'll leave now! Everything will-"

Frieza turned his glare back to Moori. "Now, where are the final two villages?"

Moori gasped as Dodoria turned and walked back towards him. Frieza wickedly smiled and cackled at Moori. "You had the gall to destroy our last, remaining scouters. Now, you will rectify your actions by giving to us the coordinates of the last remaining Namekian villages."

Moori was speechless. Dodoria and Zarbon both smirked. Dodoria smiled. "You'll tell us now, or we'll beat it out of all three of ya!"

Moori glanced down at the terrified younger Namekians and then back up at Zarbon and Dodoria. This was it. But...AT LEAST HE COULD SAVE THEM!

Moori quickly charged two blasts into his hands and thrust them into Zarbon and Dodoria's faces. "CARGO! DENDE! RUN!"

The two younger Namekians immediately obeyed, getting to their feet and running as fast as they could away. Moori smirked, but then turned to see Zarbon's fist smash into his face. Moori fell back as Dodoria gave chase to the children. He struggled and looked up at Zarbon just in time to see a Possibility Cannon launch into his face.

Up on the hill, Krillin looked over to see a livid Gohan barely holding it together. Krillin's face turned white, he knew that it was already too late. This feeling was only made worse down below when Frieza, without a care, fired an energy beam and killed one of the children. The other child stopped dead in his tracks, tears in his eyes, and began to shake his brother. "Cargo! Cargo!"

Finally, Dodoria screeched to a halt in front of the distraught, Namekian child. "Where the Hell are the others, brat?!"

Dodoria raised his hand in the air and prepared to strike, but Gohan had finally had enough. "STOP THIS!"

Gohan shot forward, faster than Krillin could stop him, and slammed his foot into Dodoria's face. The pink bastard went tumbling across the field and Gohan immediately faced Frieza and Zarbon. Frieza cocked his head. "Just who are you?"

Krillin landed next to Gohan, grabbing Dende and pulling the terrified boy close. "You idiot! We have to go, now!"

Gohan turned to Krillin and nodded and then the two of them took off with their young rescue in tow. Frieza and Zarbon both watched as they sped off as fast as they could. Zarbon turned to his Master. "Lord Frieza, should I give chase?"

Frieza shook his head. "No, Zarbon. We did our part..."

Frieza frowned and glared over at his bumbling, pink henchman. " _MR. DODORIA! GET OFF OF YOUR MASSIVE, PINK ASS AND GIVE CHASE AT ONCE!_ "

Dodoria stood up like a bolt, fear streaked across his face. He shook off his daze and bowed to his Master. "Yes sir, Lord Frieza!"

Dodoria took to the air and chased after Gohan, Krillin, and Dende. Meanwhile, Frieza turned to Zarbon. "We will be heading back to the ship so that we can discuss our next move. Follow along, Zarbon."

Zarbon nodded. "Of course, My Lord."

 _Meanwhile, with Bardock..._

Bardock was crouched down behind a rocky bluff, a bottle of water in his hand. The older Saiyan took a good, long sip as he waited. He sighed and shook his head. "That boy...gotta learn him some patience..."

Bardock glared up at the sky and, after a few minutes, finally caught sight of Gohan, Krillin, and Dende flying overhead. He shook his head and sighed as, mere moments later, Dodoria came rocketing by. Bardock nodded and stood up, giving chase on foot, looking for a proper moment to intervene.

Up in the air, Gohan and Krillin were both flying as quickly as they could. The human turned around saw, to his dismay, that Dodoria was closer than before. It wouldn't be long before they were overtaken by the pink brute. Krillin glanced down at Dende and then over at Gohan and shuddered. He had to save them!

Krillin shouted to Dende. "Hey, Namekian Kid!"

Dende looked up at him and Krillin swallowed the lump in his throat. "Tuck your head, I'm going to toss you to Gohan!"

Dende nodded and Krillin tossed him to Gohan. Gohan glanced over at his partner. "Mr. Krillin? What are you doing?!"

Krillin waved the boy off. "Just keep flying, I'll distract him!"

Gohan looked nervous, but he saw the determination in his friend's eyes. Nodding, he left Krillin behind and continued flying with Dende. Krillin, meanwhile, charged at Dodoria and caught the brute off with a kick to the head. Dodoria snarled and took a swipe at Krillin, who easily dodged the attack. The brute and the human had a solid back and forth until, finally, Dodoria managed to land a punch on Krillin's ribs. The human buckled over in pain, but powered through and blasted Dodoria in the face.

The pink bastard screamed in frustration and Krillin regrouped. He prepared to strike again, but his attention was caught by a piercing whistle. Krillin looked down and saw Bardock, who quickly motioned at him. Krillin nodded and, following Bardock's direction, he backed off.

Once Dodoria recovered, the saw Krillin still floating there and charged again. Krillin took up a new stance, which confused Dodoria. The brute didn't care as he prepared to strike, but was met by a blast smashing into his back. Dodoria was stunned and Krillin took his moment. " _SOLAR FLARE!_ "

Dodoria screamed in pain and clutched his hands over his searing eyes. In this moment, Krillin immediately descended to Bardock and began to silently apologize. "I'm so sorry! We went and spied on Frieza and they killed a bunch of-"

Bardock silenced Krillin and shook his head, motioning for them to run off. The two did, skipping from island to island in the direction that Gohan had flown. Krillin was happy to give the big, pink bastard the slip, but Bardock looked back. Hatred for Dodoria seared across his face and he wanted the bastard dead, but he knew that he had to wait.

Bardock stopped as Krillin rounded the corner to look at Dodoria one last time. But then, he was shocked by what he saw. As Dodoria wiped his eyes, Vegeta came flying out of nowhere and kicked the pink prick to the ground.

Krillin turned to Bardock and called to him. "Bardock, what are you doing?!"

Bardock grunted and turned to Krillin. "Run ahead, find Gohan, and wait for me."

Krillin was confused, but before he could ask what was going on Bardock had already sped off back towards Dodoria.

 _Over with Dodoria and Vegeta..._

Dodoria roared in frustration as he stood up. Just what the Hell did this pathetic worm think they were doing. The pink brute turned to sneer at his presumed human foe, only to be shocked at the sight of Vegeta looming over him.

The bastard hastily stood up and snarled at the Saiyan Prince. "Vegeta! What the Hell are-"

Vegeta, bloodthirsty and ready to take out a key player within Frieza's ranks. He flew forward and slammed his fist into Dodoria's stomach, breaching both armor and skin and sending the rotund pink bastard tumbling back. Dodoria coughed up blood and his eyes were wide. "What the Hell?!"

Vegeta shot a terrifying slasher smile at Dodoria and Dodoria wheezed in terror. Reacting quickly, the spiky pink brute summoned a powerful energy ball and shot it at Vegeta. The Saiyan Prince laughed and caught the ball, not even bothering to smack it away. He glared at Dodoria and began to crush the blast between his hands.

Dodoria was spooked and utterly horrified. He quickly stood up, turned tail, and began to run. But, right as he began to take off, a blast came out from behind a nearby rock and seared off Dodoria's stubby, right leg. The fat bastard fell to the ground and screamed in pain.

Vegeta, meanwhile, was perplexed. He crushed Dodoria's attack and began to stalk up to him. Dodoria turned to Vegeta and flung another blast at him. Vegeta tilted his head to the side, allowing the blast to strike the scouter on his ear. The Prince grunted and pulled the damaged device off of his face, dropping it to the ground.

And then, before he could step any closer, a voice called out that surprised both Dodoria and Vegeta. "Well damn, you lost your Scouter. Now how will you find your way around?"

A vein bulged from Vegeta's forehead and he snarled as the source of the voice stepped out from behind the rock. "I'll have you know that I have learned how to sense power levels without the need for a Scouter. It was nothing more than a tool for spying on Frieza!"

Dodoria, bleeding from his stomach and his leg stump, struggled to turn and see the source of the voice. However, he discovered the source once it sat down on his back. Dodoria turned his head and stammered in disbelief. "B-bardock?! How?!"

Bardock ignored Dodoria's question. Rather, he gave his full attention to Vegeta. "So, I couldn't help but notice you were taking the time to scare this blimp before you killed him. I take it you hate him as much as I do?"

Vegeta, angry but trying to work out what to do, responded. "Of course, I hate his fat ass. All he does is boast and berate and pass on empty threats. He doesn't seem to know how to do anything other than run his mouth! Why do you hate him?!"

Dodoria roared and swung his arm as Bardock. "Get the Hell off me!"

Bardock caught the arm in short order and locked Dodoria into a tight armbar. Dodoria snarled and tried to pull his limb free, but Bardock held tight. "Oh...I have a few reasons..."

Calmly and without emotion, Bardock tightly grabbed Dodoria's wiggling index finger with his free hand and, effortlessly, he twisted it until it broke and then tore it off. Dodoria's pupils shrank and he screeched in pain. Bardock calmly sighed. "Panbukin..."

To the aghast Vegeta's surprise, Bardock tore off Dodoria's middle finger. "Fasha..."

And then, he tore off Dodoria's ring finger. "Totepo..."

Immediately, he then tore of Dodoria's pinky. "Toma, of course..."

And, finally, Bardock ripped off Dodoria's thumb and let his arm go. "And, I guess, every reason you just said plus so many others..."

Dodoria screamed and held his mutilated hand. Bardock continued to use the fat bastard as a chair. "But forget him. Let's talk, Vegeta...let's talk about what we're both doing on this hick dump of a planet."

Vegeta snarled. "Don't talk to me like we're comrades! You're just as far up the chopping block as every member of the Frieza Force is!"

Vegeta smirked and took up a fighting stance. "As a matter of fact, I'm glad you're here. I can get you out of the way early. And then, after I finish things here, I'll go back to the Earth and kill the rest of those lousy, low-class punks that dared attack me!"

Bardock closed his eyes and sighed. "You...are such a child..."

Vegeta's smirk faded. "What did you say to me?!"

Bardock's face remained placid. "You're still that obsessed with killing me over a brawl? You should really consider growing up, Vegeta..."

The older Saiyan stood and smiled. "But, fine...we can fight. But, there's two things you should keep in mind before we start..."

Vegeta snarled. "And that would be?!"

Bardock stretched. "I plan to fight to my fullest. Not only did I get a zenkai from out last fight, but I've been training ever since. So, I'm a lot stronger than you'd think! So... can you kill me in this fight...? Maybe."

Bardock smiled and tapped his temple. "But, you also gotta think...maybe not. I still have the Kaioken and that doubles my power. It might screw me up, but it would be enough to whoop your ass!"

Vegeta flinched and Bardock chuckled. "Plus..."

The older Saiyan used his thumb to point back at Dodoria. "Blimpy the Blimp back there would probably get away in all the confusion. So, even if you beat me, you'd be a sitting duck for Frieza to come and kill you!"

Vegeta's eyes widened. Bardock smirked. "But...if you wanna fight, I'm game. And I don't really care if Frieza knows that I'm here! Cuz, guess what! I got Future Vision, bitch!"

Bardock laughed and put on a show, shadow boxing at Vegeta as he hopped back towards Dodoria. "Frieza can know I'm here all he wants! If I see him coming, he can't catch me!"

Bardock turned his back to the stunned Vegeta and pulled his leg back. He glared down at Dodoria and yelled at the brute. "Ya here that, Fatso?! Vegeta would rather fight me than kill your pathetic ass, so I guess you get to go home!"

Bardock booted the writhing Dodoria across the ground. "Go on! Get lost! Go tell Frieza that we're here! Ask him to have a med chamber ready for whoever wins this fight!"

Bardock ran up to Dodoria and kicked him into the air. "Hurry, Fatty! Go! Pretend like there's a four-course meal in the distance and fly off!"

Dodoria got his bearings in the air, glaring down at Bardock and Vegeta. And then, he did the smart move and began to fly away with his tail between his legs. Bardock, satisfied, turned his attention back to Vegeta. "So, Prince, you have a choice: brawl with me and get caught by Frieza...or go and stop that message from being delivered!"

Vegeta glared at Bardock with utter hate and then he turned his attention to the fleeing Dodoria. Bardock cheerfully called out. "Tick-Tock!"

Vegeta screamed at the top of his lungs and took off after Dodoria. " _GODDAMMIT!_ "

Once Vegeta was screaming in the distance, Bardock smirked. He bent down and picked up Vegeta's damaged Scouter, and then he hopped away while whistling a merry tune.

 _Over with Dodoria..._

Dodoria was horrified at what he just experienced. His hand was ruined, his leg was gone, his stomach was bleeding, Bardock was somehow alive, and Vegeta was a lot stronger than he was before. Dodoria was sweating bullets, his only hope was clemency and protection from Lord Frieza. But, as he flew towards his salvation, it was brutally cut off.

A swift kick slammed into Dodoria's face, knocking him to the ground below. The pink brute opened his eyes and stared up at the sky, screaming in terror at the sight of a furious Vegeta with an energy blast in his hand. Tears filled Dodoria's eyes as he cried out one final time. "LORD FRIEZA, HELP!"

And then, swept away by Vegeta's energy blast, Dodoria and the island he was on were reduced to ash.

Vegeta didn't even take the time to snarl a sarcastic eulogy at Dodoria, opting instead to speed back towards the island he had left Bardock on. Of course, once he arrived however, the older Saiyan was long gone. Vegeta was livid. A vein bulged from the Saiyan Prince's head and he screamed as loud as he could. " _GODAMMIT! SON OF A BITCH!_ "

 _Meanwhile, with Gohan, Krillin, and Dende..._

Gohan, Krillin, and Dende all waited in anticipation for Bardock's return. Krillin was concerned, but he kept himself busy by tending to the traumatized Namekian boy. Gohan, meanwhile, was kicking himself. If his rashness led to Bardock dying so soon after Gohan had met him, the boy was unsure he'd ever be able to forgive himself.

Gohan looked over to Krillin. "Sh-should we go and look for him?"

Krillin shrugged. "M-maybe we should-"

At that moment, Bardock rounded the corner with Vegeta's broken scouter in hand. "Should what?"

Krillin and Gohan both gasped. And then they smiled from ear-to-ear. Gohan ran up to his grandfather and hugged him tight. "Grandpa! You're safe!"

Bardock smirked. "Of course I am! A loser like Dodoria won't be what kills me!"

After Gohan released Bardock from the hug, the older Saiyan scolded his two compatriots. "That was really friggin' stupid! You could've gotten yourselves killed!"

Gohan and Krillin both bowed their heads. "We're so sorry!"

Gohan glanced up at his grandfather. "I'll take all the blame, Grandpa! I was the one who jumped in! But..."

Gohan glanced over at Dende and adopted a determined look. "I couldn't leave him to die!"

Bardock was silent for a moment. He looked over at Dende and then back at Gohan. He appreciated the steely look in the boy's eyes. "Fine. I guess I can't be too pissed off about it. You stuck to your guns and that's all I can really ask from a member of my family. Just don't let it happen again...at least without backup."

Gohan nodded. "Yes sir!"

Bardock smirked. "Good. Now, let's head back to our base. Regroup with the woman. We have some plans to make..."

Bardock took off, with Gohan right behind him and a Dende carrying Krillin bringing up the rear. As they flew, Krillin called ahead to Bardock. "So, I take it the Dragon Ball hunt was fruitless?"

Bardock turned and glared at his human ally. "What the Hell are you talking about? Finding and getting a Dragon Ball was easy! Score One for our group!"

Krillin and Gohan both perked up at this news. They had a Dragon Ball! They were one step closer to wishing back all of their friends. Score One indeed!

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	14. Chapter 14: Brothers to Namek!

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: The particular Gi that I reference in this chapter is the Gi that Goku wears during his fight with Uub at the end of Z. I understand that we never see Goku with this clothing in the series before that fight, but I choose to believe he has it here for story purposes._

 **Chapter 14: Brothers to Namek!**

 _On Earth, West City Hospital..._

Goku let loose a massive shout as he stood up and flexed off his various bandages and casts. The doctor and the nurse both recoiled in shock as both of the brothers, fresh off a Senzu Bean. Raditz grunted as he pulled the bandages from his face. "I can't believe that a bean like this exists! What the Hell kind of planet is the Earth?!"

Gine chewed up her Senzu Bean and swallowed, sighing in relief as all of her aches and pains faded. "It's our home Raditz! Our home full of miracle beans!"

The Saiyan mother turned to Chi-Chi and smiled. "Seriously, for a planet that I thought would just be a boring place to send Kakarot to, this planet is so wonderful~!"

The surprisingly taciturn Chi-Chi merely nodded, not really hearing what Gine has said. "Uh-huh..."

Gine frowned and placed a gentle hand on her depressive daughter-in-law's shoulder. She then turned to see that her boys were already dressed. Goku in his normal gi and Raditz in Goku's spare, blue gi. Raditz smiled as he fitted the open-chested blue vest onto his body. "Hmm...surprisingly comfortable..."

He gave it a sharp tug. "But weighty and durable. Blue isn't my color...but I think I'll be borrowing this for now, Kakarot! Could use something underneath to complete the look, though..."

Goku smiled. "Sure! And don't worry, Chi-Chi makes all of my training clothes for me! I'm sure she can make you an outfit like that in whatever color you want, right Chi-Chi?"

Chi-Chi still didn't seem entirely present. "Uh-huh..."

Raditz snapped his muscle band onto his left bicep and turned to his brother. "Is your wife okay?"

Goku shrugged, looking slightly concerned. "Chi-Chi... are you okay?"

Chi-Chi gave the same dead response. "Uh-huh..."

Goku and Raditz both seemed confused. But, Gine quickly cut in. "Why don't we just head out to Capsule Corporation. Our ship and our trip to Namek awaits us!"

Gine picked up the bag of Senzu Beans, tying them shut and tying them to the belt on the pants that Chi-Chi had given her. Gine stood up and brushed the wrinkles out of her pants, also adjusting her armor top and the sleeves of her matching, pink undershirt. Then, she turned to Yajirobe and smiled, bowing her head. "Thank you very much for delivering us these Senzu Beans."

Yajirobe sighed and shrugged. "Whatever. S'what I do."

Gine gently took Chi-Chi's hand. "Want to come and see us off, dear?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Uh-huh..."

Gine nodded back. "Right."

The Saiyan mother motioned to her two sons. Raditz smirked and opened the window to the hospital room and he and Goku both leapt out and flew away. The doctor and nurse stared in utter disbelief. Before Gine joined them, Chi-Chi hanging on her back, she turned and gave a friendly wave to the hospital staff. "Thank you for such great care!"

Once Gine had flown away as well, the doctor and nurse continued to stare in complete silence. Yajirobe sighed and picked up Raditz's unfinished lunch tray, shoving the food into his mouth. "Whatever. As long as I'm left out of all of this space nonsense..."

 _At the Capsule Corporation..._

Goku and Raditz both descended upon Capsule Corporation. The two brothers both stared in awe at what Dr. Briefs had constructed while they were in the hospital: The Capsule Space Pod!

Raditz shook his head. "How the Hell did a human make a ship so advanced?!"

Goku folded his arms behind his head and chuckled. "Dr. Briefs is pretty smart!"

"Oh, hello Goku! What are you and this strapping young man doing here?!"

Goku and Raditz both turned to see Bulma's mom running up to them, tray of cookies and pitcher of lemonade in hand. "Why don't you ever call when you're coming over?! I barely have any snacks ready for guests!"

Goku scratched the back of his head and laughed. "Sorry Miss Panchy. We aren't really here for a visit..."

Before Goku or Raditz could say why they were there, Gine and Chi-Chi landed on the lawn next to them. Gine smiled as she observed their transport. "What an impressive ship!"

Bulma's mom instantly switched her attention to these new guests. "Oh, hi Chi-Chi! Would you and your guest like some snacks?!"

Gine nervously laughed and held up her hands. "N-no thank you ma'am, I'm fine! Chi-Chi, are you thirsty?"

Chi-Chi gave her same blank response. "Uh-huh..."

Bulma's mom didn't seem to notice, cheerily pouring Chi-Chi a glass and handing it to her. Chi-Chi nodded, but didn't even take a sip. As Gine shot another worried stare at her daughter-in-law, Goku and Raditz were called out to be another voice. "Boys! You're here!"

Goku smiled wide and waved. "Hi Dr. Briefs!"

The old, mad scientist rode up to Raditz and Goku on his motor scooter and smiled. "You boys are going to love the ship! I designed her with all of the specifications that Bulma thought you would need!"

Dr. Briefs quickly led the four of them into the ship and showed it off. "Everything fighters like you could want! An increased Gravity Chamber to allow you to train at higher rates of gravity, five fully stocked fridges of food, two full bathrooms, a washing machine and a dryer, and two cabins: one for the two of you and one for your mother..."

Gine was in awe of the entire ship. "Wow...and this was made in such a short time. All of the work that must have gone into it..."

Raditz smirked. "It's perfect! Excellent work, human!"

Dr. Briefs nodded, seemingly ignoring the "human" comment. "Yes! And I have also loaded a full second portion of fuel on board as well. It's simple to fuel the ship, just extend the hose out and plug it into the port underneath and the tank should fill up!"

Goku nodded. "Huh. Neat!"

Raditz grunted. "How many tanks of fuel do you estimate it will take for us to travel all the way to Namek?"

Dr. Briefs clicked a button on the nearby console and a schematic appeared on the ships viewing screen. "Based on the vectors that Bulma shared with me, I had a properly-sized fuel tank constructed yesterday. One tank of fuel should take you all the way to this Planet Namek without the need to make a stop and-"

Goku gasped. "W-wait a minute! Bulma contacted you from Namek?!"

Dr. Briefs turned to Goku and nodded. "Yes, she did. She gave me all of the vectors to travel as well as the coordinates, which I have pre-programmed into the navigation system."

Chi-Chi's ear perked up a bit, a small amount of fire lighting in her eyes. Dr. Briefs continued. "And, with the information that she gave, everything is almost ready. All I need to do is conduct one final safety check and then you can take off!"

Raditz quickly spoke up. "Did she give any details on the situation on Namek? Have they located the Dragon Balls?!"

Gine spoke up. "Is everyone doing okay? None of them are hurt, are they?!"

Goku piped up. "Are there strong guys on Planet Namek?!"

Raditz and Gine both glared at Goku, giving him their best "really" look. Goku stared back at both of them, looking confused. Meanwhile, Dr. Briefs cleared his throat. "I don't know the answer to any of those questions. She didn't talk to me directly. If you want to know anything about any of that, I suggest you take a moment to visit Bulma's secretary in her off-"

Before Dr. Briefs could even finish his sentence, Chi-Chi bolted out of the ship at practically the speed of light, making a beeline directly towards Bulma's office. Goku, Gine, and Raditz all stared, totally baffled by Chi-Chi's sudden energy. But they all quickly followed her lead.

 _In Bulma's Office..._

Goku, Raditz, and Gine all arrived at the door to Bulma's office at the same time. Gine opened the door and the three of them stepped in to view a pitiful sight. A confused, but concerned Launch was standing there with a blubbering and sobbing Chi-Chi's face buried into her chest. She glanced up at her new visitors and shot them a small smile. "Oh, hey Goku! Is this your new family that I've heard so much about?"

Goku worriedly looked on as Chi-Chi cried. "Y-yeah..."

Raditz and Gine both stood there and watched, feeling really bad, as Chi-Chi continued to cry. Launch was gentle as she stroked the sobbing woman's head. "Chi-Chi, dear...please try that again..."

Chi-Chi pulled her face from Launch's chest, sniffling. "Please...please tell me that Gohan is okay..."

Launch smiled reassuringly. "Miss Bulma told me that Gohan, Krillin, and Mister Bardock are all doing fine. They're on Namek looking around for Dragon Balls, just like old times~!"

A bit reassured, Chi-Chi stopped crying. Her voice was still shaky, but she wiped her face. "O-okay...th-thank you, L-Launch..."

Launch nodded and bowed her head. "Of course!"

That situation resolved, Goku stepped up and asked his question. "Okay Launch...could you tell us everything that Bulma said in her message?"

Launch nodded. "Of course~!"

She reached behind her desk and pulled out what appeared to be a hastily scribbled memo. "Let's see here...the good news is that they are on Namek and they are safe because Mister Bardock is an...um... _bleep_ -hole...but he's a smart bleep-hole..."

Gine smiled and chuckled. "That's my husband..."

Launch frowned. "But, bad news...apparently a person named Vegeta is also on Planet Namek..."

Goku, Gine, and Raditz all tensed up. Chi-Chi's eyes went wide. Raditz sighed and shook his head. "Well, that figures. Of course, that arrogant prick would arrive on Namek at the same time. Because apparently no coincidence is too unlikely to happen..."

Goku smirked. "It's fine! Dad is with him! He can handle Vegeta!"

Raditz and Gine both nodded and Goku chuckled. And then, Launch continued. "Also...bad news...apparently the refrigerators on Namek aren't all that great..."

Goku sighed. "Well that sucks...so much for trying so alien food..."

Gine was confused. "Why would Bulma comment on the state of food storage on the planet? She's not a Saiyan, is she?"

Raditz shook his head. "Certainly not. But food is important. At least she has a good head on her shoulders."

Launch seemed confused by the message as well. "Yeah, but I agree with Miss Gine. I don't see why a bad _Freezer_ is such a big deal..."

Launch looked up and saw a ghastly sight. While Goku and Chi-Chi both looked confused and worried, Gine and Raditz had both gone pale white, their irises having shrunk to the size of pin pricks. Gine's jaw quivered as she tried to mouth the word. "F... F... F... F... F..."

Immediately, Raditz ran across the room and grabbed Launch by the collar of her shirt, lifting her so high off the ground that her head hit the ceiling. Launch cried out. "Ow! You're hurting me!"

Raditz's voice was shrill, he screamed at the terrified human as the top of his lungs. "Tell me you got that message wrong! Tell me that she didn't say that _FRIEZA_ was on Planet Namek!"

Goku shouted at his brother. "Raditz! Put her dow..."

Goku looked closer and noticed how badly his brother's fist was shaking. Tears were built up in Launch's eyes as she gave a terrified response. "P-please...that's what Miss Bulma said. I can't do anything about it! Please put me down!"

Raditz's breathing was hoarse. But as he stood there, his ears ringing, Gine stepped up and grabbed his hand. "Put her down, Raditz. She can't help that this is Frieza's space..."

Raditz hastily complied, but then he immediately turned and started smashing his fist into the wall. " _We're all going to die! We're all going to die! Frieza is going to kill everyone on Namek and then he's going to kill us! We're all going to die!_ "

Hearing this news, even if she didn't really grasp the scope, Chi-Chi ran from the room with tears of fear in her eyes. Her agonized scream echoed down the hallway as she ran. Gine cringed and ran towards the door. "Chi-Chi, wait!"

Gine stepped into the doorway and then glanced back at the traumatized Launch being tended to by Goku. She then turned to her eldest son and shouted. "Raditz! Apologize to that poor woman and then you and Kakarot come to the ship! We have to hurry!"

And then Gine ran off after Chi-Chi.

After a long pause of utter silence and Launch's sniffling, Raditz shuddered and pushed himself off of the wall. For just a moment, the spooked Saiyan gathered himself and offered a hand to the woman he had just assaulted. "I...am sorry for losing my cool like that..."

Launch glanced up at Raditz, who had an embarrassed blush on his face. "B-bad experiences with...with that person that you mentioned..."

Launch swallowed a lump in her throat and then nodded, taking Raditz's hand and pulling herself to her feet. "Th-thank you..."

The secretary went behind her desk and pulled out a box of tissues, wiping her eyes and then blowing her nose. "It... it's fine. I understand being scared of scary people being after you. When I was younger, scary people were after me all the time and I never knew why..."

Launch blew her nose again and then smiled. "But, it's fine. I don't think I could stay mad at a handsome man like you~"

Raditz's face glowed bright red. "H-handsome...?"

Launch gently smiled. "Yeah! You're really H...Hah...Hah..."

Goku tensed up. "Oh boy, here it comes..."

Raditz turned to his brother. "Here what-"

Launch took a deep breath and sneezed hard. " _Hachooooo!_ "

Raditz glanced back over at Launch and watched, in abject horror, as the blue-haired wallflower he was talking to was replaced by a furious-looking, blonde haired bruiser. The blonde Launch leapt over the table and grabbed Raditz by his shirt, slapping him in the face. "Who the Hell do you think you are?! HUH?! Grabbin' me by the shirt collar like that!"

Launch reached behind her desk and pulled a 9-millimeter handgun out. She jammed the barrel underneath Raditz's chin and put her finger on the trigger. "Gimme 26 reasons why I shouldn't splatter ya brains all over the ceiling and give them quick, ya long-haired, rat-faced punk bastard!"

Raditz looked over at his brother, who was cowering behind the waiting room couch. And then, he glanced back at Launch. Raditz swallowed a lump in his throat and then spoke. "T-twenty-six reasons...um..."

Launch waved the gun around. "Well?"

Raditz swallowed hard again and then he spoke. "I'm really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really sorry..."

Launch snorted. And then, she lowered the gun and sighed. "I guess that was 26..."

Goku nervously stood up and chuckled, grabbing Raditz by the arm and pulling him towards the door. "O-okay...nice talking to you Launch, see ya-"

Launch screamed. "Hold it!"

Goku and Raditz both stiffened up and Launch pointed her gun at Raditz again. "I accept your apology for now! But, when you get done with all of this Namek crap, you owe me a nice dinner! And a ton of booze! Got it?!"

Raditz hastily nodded. "Y-yes ma'am..."

Launch slammed the gun on the counter. "Good. Now get the Hell outta my office!"

Goku and Raditz didn't need to be told twice as they both hastily ran out the door to Bulma's office. Once they were far enough down the hallway. Raditz turned to Goku and shouted. "What the Hell is up with all of these crazy Earth women?!"

Goku smiled and laughed. "They all just have a ton of spirit. Launch does, Bulma does, even Chi-Chi does when she's not...acting weird..."

Goku looked away from his brother, concern going across his face. Raditz sighed and then his face became bothered again as well. "Frieza is on Namek...Kakarot, I know you don't know Frieza, but-"

Goku gave his brother a punch on the arm. Raditz turned and saw his brother give him a confident thumbs up. Raditz couldn't help but laugh. "You really think we have a chance to beat the strongest being in the Universe...?"

Goku smirked. "Well, no. Not so long as he's the strongest!"

Raditz sighed. "Training, huh?"

Goku nodded. "And lots of it!"

Raditz lamented. "I wish I was born with the guts you and Father have..."

The two brothers exited back into the Capsule Corps lawn and Goku chuckled. "You just have to believe in yourself, Raditz! You can do it!"

Unfortunately, as they rounded the corner, they came across a drastic sight. Gine was holding the shaking Chi-Chi tight in her arms. The power woman's voice was almost gone she was crying so hard. Gine had tears in her eyes as she squeezed her daughter-in-law more firmly, unsure of what to say.

Goku and Raditz turned to each other and Goku held up a finger. "One second, Raditz..."

Goku approached his sobbing wife from behind and Gine quickly backed off. Chi-Chi looked up at her mother-in-law, her eyes puffy and red, but was surprised to be met with a hug from behind. Goku smiled warmly and squeezed his wife tight. "What's wrong Chi-Chi? Talk to me..."

Chi-Chi was silent for a moment, but she tightly grabbed her husband's strong arm and began to speak. "Goku...I'm so worried about Gohan..."

Goku placed his head on top of Chi-Chi's and sighed. "Yeah...I can tell..."

Chi-Chi sniffled. "Everything happened so fast...one second you were just going off to visit Master Roshi...and then you were dead and my baby was gone. I was all alone for a full year without either of my boys there with me..."

Raditz stepped around the two, going over to join Gine. He made sure to avoid eye contact with Chi-Chi, trying to avoid looking at her with all of the guilt radiating from his face. Goku hugged her tight. "I never meant for that to happen, Chi-Chi. I'm so sorry that we scared you like that..."

Chi-Chi sobbed. "I missed a full year of our son's life. A year I spent praying every night that he wasn't dead...a year that I spent doing nothing but worrying about him...I couldn't make myself sleep...or eat...and now he's up in space where I can't reach him again and I'm just..."

Chi-Chi's voice broke. "... _scared_."

Goku's face was set by a frown as he tried to think of what to say. Finally, after a moment, he spoke. "I understand that. I don't want anything bad to happen to Gohan either. But Piccolo trained him up strong. He's much stronger than either of us remember him as Chi-Chi..."

Goku smiled. "That boy has all of the potential in the world. He can take care of himself...I know he can~!"

Goku let go of the hug. "And Chi-Chi..."

To Chi-Chi's surprise, Goku spun her around and looked her in the eyes. He smiled at her as confidently as he could. "As long as I'm able to fight, I'd never let anything happen to either of you. Because you're my family and I love you both!"

Chi-Chi looked into her husband's eyes. "Go-"

And then, to the shock of Gine, Raditz, and Chi-Chi... Goku leaned in and tenderly kissed his wife on the lips. Chi-Chi was stunned as Goku pulled away. "G-Goku...you..."

Goku smiled. "I saw my Mom and Dad do that in the hospital. And my dad told me that you're supposed to do that to someone who you really love."

Chi-Chi was moved. Worry still covered her face, but the tears left her eyes. She nodded and hugged her husband close. "I'm counting on you, Goku..."

 _About 30 minutes later..._

Goku, Gine, and Raditz walked up the ramp of the ship. The three of them turned and glanced down to Dr. Briefs, Bulma's mom, and Chi-Chi. The doctor and his wife were both cheerful, they happily waved goodbye and wished them all a safe journey. Chi-Chi also waved goodbye to them. Even after all of that before, she still seemed broken up.

Chi-Chi shot them a sad smile. "All of you come back safe, okay?"

Goku smiled and nodded, waving goodbye to Chi-Chi one more time. But, as the three of them walked in, Chi-Chi called out one more time. "Please...don't die. I don't want to be left alone..."

And, that was it for Gine. The Saiyan mother dropped her bag and turned around, glancing at the sad look in her daughter-in-law's eyes. And then, she pushed past Raditz and Goku and ran down the ramp. Chi-Chi flinched as Gine suddenly grabbed her by the hand and gave her a tug. "Chi-Chi..."

Gine smiled. "...come with us!"

Goku and Raditz were both shocked. Raditz called down to his mother. "Mom! What are you doing trying to bring a non-combatant along?! You do remember that Frieza is on Namek, right?"

Gine waved Raditz off. "Hush, Raditz!"

Gine gripped Chi-Chi's hand tight. "I...I can't promise you that we'll survive this. Frieza was the monster that originally caused Bardock and I to die. But I can at least bring you along and promise that you'll get to see Gohan sooner."

Gine wrapped her other hand around Chi-Chi's and gave it a squeeze. "So, won't you join us?"

Tears built up in Chi-Chi's eyes and her lower jaw quivered. "I..."

Chi-Chi nodded. "Of course, I'll come! I just want to keep my Gohan safe!"

She looked concerned. "But I don't have any luggage prepared, no clothes or food or-"

Gine chuckled. "Chi-Chi, you packed all of our bags. Including mine! We already have a bag of your clothes on the ship, you and I will just have to share!"

Chi-Chi smiled and wiped the tears from her cheeks. Gine, with a smile on her face, lead her daughter-in-law onto the ship. Goku chuckled as Gine and Chi-Chi walked past him. "Oh, this'll be awesome! It'll be nice to have Chi-Chi and her cooking on board!"

Raditz let loose a ragged sigh, walking in as the ramp and the hatch closed behind him. "This seems like it's not a great idea..."

 _Roughly a week later..._

Goku and Raditz clashed against each other as hard as they could. The two brothers clashed back and forth across the ship, punching and kicking at one another. Raditz swiped at his brother's face, but Goku caught it and flipped Raditz into the air. Raditz shouted and fired two blasts at Goku, but those were both smashed away. Goku chuckled. "Those made my hands tingly-"

Goku looked up and flinched upon seeing that Raditz was no longer in the air. He looked around for his missing brother and was shocked when Raditz appeared behind him, locking him into a full nelson. Raditz squeezed tight and lifted Goku from the ground. "How's this feel, Kakarot?!"

But, Goku was wily. The younger brother smirked and formed a Kamehameha between his feet. He used the beam to launched himself in the air. Then he formed another one and used it to drive himself and Raditz into the floor. And then, Goku pushed himself off of his brother, doing several heavy backflips before eventually crashing into the console. Goku used it to steady himself as he stood up. Goku looked down at the _**20G**_ on the console. "I think...after this session...we should go to 30 times Earth's gravity..."

Raditz sat up, breathing heavily. "Y-yeah...I feel like...we...have gotten used to this..."

Goku smirked. "But...before we do that...Kaioken training. Let's...let's both...push for...Times Eight..."

Raditz nodded and stood up, focusing his power before shouting. "Kaioken... _TIMES EIGHT!_ "

Goku did the same in turn. " _KAIOKEN TIMES EIGHT!_ "

The power between the two brothers swelled and they charged at each other again, clashing against one another and trying to push each other back. Goku smirked. "I don't know, Raditz! I feel like...I feel like I'm even stronger than you before..."

Raditz smirked back, grunting and pushing as hard as he could. "...like Hell, Kakarot!"

The two recoiled off of each other and Raditz, taking advantage, immediately charged again. "I'm the older brother here! I won't let you be stronger than me!"

 _Meanwhile, in Chi-Chi and Gine's Quarters..._

Chi-Chi and Gine both sat on their bed, watching as Raditz and Goku clashed in the ever-increasing intense gravity. As she watched her Goku and Raditz clash, Chi-Chi took several mental notes on her new brother-in-law. Gine, meanwhile, simply sat there and watched with pride as her sons smashed into one another. Finally, Chi-Chi turned to her mother-in-law and spoke. "Raditz is...a very different person from Goku..."

Gine turned to Chi-Chi. "Oh?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yeah. His personality and his style of fighting is almost the mirror opposite of Goku's. It's almost hard to believe that they're even brothers to begin with, just looking at them from a distance..."

Gine nodded. "Yeah..."

Chi-Chi cocked her head. "Why is that? Is it because of the different ways they were raised or...?"

Gine shook her head. "No. If I were to blame anything from how different Raditz and Kakarot are, I would say it would be the difference in how they were born."

Chi-Chi was confused. "A difference in how they were born? What do you mean?"

Gine blushed and nervously chuckled. "Y-yeah...let me explain..."

The Saiyan mother cleared her throat and began. "It was my last combat mission before I retired from the Saiyan Army. Bardock and I and our squad were all assigned to go and fight in the war that was waging in the Makyo Star Cluster..."

Chi-Chi cocked her head. "Makyo Star Cluster?"

Gine nodded. "Yeah. We were trying to exterminate the Makyans. They were...uh...a race of nearly immortal ghouls that drink blood and try to infect other solar systems with artificially produced stars..."

Chi-Chi's face drained of color. "S-space vampires?"

Gine shrugged. "More or less."

The meek, human woman swallowed a lump in her throat. "O-okay...that's terrifying."

Gine waved off Chi-Chi's concerns. "Don't even worry, dear. The Makyans are long dead. King Vegeta obliterated King Garlic and then they gave the planet to Frieza. But, that's beside the point..."

Getting back on track, Gine continued. "Bardock and I were on our mission. We were pinned and both heavily injured. And, from what we knew at the time, all of our squad were dead. We were prepared to be jumped and killed at any moment..."

Chi-Chi's face was streaked with concern. "That's terrible."

Gine nodded. "It was...I've never been so terrified in my life..."

Gine's eyes went blurry and she adopted a thousand-yard stare for just a moment. But then, she shook her head and sighed. "Bardock and I... I couldn't feel my left leg and so we took shelter in a collapsed building. Neither of us had any stamina left and... the Makyans artificial stars rendered the moon of that planet unable to produce Blutz Waves. We were alone, injured, and unable to turn into the Oozaru to even rampage. We came to a conclusion that...well..."

Gine swallowed a lump in her throat. " _...we were going to die._ "

Gine took a deep breath and adopted a small smile. "Bardock and I had always been close friends. Like, I was as close to him as Toma was. So, we were sitting there just reminiscing. And then...well...the moment just felt...right..."

Chi-Chi mischievously smiled. "Oh really?"

Gine chuckled. "Y-yeah...so...in that moment we..."

Gine's face glowed bright red and she slapped her hands onto her cheeks. " _We let passion overtake us..._ "

Chi-Chi laughed out loud and gave Gine a pat on the back. "O-oh my~! That's..."

Chi-Chi snorted as she laughed and Gine shot her a sideways look. "D-don't laugh at me! We thought we were going to die!"

Once Chi-Chi finally stopped laughing, and Gine's face decreased several shades of red, Gine continued her story. "But...some unexpected happened after that. You see, Saiyan babies are normally made through a process known as the DNA Splice. The DNA of two parents it taken and mixed in a genetic chamber...and then the baby is made rather than born. That's how Kakarot came to be, in a mix of mine and Bardock's DNA in a pod..."

Chi-Chi nodded. "Okay..."

Gine nervously scratched the back of her head. "But, in our moment of passion, Bardock and I actually broke a taboo within the Saiyan Monarchy. And, well, 9 months later Raditz was born..."

Chi-Chi looked offput. "The Saiyan Monarchy banned pregnancy?"

Gine nodded. "Pregnancy wasn't profitable. A Saiyan woman that had to deal with the rigors of child bearing wasn't able to fight. The only reason I was allowed to keep Raditz, in spite of all of the scolding and punishment that I got for it, was because I was deemed useless and thrown out of the army anyway..."

Gine glanced back at the screen, watching Goku and Raditz train together. "But I do feel bad for bringing Raditz into the world that way..."

Chi-Chi frowned. "Why? You gave him life, why feel bad about it?"

Gine sighed. "The circumstances of Raditz's birth made him an outlier among all of the other children. Due to the lack of genetic modding he would've received in the chamber, certain things that other Saiyan babies had repressed flowered normally in him. Fear and timidity and caution...they called him weak. They shunned my baby because of what Bardock and I did..."

Chi-Chi nodded and look back at the screen, watching as Raditz and Goku took their Kaioken even higher. She sighed. "I never thought I would actually feel bad for the man who kidnapped my son. But..."

Chi-Chi shook her head and turned back to Gine. "Raising him must have been hard on you."

Gine shrugged. "I guess. But..."

Gine smiled the most genuine, loving smile that Chi-Chi had ever seen. "Raditz and Kakarot are my babies. Brave or coward, strong or weak, good or evil...I feel nothing but love in my heart for them. I'd die for them all over again if I had to..."

Chi-Chi smiled and placed her hand on top of Gine's, squeezing it tight. With a small laugh, Chi-Chi agreed with her mother-in-law. "I feel the same way about Gohan~!"

Chi-Chi's smile faded and she lowered her head. "But...I feel so powerless, Gine..."

Gine glanced over at Chi-Chi and Chi-Chi tiredly sighed. "Threats are just getting more and more terrible as I get older and older. I can fight pretty decently...my dad taught me how to when I was little. But...all of these superpowers are making my feel as if there's no way for me to protect him at all..."

Chi-Chi's face was hidden by her hair, but her shoulders began to shake. " _I feel so useless..._ "

And then, Chi-Chi began to sob once more. "I can't believe that I'm a terrible enough mother to have let any of this happen in the first place! If I could benchpress a mountain or shoot a Kamehameha Wave or even _**FLY**_ I could at least try to keep my Gohan safe, but-"

"ENOUGH!"

Chi-Chi stopped mid-kicking herself. She glanced over at her incensed mother-in-law. Gine pulled her sleeve over her hand, reaching over and wiping the tears from Chi-Chi's face. Gine grasped Chi-Chi's hand and spoke to her daughter-in-law. "You can't beat yourself up and you can't just admit defeat, Chi-Chi. You aren't _useless_! _Everyone_ is capable of bettering themselves, no matter how meager they start!"

Gine smirked. "I mean, look at me. The Saiyan Royal Family claimed that I was worthless...and yet not too long ago, I decked their firstborn across the desert~"

Chi-Chi's lower lip quivered, but she chuckled at the stupidly proud look on Gine's face. "Th-thank you Gine...I needed that..."

The human mother sighed. "But...I just don't know what I can do anymore..."

Gine adopted a sly smile and nudged Chi-Chi with her elbow. "Well...you could learn to fly for starters..."

Chi-Chi flinched and stared over at Gine. "M-me?! Learn how to fly?!"

Chi-Chi swallowed a lump in her throat. "I... I mean...I would love to...but I don't think that I have the aptitude to-"

Gine shook her head. "Stop with that! Of course, you have the aptitude Chi-Chi, your 5-year old can fly!"

Gine turned and faced Chi-Chi on the bed. "As far as I'm concerned, you are more than talented and more than determined enough to do anything you want. Especially a skill so basic as flying."

Silence filled the room. Chi-Chi glanced away from Gine, staring down at her lap and then over at the image of Goku and Raditz training on the screen. Chi-Chi took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "O-okay...I'll let you try to teach me how to fly..."

Gine happily smiled. "Excellent~!"

Gine and Chi-Chi both turned to face one another on the bed, cross their legs and turning off the viewing screen to Raditz and Goku. Gine began. "So, the first thing that you need to learn is the basics of ki control..."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	15. Chapter 15: Strategy

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 15: Strategy**

 _Over with Vegeta..._

Rage filled Vegeta's mind as he rocketed over the barren, Namekian landscape. He was pissed, absolutely furious at what Bardock had done. The lesser Saiyan had made a complete fool of him, played him like a fiddle. And now, Vegeta was out to kill. Frieza only had five Dragon Balls, that must mean there are two Dragon Ball holding villages left. Vegeta smirked! Nothing would fill him with more joy that murdering a bunch of worthless Namekians!

Vegeta's eyes scanned the ground below. Eventually, his sinister grin spread he noticed a Namekian settlement on the horizon. Vegeta charged a blast in his hand and landed in the middle of the village, launching it at the nearest building and laughing. "Prepare to die, Na-"

Vegeta's face sank. He looked around at the other buildings that he hadn't opened fire on and saw, to his disdain, that the place was deserted. He peeked his head into each house and only found scorch marks where Namekians had once stood. Buildings were broken apart by a war that had apparently gone on without him. The Prince walked into the main building of the settlement and found, to his anger, a stand that had once contained a Dragon Ball left totally empty. Next to that stand, Vegeta found a severed Namekian arm. He picked it up and looked it over, scowling at the presence of red blood on the knuckles of this severed appendage. The Prince gripped it so hard that purple Namekian blood ran down his arm.

Wordlessly, Vegeta tossed the limb aside, livid at the thought that Bardock and his group of Earthling trash might have a Dragon Ball while he doesn't. Taking off, the Prince flew even faster over the Namekian horizon. He was out for blood now, and someone would be sating his lust.

 _Meanwhile, over with Bardock's Group..._

Bardock wiped the side of his face, cringing at the busted part of his lip. The older Saiyan could deal with all variety of injuries with little more than a grunt, but he always cringed when something managed to do that to him, mostly because it annoyed him how badly it stung. Bardock was broken away from this distraction by Krillin calling up to him. "So, what are we going to do, Bardock?"

Bardock turned and faced his son's friend. "Whaddaya mean?"

Krillin's face was draped with fear. "W-we have one Dragon Ball, right?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. 'Cuz I know how to do my job efficiently."

Krillin flinched at the barbed comeback, but pressed on. "We have one Dragon Ball...b-but that Frieza guy has _five_! What are we going to do?!"

Bardock raggedly sighed. "Well, it sucks that the ball I came across was the Four-Star Ball. If it were the Seven-Star, then we might've been able to just wait Frieza out. Hope that he convinced himself that the balls were useless and then just left...but, luck is a bitch sometimes..."

The older Saiyan turned to the human. "But I wouldn't worry too hard! We have an advantage in that the balls don't work unless you have all seven of them together. As long as we have one, then we still have a leg in this race. We'll just have to plan our next moves more carefully..."

A vein popped up on Bardock's head as he spoke a little more loudly. " _And keep our goddamned tempers under control!_ "

Taking up the rear, with the still silent Dende on his back, Gohan quickly apologized. "S-sorry Grandpa!"

Gohan glanced over at the miserable-looking, little Namekian and frowned. Dende had just seen everyone he loved die in front of him, he had to find some way to build up the little guys spirits. He glanced up at his grandfather and smiled, thinking that maybe Bardock could help a little. Gohan picked up speed and flew up next to Bardock. "Hey, Grandpa..."

Bardock grunted and glanced over at his grandson. "What?"

Gohan put on a nervous smile. "S-so...you found a Dragon Ball. That's awesome that you found it so quickly..."

Bardock sighed. "You and Krillin are like broken records. I don't need any damn pats on the back for doing my job properly. That's just what you're supposed to do!"

Gohan nodded and nervously chuckled. "R-right..."

The boy cleared his throat and composed himself. "So, what about the Namekians that you got it from? Frieza isn't going to attack them, is he?"

Gohan knew his grandfather was blunt, but he was hoping that that would be helpful in this case. Maybe, just maybe, a blunt answer would comfort Dende a bit. Maybe Bardock could give a bit of reassurance. Bardock turned to Gohan and smirked. "Eh, you don't have to worry about Frieza killing that village."

Gohan smiled and looked down at Dende to see if the little Namekian would react. To his relief, Dende did seem to relax a little. But then, Bardock continued. "I didn't need the Frieza Force following our tracks, so I did their work for them. That village is long gone."

Krillin and Gohan went silent. Dende, meanwhile, gasped in horror. The three of them stared at Bardock, utterly chilled, right up until they all landed in front of the cave. Bardock turned to his followers and smirked, only to be surprised by the terror on their faces. "What the Hell is up with you three?"

Gohan and Krillin both stared at their leader, nervous to voice their concerns to him. Dende, meanwhile, had finally had enough. The little Namekian snapped and ran up to Bardock, pounding the larger man's knees with his fists. "Murderer! You're a murderer! You're no better than the rest of those monsters!"

Tears streamed down Dende's face as he hit Bardock. Bardock glared down at him and shrugged. "Can't really argue with that. I'm a shitty person and I know it. What do you want from me?"

Krillin and Gohan both stared, speechless, at how cold Bardock was. It took a moment, but Krillin finally swallowed the lump in his throat and stumped up the courage to interrogate the older Saiyan. "Bardock...d-did you really murder a village of Namekians for that Dragon Ball...?"

Bardock genuinely looked confused at this question. "What the Hell would be the point in doing that? Killing potential collaborators is just wasteful..."

At the same time Bardock said that, another person entered this tense discussion. Emerging from the cave, the lead warrior of the Four-Star Village stepped out. "Nice to see you've made it back, Foreigner, where did you get that young one from?"

Bardock glared at the warrior. "Piss off with that 'Foreigner' bullshit!"

Dende, sniffling and wiping his eyes, turned and stared in shock at the sight of one of his older brothers. "Talus!"

The little Namekian ran from Bardock and over to Talus, hugging his older counterpart. Talus gently patted his younger brother's head. "Dende...what are you doing here? Did these Foreigners do something to Elder Moori's village?!"

Dende sniffled and glanced back at Bardock, Krillin, and Gohan. And then, his voice wavering, the younger Namekian spoke in his native tongue. His tone was frantic and his voice broke, but as Dende spoke Talus's face became stricken with grief. He lowered his head and grabbed his grieving brother into a tight embrace. And then, he glared back up at Bardock. "So, Foreigner...it seems your call to abandon our village was justified..."

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. I told you that Frieza doesn't screw around."

Talus sighed and picked Dende off of the ground. "Don't worry, Little One, Elder Tsuno would be happy to accommodate your needs for the foreseeable future..."

The Namekian warrior retreated back into the cave. Bardock turned to Gohan and Krillin and motioned for them to follow. "Come on. We need to stay out of sight as much as possible."

 _Inside the Cave Base..._

Gohan and Krillin both looked on in awe at the sight before them. Within the spacious cave they had found, Bulma had set up her Capsule House and satellite phone. And, in front of that, the Namekians of the Four-Star Village had managed to set up a nice, little camp to live in while they were in hiding. As they got closer to the house, an older Namekian stepped forth and reach out, taking Dende from Talus. The two of them spoke to each other in Namekian and then grief streaked across the Elder's face. After a moment, the Elder turned to Bardock, Krillin, and Gohan. Slowly, he walked up to them and bowed his head. "My name is Tsuno. Thank you for being so brave as to save Dende from the same fate that..."

He swallowed hard. "...Moori...faced..."

Elder Tsuno fell to his knees in grief and Gohan and Krillin both tried to comfort him. Bardock stood to the side and waited for him to compose himself. Once he did, the Elder addressed Bardock directly. "While you were gone, the human within the main dwelling was heard screaming in frustration and anger..."

Bardock rolled his eyes. "Sounds like her. Why don't you join us inside? Bring the kid too. We have to talk about our next move. We can't afford to rest for too long."

Elder Tsuno stood, gently grabbing Dende's hand. "Of course."

The Elder turned to his lead warrior. "Talus. Please stand vigil and watch for any approaching dangers."

Talus nodded. "Of course."

Once Bardock, Krillin, Gohan, Dende, and Elder Tsuno were inside the Capsule House, Talus stepped in front of the door and crossed his arms, ready to face any threat.

 _Inside the Capsule House..._

Once inside, Elder Tsuno took a seat with Dende sitting next to him. The two Namekians watched on, with a bit of amusement, as Gohan and Krillin gawked at the Four-Star Ball sitting on the table in the center of the room. Gohan touched it. "It's so big! Why is it so big?!"

Elder Tsuno chuckled. "The Dragon Balls serve as both wish-granting relics and as a codex of Namekian history. With the help of an Elder, such as myself, you could view all of Namekian history as obsevered by the creator of the balls themselves."

Krillin cocked his head. "Wow...you would figure that Earth's Dragon Balls would be bigger for how long Kami has been alive. How old is the creator of these?"

Elder Tsuno smiled. "Grand Elder Guru is over 500 years old."

Finally, Bardock snapped and began to shout. "Woman! Where the Hell are you?! We need to have a meeting!"

Bulma called back from the back of the house. "Quit shouting, I'm in the shower! Jeez!"

Bardock snapped at Bulma. "Why the Hell are in the shower?! Do we look like we're on this planet for fun?! We don't have happy-go-lucky shower time!"

Bulma snapped back. "Well _excuse me_ for not wanting to smell like a third-rate high school gym! Why don't you give chilling out a try, you massive, high-strung ass?! I'll be out in 10 minutes!"

Bardock scowled and flopped down into a nearby chair. He leaned back and shut his eyes to get a bit of rest. "Goddamned frivolous Earth woman!"

 _Over on Frieza's Ship..._

Sitting in the bridge, Lord Frieza sipped from his wine glass and glared out on the Namekian landscape. He swirled his glass of red and then gave it a sniff before taking another sip. It had been two hours and yet Dodoria had not yet returned. Frieza sighed as he lamented. "If that fat, pink fool has allowed himself to be killed off by some mere pests..."

Frieza turned to one of his lesser attendants. "You. Orlen!"

Orlen snapped into attention with fear in his eyes. "Yes sir! How may I help you, Lord Frieza, sir?!"

Frieza point to the door. "Fetch Zarbon from his quarters."

Orlen ran from the room and, a few minutes later, he returned with Zarbon. Frieza waved Orlen and the other troops from the room and, once they were gone, he turned to Zarbon. "Dodoria is most likely dead."

Zarbon nodded and sighed. "It seems like Dodoria's style to die at the hands of rodents. The fools always allowed himself to be easily taken advantage of. It is unfortunate, but quite predictable."

Frieza nodded in turn. "Indeed. Therefore, Zarbon, I will be now be handing his duties off to you. Scour this planet and either return with news of a Dragon Ball, Dodoria's carcass, or those interlopers that dared intrude on my business. Understood?"

Zarbon nodded and bowed to his master. "Of course, Lord Frieza."

Zarbon turned and made his leave, exiting the ship and then flying off to find something to please the incensed Lord Frieza.

 _Within Bardock's Head..._

Bardock grumbled as he walked through a misty, black plain. "Goddamned future vision. What the Hell do you want to show me now?!"

Bardock continued to stumble through the empty, black expanse. Eventually, he came across a surprisingly clear vision: a massive, ancient Namekian.

Bardock stared at the size of this Namekian until the vision dispersed, reforming at his feet as all seven Dragon Balls. Bardock reached down to touch them, but they turned into mist upon the contact of his finger. Bardock watched as the mist came together again. This time is was the sight of him standing in a fighting stance with Gohan and Vegeta on one side and Krillin and some unknown Namekian on the other.

Bardock cocked his head. "Why the Hell..."

And then, the mist swirled and became five more warriors. However, these warriors sent a chill down Bardock's spine. " _The Ginyu Force?!_ "

Bardock was uneasy, but he was shocked by Ginyu suddenly opening his mouth and firing a golden beam. This beam fired into the air and exploded. Bardock squinted his eyes and watched as the beam flashed three times in the sky, each time showing the same outline of a golden warrior that he had seen before.

The vision ended with the mist returning to the shape of the ancient Namekian, this time soaked with his own blood. The Namekian looked up at Bardock, clearly struggling. But then, the ancient Namekian exploded and the silver ghoul from before charged right at him.

 _At the Capsule House..._

Bardock awakened with a start, letting loose a terse shout. This sudden grunt gave a start to everyone present. Gohan, Krillin, Tsuno, and Dende all looked spooked. Bulma did as well, but her fear quickly shifted to annoyance and anger. "What the Hell is up with you?! First you yell at me for showering, but then I come out and find you snoring in the chair! And now you're waking up and screaming and shouting at every friggin' one in the room?!"

Bardock grunted and buried his face in his hands. "Sh-shut the Hell up..."

Bardock took a deep breath and sighed. "Just...give me a second and then we can discuss what we're going to do next..."

Bulma huffed, but then she sighed. "I actually agree that we need to discuss our future plans. I made contact with my Dad. Goku and the others are on their way."

Krillin smiled and chuckled. "What a relief! Maybe with Goku here we can actually have a chance at winning..."

Gohan was cheerful. "Yeah! With Daddy here that Frieza guy will be taken care of in no time!"

From his chair, Bardock grunted. Gohan and Krillin both glanced over at the older Saiyan and immediately felt bad. Krillin stuttered. "S-sorry Bardock, we didn't mean-"

Bardock sat up and waved him off. "Shut the Hell up. I was thinking the same thing. Kakarot and Raditz being here will give us more of a chance to fight back, especially if they're training the entire way here..."

Bardock wiped a waterfall of sweat from his face and leaned forward. "Okay..."

Gohan walked up to his and placed a hand on his arm. "Are you okay, Grandpa?"

Bardock nodded. "I'm fine. We need to hurry up and get to work for when Kakarot and Raditz get here. So, we need to start with the obvious...Frieza has 5 Dragon Balls, and we have one Dragon Ball...so where's the seventh Dragon Ball?"

A bolt of lightning shot up Dende and Elder Tsuno's backs. They shot each other a nervous look, but they remained silent. Bardock glared at their two Namekian guests and bluntly grunted. "Keeping knowledge from each other is only going to get us all killed. Would you rather we find the Dragon Ball and keep it and its guardians safe, or have Frieza find it and kill them all?"

Elder Tsuno remained silent, squeezing his knees until his hands began to shake. Bardock remained calm, but firm. "You know what, you're right. This planet has too much blue and green covering it, a little more purple wouldn't hurt."

Tears built up in the old Namekian's eyes and he eventually spoke. "The final Dragon Ball...is not stored in a village. It is with Grand Elder Guru...at his home... on the highest point of Namek..."

Silence filled the room as Elder Tsuno began to weep for his fallen brothers. "This Frieza monster has...he's killed so many of our people. Please...do not let him do the same to Grand Elder Guru..."

Bardock closed his eyes and remembered his vision of the ancient Namekian. But he kept that to himself. The older Saiyan stood up and cracked his neck. "Okay then, let's go and get it."

Bardock motioned for Gohan and Krillin to follow him and the two quickly stood. The three of them reached the door before Elder Tsuno finally spoke. "I... have reservations about sending foreigners to visit with Grand Elder Guru. But I know what his reaction would be to the news of you wanting to see him..."

Tsuno glanced at Bardock. "I beseech you...treat our Grand Elder with kindness and keep him safe from these evils..."

Bardock didn't verbally respond. He shot Tsuno and aside glance and gave him a curt nod. Tsuno turned to Dende and gently touched the boy's shoulder. "You have seen terrible things...things that I cannot provide insight upon. You should lead these foreigners to Grand Elder Guru and, while there, seek guidance from him."

Dende appeared to be scared, but he looked to the inviting, caring faces of Gohan and Krillin and stood. "Y-yes...I will lead them..."

Dende walked across the room to join Bardock, Gohan, and Krillin. Tsuno spoke to Bardock once more. "Please, keep Dende safe as well."

Bardock was blunt. "No promises."

And then, the older Saiyan reached into his armor and pulled out Vegeta's broken Scouter. "Hey woman! Make your lazy, showering ass useful and fix this while we're gone!"

Bardock tossed the Scouter at Bulma. The human woman scowled and flipped Bardock off. "Rude asshole! Take this Scouter, shove it up your ass, and go f-"

Bardock ushered the kids out the door and slammed it shut behind him. He smirked as he heard Bulma shouting and throwing a fit. But he trusted her to get the job done. The group of four excited the cave, Dende waving goodbye to all of his brothers from the Four-Star Village, and then they flew off.

 _Much later, over with Zarbon..._

Zarbon flew over the endless, barren Namekian landscape with a scowl on his face. Nearly a full day of searching and yet no results. No Dodoria, no humans, no Dragon Balls. His fruitless search was beginning to get to him. He did not want to return with nothing for Lord Frieza. The Lord was already annoyed, Zarbon did not want to be the catalyst that lead to anger.

Zarbon snarled to himself as he scanned the latest cluster of islands. "Surely these slugs must have more than a mere five villages amongst themselves!"

The teal-skinned totty glared around. "Surely-"

A sudden kick to the face sent Zarbon flying to the ground. The princely rogue landed and skidded across the ground, taking a quick stance and glaring at his attacker. Hovering above him was a bloodthirsty-looking Vegeta. "Hey there, Pretty Boy. Looking for something?"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	16. Chapter 16: The Unknown Grave

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 16: The Unknown Grave**

 _Over with Vegeta and Zarbon..._

Zarbon was hard on the defensive as Vegeta rendered him able to do little more than retreat and block hits. The Saiyan Prince, having ambushed Zarbon out of nowhere, was much more ferocious that Zarbon had remembered. A heavy fist smashed into Zarbon's face and made the lieutenant stumble. Vegeta took advantage of this and delivered a massive kick to Zarbon's ribs.

Zarbon snarled and tossed a punch back, but Vegeta caught it and whipped Zarbon through the air and into the ground. Vegeta was having the time of his life as he manhandled Frieza's other, main henchman. Zarbon was definitely a better fighter than Dodoria. At least he was able to defend himself. But, Vegeta was still stronger than the narcissist at base. Zarbon tried to get up and defend himself, but Vegeta responded with a simple punch to the jaw and a hefty kick that sent Zarbon tumbling into a nearby rock.

Murder filled Vegeta's eyes as he outstretched his index and middle fingers. He launched a Dirty Fireworks blast at Zarbon, but the teal alien quickly rolled out of the way. The rock behind him instead was reduced to rubble. He charged at Vegeta and managed to land his Bloody Counter on the Prince. Vegeta easily blocked most of the moves, but an errant kick caught the Prince by surprise and busted the right side of his lip.

Vegeta leapt back, as did Zarbon, and the Saiyan Prince chuckled. He wiped his mouth and spoke to his opponent. "You know...I've always hated busted lips. A can take all sorts of more grave injuries, but these are always so annoying. The sting and they make it a pain in the ass to eat..."

A vein popped out of Zarbon's head and he snarled at Vegeta. "Do you think this is a game, you pathetic monkey?! Do you realize how serious a crime it is in the Frieza Force to strike a superior officer?!"

Vegeta snickered. "Well, at least you're taking it on the chin. Dodoria had tears streaming down his sweaty, chubby cheeks when I killed him off."

Zarbon flinched. "Y-you killed Dodoria?!"

Vegeta laughed out loud. "Damn right I did. You should have heard him! Blubbering and sobbing like the pathetic beached whale he was. ' _Lord Frieza help!_ '...such a _pathetic bastard_..."

Zarbon quickly recomposed himself and had a hearty chuckle. "You know, I must thank you in spite of all of this Vegeta. That thought will carry me to a peaceful slumber for many, many nights to come!"

Vegeta smirked. "You only have one more sleep coming your way. The Big Sleep!"

The Prince held up a hand and began to count with his fingers. "Cui is dead. Dodoria is dead. You're about to die..."

Vegeta chuckled. "And then, after you, Bardock is next. And then Frieza will follow shortly after!"

Zarbon reacted in confusion. "How deluded are you?! Not only do you think that Lord Frieza is anywhere close to threatened by you, but now you speak of murdering ghosts?!"

Zarbon shook his head. "Perhaps you will be able to fight Bardock, but only after Lord Frieza or myself sends you straight to Hell where you belong!"

Vegeta had a smarmy smile on his face. He thought back to the overconfident Bardock expressing that he did care if anyone knew he was alive. So, Vegeta decided that he might as well run his mouth. "Oh, trust me Zarbon, Bardock is alive! Apparently, when Frieza destroys a planet, he does a lousy job of it!"

Zarbon flinched. "Y-you know that Lord Frieza destroyed Planet Vegeta?!"

Vegeta wickedly smirked. "I had my suspicions before, but you've basically just confirmed them."

Zarbon flinched. Mentally, the posh lieutenant kicked himself for allowing key knowledge to slip. As Vegeta stood across the field, rambling on, Zarbon mentally quantified all of this new information. "Vegeta knows the truth, Vegeta has betrayed us completely, Bardock is apparently still very much alive, and he is on this planet!"

Zarbon's mouth was dry. If he knew one thing about Lord Frieza it was that, even if the Lord never personally admitted it, Bardock had stuck in his mind. And, even if Zarbon didn't exactly know why, he knew it related back to a certain story that Lord Frieza often spoke of. The legend of the Fall of Lord Chilled.

Zarbon sighed and lowered his head. This situation just went from annoying to serious. The posh lieutenant took a deep breath. On the other side of the field, Vegeta charged a Final Crash and prepared to end things. "Any last words, Zarbon?"

Zarbon glared at Vegeta. "Lord Frieza's race isn't the only one that can transform!"

Vegeta flinched. "Frieza can transform?!"

Zarbon roared and, with a massive boost in power, he turned into his Monster Form. The lieutenant charged at Vegeta like a freight train. Spooked, Vegeta launched his Final Crash. Zarbon, however, powered through the weaker blast like it was nothing and grabbed Vegeta by the face. He dragged the Saiyan Prince's head through the ground and tossed him into a nearby mountain. Vegeta struggled to sit up, but Zarbon was already on top of him. With a roar, the monstrous mound of muscle smashed Vegeta further into the ground and instantly turned the tides of the battle.

 _Meanwhile, with Bardock's Group..._

Dende slowly puttered ahead, fearfully scanning each shadow that he saw, praying that it wasn't another one of Frieza's men lurking and waiting to kill. Following closely behind the young Namekian was Bardock, Gohan, and Krillin. Bardock seemed a bit annoyed at how slowly they were moving, but he elected not to start yelling at their terrified escort. He flew up next to Gohan and whispered to his grandson. "This is taking forever..."

Gohan whispered back. "Y-yeah. Dende is still pretty scared of what happened at his village. I mean, I would be too...so..."

Bardock nodded. "I get that. But, we're not making any progress going this slow. Why don't you and Krillin talk to the kid, see if you can get his mind off of the murders and onto the mission."

Gohan cocked his head. "Do you really think that would work?"

Bardock shrugged. "Worth a shot. Right?"

Gohan nodded. "Right!"

Bardock watched as Gohan flew up to Krillin. After a bit of whispering, the two of them flew up to Dende. Gohan smiled gently and asked the young Namekian. "So, what is Grand Elder Guru like?"

Dende flinched and turned to face Gohan, Krillin, and Bardock. After a moment, he smiled a small smile and spoke. "Grand Elder Guru is kind. He's the progenitor of everyone currently living on Planet Namek. He's a source of love and peace and wisdom..."

Dende's smile grew. "He's the only one who was alive before the cataclysm. He remembers the old ways and the old festivals and all of the history that we lost during all of it. Before his age caught up with him, he used to come down to the Ajisa fields and tell us all sorts of stories about the olden days!"

Krillin smiled. "He sounds like a kind, old man. I can't wait to meet him!"

Gohan chuckled. "I'd love to hear some old Namekian stories!"

As the three kids laughed and joked and chatted to one another, Bardock flew a bit behind them. The older Saiyan was bitter and stern as he mumbled to himself. "We don't have time for love and peace. And we especially don't have time for some goddamned Namekian fables..."

Gohan turned and saw his grandfather mumbling to himself. "Grandpa Bardock! Is something wrong?"

Bardock flinched and glared up at his grandson. "I... uh...I just want to get there and hear more about the Dragon Balls. That's all I was saying. We need to get the Dragon Balls and clear out as quickly as possible!"

Dende frowned at Bardock's gruff attitude, but Gohan and Krillin were quick to reassure him. Dende whispered to Krillin. "Why is he so angry? Have I done something to upset him?"

Krillin shook his head. "No Dende..."

Krillin leaned in and whispered. "Bardock isn't a bad guy. At least...not completely..."

Gohan smiled. "Y-yeah. He's just old. And worn down. And cranky! Just like a normal old man!"

Flying behind the others, Bardock's face was glowing red and a vein was popped out of his head. The older Saiyan thought to himself as the three ahead of him talked. "I can hear you, you little bastards..."

But rather than voice his complaints, Bardock simply rolled his eyes and allowed the kids to talk and bond. At least Dende was flying faster now.

 _A few hours pass..._

Finally, after hours of flying in silence while his younger companions talked, Bardock opened his eyes and glared at the spire a few hundred feet in front of him. "That mountain looks pretty tall! Is that the highest point that we're looking for?"

Dende turned to Bardock and nodded. "Y-yes. We will fly up and Grand Elder Guru's house is atop that peak."

Bardock sighed. "Finally..."

The four of them approached the mountain and then immediately began to fly upwards. It took a few minutes, but the eventually reached the top of the spire. The four of them landed and Gohan, Bardock, and Krillin all took in their surroundings. Each of them noticed something different.

Bardock glared at the house that seemingly contained the Grand Elder. "So, this is the place huh...?"

Gohan, meanwhile, stared out over the horizon. "W-wow...this is even higher up than the mountain that I was on top of during Mr. Piccolo's training..."

Krillin, on the other hand, walked up to a large mound next to the Grand Elder's home. This mound was demarked be a large, mossy rock on top. Krillin swallowed hard, he didn't need to be told that he was standing in front of a grave. As a show of respect, Krillin placed his hand on top of the rock and began to pray, but he was snapped out of it mid-prayer. "Do not touch the stone!"

Krillin flinched and Gohan quickly turned. They were both immediately met by a shocking sight, a Namekian that was a dead ringer for Piccolo emerging from the Grand Elder's house. Krillin stammered at the intimidating Namekian walked up to him. "A-a-are you-"

The green man was blunt. "I am known as Nail. What brings you all to the Grand Elder Guru's home?"

Excited, Dende immediately ran up to Nail and grabbed his older sibling's leg. "Nail! Big brother!"

Nail's serious façade slightly cracked. He turned to Dende and smiled, patting his little sibling on the head. He knelt down to Dende and spoke in their native tongue. Dende spoke back and, after a moment, Nail nodded. He opened the door to Grand Elder Guru's home and ushered Dende in. However, when Gohan attempted to follow, Nail stopped him from entering. "You may not enter without Grand Elder Guru's blessing. You will be waiting out here until Dende returns."

Gohan stepped back, a nervous frown on his face. He stared at the stern expression on Nail's face and eventually walked back over to Bardock and Krillin.

Time passed as they waited for Dende to return outside. In that time, Gohan and Krillin both surveyed the area around the Grand Elder's home. The only two things on the plateau were the house itself and the grave that Nail was standing directly next to. As the two of them wordlessly examined the grave, Bardock suddenly spoke up. "So, big guy..."

Nail turned his attention to Bardock. "Yes?"

Bardock grunted. "Are you aware of what's going on down there?!"

Nail sighed and nodded. "Indeed. The situation that haunts our home has pained the Grand Elder greatly. At his advanced age, he does not need this type of stress on his soul..."

Nail glared at Gohan. "However..."

Gohan tensed up, but Nail's face softened. "His mood has been lifted by the intervention of you kind visitors. You, boy, were very brave to step in and save Dende's life."

Nail turned his attention back to Bardock. "And your pragmatism in saving the entirety of the Four-Star Village has been noted as well. Personally, pending the Grand Elder's approval, I sincerely hope that we are able to become allies in this fight against the scourge that is attacking Namek."

Bardock snorted at Nail, but before he could say anything in response, his attention was suddenly taken by a raging battle going on over the horizon. "Holy shit...how long has that been going on?!"

Nail stared out over the horizon as well. "It has been raging for a sizeable portion of the day. Both fighters have wicked intent in their hearts, but one is clearly more resilient than the other..."

Nail stepped away from the door and stood next to Bardock. "However,...the resilient one does not have much more left to defend himself with."

 _Over with Vegeta and Zarbon..._

Vegeta coughed up a puddle of blood as he ran. Tailing him closely behind was the new, more brutish Zarbon. Vegeta was sputtering and limping as he ran, his advantage over Zarbon well and truly gone. Behind him, Vegeta heard Zarbon laughing over the little game of cat and mouse they were playing. Vegeta sneered and tucked and rolled, allowing Zarbon to fly over him. The brute turned and Vegeta immediately tossed a fistful of dirt into the monster's eyes. Zarbon snarled in frustration and Vegeta immediately unloaded a flurry of ki blasts onto him. Vegeta finished this flurry with a massive energy bomb.

Once that exploded, Vegeta fell onto his ass and began to heave for breath. He was tired and beaten harshly, but he was sure that he had at least managed to injure Zarbon. This was quickly proven wrong by Zarbon immediately charging from the smoking crater Vegeta had made and punching the Prince in the jaw. Vegeta went tumbling and Zarbon followed up with a Possibility Cannon.

The entire mountain range behind Vegeta was obliterated and Zarbon stood strong. The brutish monster waited for the smoke to clear and laughed at the horribly beaten Vegeta shaking to stand in front of him. "So, Vegeta, are you still feeling so smug?"

Vegeta shakily raised his fist to Zarbon and snarled. "I...I will kill...all of you..."

Zarbon sneered at the barely conscious Prince before vanishing from sight. Vegeta flinched and began to sluggishly look around for his foe. With blinding speed, Zarbon appeared behind Vegeta and plucked him up from the ground. Vegeta braced himself for a terrible blow, but even he couldn't accurately prepare himself for what Zarbon would do next. The monster raised him high into the air, and then he slammed Vegeta's back hard onto his knee. Vegeta screamed, but Zarbon clamped his hand over the Prince's mouth. He slammed Vegeta onto his knee again and again until he heard the Prince's back soundly snap.

Zarbon took a deep breath and then sighed, dropping Vegeta's limp body onto the ground. After a moment, he released his Monster Form and then examined his singed and torn clothes. Zarbon snarled at Vegeta and extended a hand forward, charging a blast. "I should kill you for all of the trouble you've caused me..."

Zarbon sighed and fired the blast into the air. He reached down and grabbed Vegeta by the hair. "But I'm going to take you to Lord Frieza instead. I'm sure he would be quite interested in interrogating you over this whole 'Bardock' affair..."

Zarbon took off, heading back to the ship, with a broken Vegeta in tow. The Saiyan Prince was now a prisoner of the Frieza Force.

 _Back at Grand Elder Guru's House..._

Bardock sighed. "Welp, I guess that's it for Vegeta..."

Krillin looked nervous. "Y-yeah. Whoever that was wrecked him hard. W-was that Frieza?!"

Bardock shook his head. "Way too weak to be Frieza. If I had to guess, I'd say it was Zarbon. Didn't know that Pretty Boy had that much strength in him, good to know for the future."

Nail was unmoved. "A strong presence to be sure, but no sort of threat. The only one that is any sort of threat to Planet Namek itself is that wicked Frieza creature..."

Nail turned and walked back to his spot, next to the door. Bardock glared at the Namekian. "Pretty sure of yourself, huh?"

Nail emotionlessly glared at Bardock. "Exceedingly."

Bardock didn't respond, but he didn't have to. Nail was assured, but for a good reason. He could easily handle Zarbon if the situation came to it. As a matter of fact, Bardock was pretty much positive that, bar Frieza, Nail was the most powerful person on the planet.

The older Saiyan made sure to make note of this power in his mind. He was sure that he could find a use for Nail somewhere down the line. Soon enough, this train of thought was broken by Dende emerging from the Grand Elder Guru's home. The little Namekian had a smile on his face and something seemed... _different_ about him. Quickly, the boy pointed to Gohan and Krillin. "The Grand Elder would like to speak to you two about a certain power he feels within you. He has invited you to come into his home and seek his guidance!"

Gohan and Krillin both smiled as they stood up. Whatever power the Grand Elder saw within them, they were excited to see what it was. Bardock stood as well, following the boys towards the house. Gohan and Krillin both stepped in, but Dende held his hand up for Bardock to stop. "Th-the Grand Elder told me that he wished to speak with you as well...but he made it clear that he wanted to speak with you last."

Bardock adopted a surly frown. "What?!"

A bolt ran up Dende's spine. "I-I'm sorry, I-"

Nail stopped him. "Do not apologize for carrying out the Grand Elder's wishes, Dende. Our guest would be happy to wait for Grand Elder Guru's wisdom just as his two younger compatriots have..."

Nail glared at Bardock. "Correct?"

Bardock sneered at Nail, but he did back down. Nail nodded to Dende and Dende smiled and nodded back. Gohan called out to Bardock as the door closed. "Don't worry Grandpa! We'll see you in a bit!"

More time passed as Bardock waited outside with Nail. The impatient, older Saiyan paced back and forth across the Grand Elder Guru's lawn while Nail placid stood and observed. Eventually, spoiling for something to hold his attention, Bardock turned his focus to the grave.

Bardock walked up to the grave and began to nudge the stone atop it with his foot. "So, you Namekians are the burying type, huh?"

Nail growled under his breath. "Cease that at once."

Bardock sighed. "Just curious is all. We Saiyans are more the 'rest where we fall' type. Never really been the grave-digging types."

Nail was sternly silent. Bardock continued. "And, if I'm being real, the lack of marked graves on this planet tells me that you people really aren't either. So, this grave right here seems kind of out of place to me. So, what's up with it?"

Nail sighed. "Remove your foot from the stone and I'll tell you."

Bardock complied and Nail walked up to the stone, staring down at it. "You are correct. Storing the body of a deceased Namekian within a demarked grave is very much against Namekian tradition. The normal ceremony for the deceased is to forego a physical marking and, in exchange, to remember the life of our fallen brother be celebrating them and celebrating nature itself..."

Bardock nodded. "Uh-huh...so, what's up with this?"

Nail spoke. "This grave holds a significance to Grand Elder Guru. That is why it is right next to his home. Even though his declining health has rendered him stuck to his chair, this grave will always be near enough for him to observe it..."

Bardock cocked his head. "Why is this particular Namekian so important to the all-loving old bastard?"

Nail grunted at Bardock's rude tone. "I do not know. The only thing I know of this grave is the name inscribed onto it."

Nail knelt down next to the grave and carefully rubbed his hand over the surface of the stone. The built-up moss on the rock slowly fell to the ground below, revealing a hidden name written in Namekian script. Bardock sighed. "I can't really read scribbles, ya know?"

Nail sighed. "Your impudent attitude is slowly wearing on me."

Bardock sneered. "Just tell me what the damned name says! Jeez..."

Nail stood back up and glared at Bardock. "Katas. The name on the grave is Katas."

Bardock opened his mouth to remark on the name, but then a sudden spike in power erupted from the Grand Elder's home. Gohan and Krillin were suddenly a lot stronger than they were moments ago. Bardock turned and stared wide-eyed at the building. "What the Hell?!"

The door to the home opened and Dende stepped back out. "Grand Elder Guru has requested that you and Nail both come inside now..."

Bardock was still in shock. Wordlessly, with Nail on his tail, the older Saiyan entered the house. And then, once they were all inside, the door closed behind them.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	17. Chapter 17: Changes Within

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 17: Changes Within**

 _Within Grand Elder Guru's Home..._

Bardock followed Nail into Grand Elder Guru's house with an annoyed air. He glared at the back of Nail's head the entire way. As they ascended to the second floor of the home, Bardock expressed his annoyance. "Why the Hell did I have to wait to enter this dingy little hovel again?"

Nail responded. "Still your vulgar tongue. You are about to be in the presence of Grand Elder Guru, the most venerable of Namekians. I will not have you negatively affect his health with your hostility."

The two warriors stepped off of the lift to the second floor and Nail turned around. "Grand Elder Guru, another visitor has come to seek an audience with you."

Bardock turned and was immediately caught off guard. He had seen the Grand Elder in his visions, but seeing the massive Namekian in person was a much different matter. Grand Elder Guru was massive and his breaths were audible as he took them. The Grand Elder smiled at his latest guest. "Welcome to-"

Bardock quickly interrupted. "Cut the bullshit. I don't have time for any 'ancient wisdom' you have to offer. I'm just here to get the Dragon Ball and get it into hiding so that Frieza doesn't gain any more advantages."

The older Saiyan stuck out his hand. "Give it to me. Now."

Lord Guru's smile faded and he sighed. "Such a troubled mindset..."

Bardock cocked his head. "What?"

Lord Guru spoke again. "You have such a clouded mind. Your body language is tense and your thoughts are clearly troubled..."

Bardock sneered, annoyed at the admittedly true accusation. "Piss off with that. My mind is fine. Give me the Dragon Ball!"

The older Namekian frowned at Bardock and rested in his chair. "You will not be receiving a thing until you are willing to open your mind and heart..."

Bardock shot an annoyed glare at the massive, old Namekian. Lord Guru remained stone-faced. The Saiyan glared at the old man, his temper slowly bubbling underneath his cooler demeanor. The older Saiyan gripped his fist tight enough that his knuckles went pale, but Lord Guru did not budge. Finally, with a sigh, he spoke. "Why in the Hell are Gohan and Krillin so much stronger than when we arrived here? What did you do?"

Lord Guru smiled once more, beckoning Bardock to come closer. "Please, join me and I will explain everything."

The aged Namekian motioned to the open space next to his chair. "Please make yourself comfortable, my child."

Bardock growled under his breath and stepped over to Grand Elder Guru's chair. His roughly sat down and cringed as the wizened Namekian smiled down on him. "Now, let us start from the beginning..."

 _Meanwhile, at Frieza's Ship..._

Frieza reacted with droll surprise as Zarbon stepped into the bridge of the ship with his surprise guest in tow. "Ohohohoho! My oh my...what is _Vegeta_ doing here?"

Zarbon tossed the unconscious and thoroughly beaten Prince onto the ground. "Yes. From the looks of things, he is responsible for both the death of Dodoria and our inability to open communication channels with Planet #79. The little bastard appears to have caught the traitor bug."

Frieza shrugged. "Nothing irreplaceable has been lost, Zarbon. And, I must admit that I am quite happy to see Vegeta has shown up so punctually for his own torture..."

The sadistic Emperor raised his tail into the air and whipped it down onto Vegeta's ribs. The Prince let lose a dire gasp and Frieza smiled. "Lovely stuff~"

Zarbon watched as Frieza whipped Vegeta several more times with his tail. He remained silent as his Master had his fun. After a few minutes, Frieza chuckled. "So, why do you suppose Vegeta has jumped head first into the lion's den, Zarbon? It must be for the Dragon Balls, yes?"

Zarbon glanced away from his Master. He mulled the information around in his head and tried to decide how best to phrase what he knew. Frieza's smile faded. "Zarbon, is something the matter?"

The posh attendant sighed. "L-lord Frieza...Vegeta did mention one other name being on this planet as well. Although, I am unsure of how this can be the case..."

Frieza sneered. "Well Zarbon, come now! Don't keep me waiting for too long. I tend to get violent when I get bored of waiting..."

Zarbon flinched in fear and then immediately blurted out the info. " _According to Vegeta, Bardock is scurrying around Planet Namek as well!_ "

Zarbon tensed up and waited for some form of retribution. But...it never came. The lieutenant cracked his eyes open to see his Master standing there, with the most _utterly stunned_ look on his face. It was rare to see Frieza so silently contemplative, but his face showed no fear. The Emperor instead looked quite serious.

Zarbon mumbled in a low voice. "L-lord Frieza...?"

Frieza glared down at Vegeta and then up at Zarbon. "Place Vegeta into a healing chamber at once. He needs to be fully healed and cognizant for the _horrific interrogation_ that awaits him."

Zarbon very quickly read the tone of his Master's voice. He swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded. "By your command, Lord Frieza."

Zarbon grabbed Vegeta be the collar of his busted armor and lifted the Prince into the air. They both quickly exited the room as Frieza seethed. The Emperor then immediately climbed back into his hover chair and flew it back to the viewing screen. "You! Orange one!"

Orlen, the orange soldier, quickly snapped into attention. "S-sir?!"

Frieza snapped his fingers. "Bring me a glass of wine at once!"

Orlen saluted and quickly ran out of the room. "By your command, Lord Frieza!"

And then, Frieza snapped at the other soldier. "You!"

Namole also very quickly saluted. "Yes, My Liege?!"

Frieza sneered. "Open a Priority One channel of communication. I must speak to _Captain Ginyu_ immediately."

 _Back at Grand Elder Guru's House..._

Bardock was very quickly tiring of his current situation. For the past hour...no, _TWO HOURS_...the ancient, seemingly senile Namekian had just rambled on. In this slog of words and gesticulations, Lord Guru had told Bardock the entire history of Namek from the times before the great cataclysm to the modern history. He told him of the rich history behind Ajisa farming and of just what the Dragon Balls represented within the Namekian spirit. Lord Guru continued. "The orbs represent hope...a promise made to the Namekian people by long-forgotten friend to our people...they are meant to be a boon to this Universe passed down from on high..."

Bardock impatiently tapped his finger against his cheek scar and glared over at Gohan and Krillin. His two partners looked just as confused as he did. Apparently, the old man hadn't gone through this spiel with them. Meanwhile, Nail and Dende simply stood to the side and listened to their Grand Elder speak, seemingly hanging on to his every word.

As Lord Guru droned on, a vein popped out of Bardock's head. His temper was frothing as the old man continued. Bardock had tried to keep cool for the sake of stealth and for the sake of the mission on Namek as a whole, but he had his limits. Finally, Guru finished talking about the Dragon Balls...only to start droning on about the life within the Namekian seas. "One of the biggest contributors to the lively Namekian seas are our local Namekian crabs. They create a very special foam that we use to nourish Ajisa crops and-"

Bardock erupted. " _GODDAMMIT! WHAT IS THE POINT OF ALL OF THIS?!_ "

Bardock stood and glared a death glare at Grand Elder Guru, summoning a ki charge into his hand. "I swear...you old, rambling bastard... _GIVE ME THE GODDAMNED DRAGON BALL OR I'LL POP YOU LIKE THE OVERGROWN, GREEN BALLOON YOU ARE!_ "

Nail was quick to react, immediately taking an aggressive stance. Dende, meanwhile, cowered over to Gohan and Krillin for protection. Nail began to approach Bardock. "You will lower your hand at once or-"

But, to everyone's surprise, Lord Guru waved his bodyguard off. "Be calm, Nail..."

Nail glanced over to Lord Guru confusedly. The Grand Elder gave a kind smile. "Please forgive my rambling and misdirection. I simply wished to view the man underneath the shell, so to speak..."

Bardock was also quite confused, but Lord Guru was quick to explain. "I had the feeling that you were repressing yourself for this meeting. Keeping your more natural instincts quiet for the sake of the mission you are currently on. I simply wanted to see the real person hiding under that persona."

Bardock was still angry and annoyed. "You wasted my time because you wanted me to start yelling?!"

Lord Guru smiled. "You might see it that way, yes..."

The older Saiyan gripped his fist tight, clearly livid. But the Grand Elder did not discourage this. Instead, he motioned for Bardock to approach him once more. The Saiyan did and the Grand Elder smiled. "I would like to see your story, if you don't mind. May I have a look at your mind?"

Bardock sneered and crossed his arms. "I don't give a damn. Just get this over with so I can take the Dragon Ball and go!"

Nail remained cautious, staring a hole through Bardock as Grand Elder Guru placed a hand on his head. Gohan, Krillin, and Dende all watched on as well. Bardock closed his eyes and the Grand Elder sighed. And then, Grand Elder Guru entered Bardock's mind.

 _Back at Frieza's Ship, the Medical Bay..._

Zarbon trepidatiously stood next to Appule as they both watched Vegeta heal. The lieutenant was nervously tapping his foot, watching the healing fluid bubble around the injured Prince. Zarbon turned to Appule and snapped. "Appule! Why in the Hell is this taking so long?! Lord Frieza's calm will only last so long before he starts taking his mood out on us!"

Appule shrugged. The technician walked up to the healing chamber and pressed a few buttons on the readout monitor. "Vegeta seems like he might be resisting the healing process. Maybe...Lord Frieza is inspiring so much fear that he's trying to prolong his stay in the pod?"

Appule stepped back and shot Zarbon a sideways glance, mumbling under his breath. "Or...ya know...it could be that a certain overzealous suck-up tried to snap Vegeta in half..."

Zarbon sneered at Appule. "What did you say to me, cretin?!"

Appule rolled his eyes and shrugged. Zarbon snarled. "Expedite this process as quickly as possible! I demand results, Appule!"

Zarbon stormed out of the room and Appule sighed. "Whatever man. My ass isn't the one on the line here. I'm gonna live a long, happy life not pissing off Lord Frieza..."

The tank technician took back to his easy chair, pulling out his medical tablet and immediately pulling up his favorite book. As Appule read, he was totally unaware of the smirk underneath Vegeta's breathing mask.

 _Meanwhile, on the ship's bridge..._

Frieza stared out at the Namekian wasteland, deep in thought. He held out his empty wine glass and allowed Orlen to pour him another glass. He was not paying attention to the groveling that came along with it. Frieza was too deep in thought for that. It...it couldn't be him, could it? He killed that monkey...the one monkey other than King Vegeta that he had even bothered to remember killing.

Frieza swirled his wine and stared into the ripples he was making before bothering to take a sip. Captain Ginyu would be here in the equivalent of two days. Surely, he would help solve all of this business. With Scouters in tow and his men ready, Frieza relaxed a bit. The Captain never let him down and that settled the Emperor's stomach. But, even with the grand reassurance of Captain Ginyu, Frieza was still quite uneasy at Bardock's name suddenly being relevant again.

Calmly, Frieza turned to Orlen. "You, what is your name?"

Orlen immediately tensed up. "P-Private Orlen, sir!"

Frieza nodded. "Orlen..."

The Emperor smiled. "Tell me Orlen, would you like to hear a fable from my Homeworld?"

Orlen was immediately confused. But he took no time to say yes, not wanting to offend his Master. "Yes sir, Lord Frieza! I happily accept this gracious offer!"

Frieza nodded and took a sip of wine. And then, he began. "Father used to tell a tale to scare the both of us in our youth. It was the fable of the valiant Lord Chilled. You see, Lord Chilled was the first to try and expand the empire out from our solar system. He conquered all in his path and took our species from a mere tall tale to an absolute force. He conquered all in his path and made our name one to be feared by lesser men..."

Sitting at his console, Private Namole chimed in. Attempting to suck-up, he made his comment. "Lord Chilled sounds almost as amazing as you Lord Frieza!"

Offhandedly, Frieza reached over and shot five rapid Death Beams into Namole's chest. The soldier sputtered and fell over. As he choked on his own blood, Frieza sighed. "I do detest rude people who speak when not spoken to..."

Frieza cleared his throat and continued. "Lord Chilled continued his great conquest until the fateful day he came across a lone, deserted planet. Thinking he could make an anchor from which he could launch more efficient invasions, Lord Chilled landed. However,...the planet in question contained one, sentient lifeform. A single, glowing warrior. Lord Chilled, as was normal, demanded that this creature bow to him...and yet it refused."

Frieza took a deep sip of his wine and continued. "Lord Chilled immediately attempted to kill the impudent fool, but was instead assailed. From teller to teller of the resulting battle, the length differs...but my Father reckons that it only lasted moments. And, it ended with Lord Chilled being stricken down."

Orlen gasped and Frieza nodded. "Indeed. I used to gasp in just the same way. It is incomprehensible that one of our own could be beaten so quickly. And yet, it was so. Lord Chilled's loyal subjects quickly gathered his broken body and carried him away. But, as they fled, the warrior dared speak to them. He apparently smirked and told them to spread word of his name: _Yamoshi, the God of Super Saiyans_!"

Frieza sighed and took yet another sip. "And then...he vanished. Lord Chilled, even in his death throes was taken aback by this. He was carried to Homeworld where his last writs were given. On his death-bed, the mighty and all-conquering Lord demanded that all of his 40 children were gathered. He told each of his heirs the tale and ordered that each of their descendants be informed of these 'Super Saiyans'. And then he died."

Frieza finished the wine and tossed the glass aside. "And so that story was passed down. Down at least 20 generations from ancestor to ancestor and eventually onto my Father. And, even after his murder of the other bloodlines in order to secure his own power, he still passed the tale down to us..."

Orlen remained silent, wondering to himself why the invincible Lord Frieza would be scared by such a meaningless fable. But, in his thoughts, he was caught off-guard by Frieza suddenly addressing him directly. "So, Orlen, what do you make of that tale?"

In his shock, Orlen blurted out the stupidest response imaginable. "I... uh...well...with all of the Saiyans having died so easily, only a complete idiot would believe in something that stupid!"

Frieza smile immediately faded. Before Orlen could even begin to correct himself, Frieza obliterated his with a massive Death Wave. The screaming, dying minion collided with the door to the bridge and both himself and the both exploded.

Just outside, the approaching Zarbon's face was blue. He stood over Orlen's fried corpse, breathing heavily. He was shocked even more when Frieza called out to him. "Zarbon! Vegeta had better be in speaking condition very, very soon!"

A lump swelled in Zarbon's throat. Now, the lieutenant was truly terrified for his life.

 _Within Bardock's Mind..._

Lord Guru and Bardock both rocketed through the tumultuous storm that was Bardock's head. It took some effort, but Lord Guru was searching through each and every vision that Bardock had received regarding Planet Namek. The ancient Namekian was absolutely fascinated to see what Bardock had been blessed with so long ago.

Bardock, meanwhile, was quite uncomfortable with all of this. He was no fool, but he had never been one for mental endeavors. He was allowing the ancient Namekian to do as he pleased, but he was very uncomfortable with it all.

The mental swim continued until, finally, Lord Guru came upon the ultimate vision. One more, the golden being stood in front of Bardock. He did as he always did, staring out in awe at the flickering wisp of a person. Lord Guru, however, slowly reached out. The golden being glared at him and briefly disappeared before coming back as three. These three golden warriors roared and their energy overwhelmed Lord Guru and Bardock.

 _At Grand Elder Guru's House..._

Guru and Bardock both snapped back into reality. Bardock was breathing hard, falling to his ass and rubbing his face. Guru, while clearly worn, was superbly calm. After a moment, allowing both of them to collect themselves, Lord Guru spoke. "I have seen the truth of Namek's situation and I have come to a conclusion regarding what must be done..."

Bardock shakily stood back up, groaning with a headache. And suddenly, Lord Guru reached down again and grabbed a tight grip onto Bardock's head. With a squeeze, the ancient Namekian reached deep into Bardock and pulled out what remained of the Saiyan's untapped potential. Bardock gasped and quickly slapped Guru's invading hand away. "What the Hell did you just do?!"

Instead of answering, Lord Guru turned to Nail and Dende and spoke to his children. "Nail and Dende, you will accompany our visitors in order to protect the two Dragon Balls within their possession, as well as your brothers from the Four-Star village."

Krillin, suddenly pumped, immediately spoke up. "You mean...you're going to give us the Dragon Ball?!"

Lord Guru kindly smiled and nodded. He slowly reached up and grabbed the One-Star Dragon Ball resting above him and handed it to Krillin. As Krillin, Gohan, and Dende celebrated, Nail turned to the Grand Elder. "Grand Elder Guru! I beg you to reconsider. With your declining health and the dangers that currently infest our planet-"

Grand Elder Guru broke into a coughing fit. After that subsided, the Elder stared down at his strongest child. "Nail...I am but an old man who has not much longer left. Meanwhile, your less powerful and more lively brothers are huddled into a cave, cold and terrified, away from the warmth of Namek's three suns. Surely, you must be able to see what must be done...for our people..."

Lord Guru coughed more and more as Nail watched on. For the first time, the warrior showed some vulnerability. "But, sir..."

Guru smiled kindly. "Nail...it would bring peace to my heart to know you were there..."

Nail closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He let it out through his nose and spoke. "If it is what you wish, Grand Elder Guru, I will happily comply with your wishes."

The Grand Elder smiled and turned his attention to the celebrating children. Krillin and Dende continued to happily dance with one another. Gohan, meanwhile, carried the celebration across the room. He walked up to his grandfather with a massive smile. "Grandpa Bardock! We did it, we got another Dragon Ball!"

Bardock, however, was quite shaken. The older Saiyan looked down at his quivering hands and felt the new power surging from him. But he wasn't happy to feel this power. As Gohan tried to convince him to celebrate alongside them, Bardock roughly shoved his grandchild aside. He marched past the fallen Gohan and, once directly in front of Guru, Bardock shouted at the Elder. "Y-you were in my head! You saw what I've done with my life..."

Bardock gripped his fists, thoroughly enraged. "After everything that you saw, why in the Hell would you reach into me and give me power like that?! Huh?!"

Grand Elder Guru sighed. "I have given you nothing, my child. I have simply spurred what was within you into surfacing."

Gohan slowly stood and he and Krillin both approached Bardock, intending to calm him down. But, before either of them could speak, Bardock snapped. The older Saiyan summoned a ki blast and threw it at the Grand Elder, blasting a large piece of the Namekian Elder's throne off.

Nail's eyes widened and he prepared to attack, but Guru raised a hand to tell him to stop. Bardock, red with anger, snarled at the elder. " _Cut that 'my child' bullshit! I'm not fucking kidding around!_ "

Bardock summoned another blast. " _You saw into my memories! You forced your way into them! You know that, for my entire life, I've been nothing but a rotten, remorseless bastard! I would have killed you and your entire race over these goddamned Dragon Balls if I had the choice! And yet you give me more power?! What if I turned on everyone?! What if I decided to activate the Kaioken right now, kill that looming bastard behind me, and rip your goddamned head off just for fun?!_ "

Bardock was seething. "Why would you make a person you've just met...who you owe _NOTHING_ to...why would you just make me stronger like that...?!"

After a moment, Lord Guru solemnly nodded. "Yes. I saw all of that. Since your birth, your life has been filled with nothing but hardships and evil deeds. And, having gazed into your heart, I am quite aware that you carry no guilt for what you have done. All of these experiences combined have convinced you that the weak are to be overtaken and extinguished by the strong and that you are alone in your journey from beginning to end..."

Bardock snarled. "Exactly! So-"

Guru held up his hand. "But, something within you has been changed recently. You have been presented with complex desires. Ones that were long thought unattainable by you. The concepts of love and acceptance and a mundanity in life have propped up from the void you faced and they are offering you a certain quality of life you had never considered before."

Bardock flinched, his hateful glare intensifying. Lord Guru concluded. "Your life is raucously changing. And, as a result, you are quietly changing within. And, it is quite obvious how much you loathe these changes. You can feel them and, as much as you would like to, you cannot resist their pull. You, Bardock, are slowly becoming a better person against your will and every instinct that you have had instilled in your life hates it totally."

As Guru finished speaking, the size of the blast Bardock was preparing doubled. He screamed at the top of his lungs as the ancient Namekian. "Brainwasher! How dare you try and manipulate my mind like that! I'll kill you!"

And then, the plus-sized blast morphed into a Riot Javelin and Bardock drew his arm back. But, before the older Saiyan could throw it, Gohan spoke up. "I agree with Grand Elder Guru..."

Bardock turned his enraged glare to Gohan. His young boy stared up at his grandfather and spoke again. "You're a rough person. But...looking past that, I can see the spark of a good man inside of you. You're just like my Daddy, just angrier."

Bardock's fist was shaking. He looked into Gohan's eyes and saw within them a level of faith that he had only ever seen from Gine and his old squad. Gohan stared back at his grandfather, man-to-man, and waited for him to respond. As silence filled the room, Lord Guru spoke once more. "I apologize for speaking too much. Would you perhaps forgive a rambling old man on his last days?"

After a moment, Bardock let loose a shaky sigh. He let his arm flop to his side and the blast dissipated. Wordlessly, he turned his back to Guru and walked away. The sound of the door could be heard opening and closing and then, Bardock was gone.

With that situation defused, Nail turned to Lord Guru and spoke in Namekian. He asked his Grand Elder if he was sure that Bardock could be totally trusted. The elder smiled kindly in response. "Yes, Nail. That man has a fiery spirit that has never been offered the chance to be good rather than evil. I am sure that, given time, Namek will be safe in his hands."

The Grand Elder had one last massive coughing fit and then he spoke to his remaining audience of four. "I wish all of you luck in the coming struggles. Care for one another and bask in the warmth of...the Namekian suns."

The four of them all nodded and bowed, thanking the Grand Elder for his wisdom. And then they were off.

The group of five took leave from Grand Elder Guru's Home, flying as low as they could to avoid detection. Gohan, Krillin, and Dende were all ecstatic with how well the trip went, fawning over their newly acquired Dragon Ball. Nail, meanwhile, couldn't help back glance back towards the highest peak, concerned for the Grand Elder's safety. And, as for Bardock...the older Saiyan had never felt more unsure in himself. His face remained sour and stern, but Bardock had never felt less confident on this inside than he did at that moment.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	18. Chapter 18: Training for Namek

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 18: Training for Namek**

 _In the Gravity Chamber of the Capsule Corp. Ship..._

Goku and Raditz both crashed into each other hard before bouncing back. Raditz shouted as loud as he could and fired a Saturday Crush, but Goku obliterated the mighty blast with a ki'ai. Each other the brothers took a deep breath and a sigh, and then they took a moment to adjust their heavy training weights. These two-ton weights, combined with the ridiculous gravity they were training under, were helping Goku and Raditz to become much stronger, much quicker. And, adding onto that the fact that they had each other to use as a punching bag meant that Goku and Raditz were quickly scaling up the power ladder. At the moment, they were both easily above 30,000 in power and the only direction either of them saw was up.

Raditz smirked. "Again, Kakarot?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah! Let's do it!"

The two charged at one another again and quickly grappled onto each other. Goku got his hand under Raditz arm and swung his brother into the air. But Raditz, thinking quickly, hook his leg around Kakarot's throat and dragged his brother to the ground. The two of them wrestled each other on the floor for several minutes before Chi-Chi called to them from the kitchen area. "Goku! Raditz! It's dinner time! Stop training for a bit and wash up so that you can eat!"

Raditz kicked Goku in the stomach and sent his brother sliding across the floor. Goku very quickly sprung up and smashed his fist into his chest with a chuckle. Raditz stood as well and sighed. "Your wife is such a nag, Kakarot! Doesn't she realize that we're training? The food should be ready when we demand it, not the other way around!"

Goku chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "She can be a bit strict, but Chi-Chi only cares about us! Plus, we have been training for at least 8 hours. I could go for some of her-"

Raditz charged with a confident smirk on his face. "She can wait until we reach 40,000!"

The older brother threw a punch at his younger brother which was handily blocked. Goku grabbed Raditz's arm and twisted him around, tossing him directly above and preparing a blast. "Fine! But once we get there, we take a break!"

Raditz laughed out loud and summoned a blast of his own. He was having such a good time training with Kakarot. Raditz kicked off of the ceiling and shot back towards Goku, preparing to fling the blast, but was surprised at how quickly he was intercepted.

On the floor, Goku also stared in shock and worry as Chi-Chi suddenly appeared right between the two brothers. Raditz screamed in shock and came to a screeching halt just before colliding into Chi-Chi. Silently, the Saiyan cowered as Chi-Chi glared a hole right through him. The two of them hovered in the air, both silent, until Chi-Chi finally sighed. "I swear...the only time I can't convince Goku to come to the table is when I can't get him to stop training..."

Raditz swallowed the lump in his throat and mustered up a bit of courage. "Well, of course! Saiyan men are-"

Chi-Chi snapped her fingers in Raditz's face and quickly shut him up. She glared at him with all of the vitriol she could muster and pointed to the bathroom. "Wash up! Now! It's time for dinner!"

Raditz's face went pale and he shuddered. He thought to say something back to Chi-Chi, but very quickly decided against it. The older brother immediately turned tail and flew towards the bathroom. In the ground, Goku chuckled at his brother. "Haha! You got yelled at!"

But, this moment of haughty laughter was quickly sent off by Chi-Chi snapping at Goku. "You wash up too! Now!"

Goku shuddered and nodded. "Y-yes ma'am!"

The two brothers ran over to the bathroom door and fought against each other to get in and wash up. Chi-Chi shook her head as they eventually tumbled in and flew back towards the kitchen.

 _In the kitchen..._

Chi-Chi flew into the kitchen and landed with a bit of a stumble in her step. She quickly adjusted herself and walked over the counter where Gine was chopping up pork. Chi-Chi poured another ladle of pork broth into her wok and fluffed the rice with her spatula. "I still have to work on landing. It's hard to suddenly have all of your weight dropped on your ankles like that."

Gine chuckled. "Yeah, it's just a thing you have to get used to. But I think that you've taken pretty well to it~"

Gine reached over into Chi-Chi's other wok and picked out a piece of broccoli. She popped it into her mouth and crunched it down. "I think the vegetables are ready to be added to the rice."

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

As Chi-Chi scooped the crisp veggies into the rice and stirred them in with a hefty spoon of butter and a couple of eggs, Gine smiled again. "But, seriously, you're a very fast learner Chi-Chi. You've learned ki control quite rapidly for someone who admits it's not a natural skill to her!"

Chi-Chi blushed and raised the heat on the stove. "I-I'm still trying to learn the basics, Gine. I'm certainly no master..."

Gine nodded. "Indeed, but you could be. And that's the important thing to keep in mind. The only direction a person has to go with any skill, be it fighting or womanly duties or what have you, it up! You just have to keep trying to be the best you that you can be!"

Chi-Chi fluffed the rice some more, mixing everything into one mighty feast. "Well...I appreciate your confidence in me."

As the two women talked, the freshly washed Goku sneaked into the kitchen area. Hoping that neither of the two cooks noticed him, the Saiyan from Earth crept towards the table and reached towards the massive plate of chopped pork that Gine has sat on it. His hand slid towards the succulent meat, looking for a little preview taste, but was quickly scared off by two ki blasts flying towards it.

Goku fell onto his ass and glanced over at Gine and Chi-Chi, each of whom had the hand extended towards him. Chi-Chi quickly scolded her husband. "The rice is nearly done, Goku! Control yourself!"

Gine giggled as she chopped up the last of the roasted pork. "See? Improvements! Now you can convince your husband to control himself at long-range!"

Chi-Chi giggled so hard she snorted at that suggestion and began to empty the rice into a large dish.

Meanwhile, Raditz walked into the room with a sigh and sat down on the floor next to Goku. Bewildered, the older brother turned to his sibling. "How has life devolved into us being henpecked in such a short time...?"

A few moments later, everyone was sat down at the table for their meal. Chi-Chi was stunned as she sat there holding her bowl of rice. The hand that gripped her chopsticks was trembling as she watched what she could only describe as three Gokus bulldoze their way through a full table of food. It was a simple meal, roasted pork and fried rice, but it was also enough to feed 20 people. And yet, after only four minutes, two-thirds of it was gone!

Gine picked up a handful of pork and shoved it into her face as Goku and Raditz seemed to be racing to stack bowls. As she watched this apocalyptic scene, Chi-Chi thought of the horrific scene of these three, plus Goku's father, plus the growing Gohan all under one roof. Chi-Chi's face went pale. "We're going to be in the poor house in less than a month..."

Gine turned to Chi-Chi with juice from the pork running down her chin. "Whuh wush aht?"

Chi-Chi swallowed a lump in her throat and, rather than respond, she began to shovel rice into her mouth. Gine shrugged and continued eating as well.

As the meal slowly began to wind down, Raditz and Goku leaning back and Gine and Chi-Chi finishing their bowls of rice, a familiar voice suddenly called out to the four of them. "Goku, Gine, Raditz!"

At the sudden intrusion of this strange voice, Chi-Chi began to choke on her food. She leaned forward, coughing and punching herself in chest. Gine rubbed Chi-Chi's back to help her stop choking while Goku responded with cheer. "Hey King Kai! How ya doing?"

King Kai sounded cheerful in turn. "I'm doing good. It's nice to see that you and Raditz and Gine are all doing well and keeping up with your training!"

Goku and Raditz both looked confused and looked over to their mother. Gine handed the suffocating Chi-Chi a glass of water and shrugged. "Chi-Chi and I have been training with each other. I've taught her how to fly and she's been teaching me some stuff..."

King Kai chuckled. "And I'm proud of you for it. Teaching a person how to fly and manipulate ki takes practice, but learning martial arts takes dedication! You're doing well, Gine!"

Gine happily smiled. "Thank you, King Kai!"

King Kai sighed. "But, the best part is, you aren't the only ones who have been training all this time!"

Raditz cocked his head. "Oh really? Have you been spying on Dad's group as well?"

King Kai nodded. "Well...yes. But that's not what I meant. You see...your friends Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu, and Piccolo have all been on my planet for a solid while now. And Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu have all passed the first test! So, I am letting them train their bodies to learn the Kaioken!"

Goku cheered at this news. "That's awesome! Everyone is getting stronger and stronger! I'm gonna have so many training partners when all of this is over!"

Goku sounded giddy as he thought about all of his friends getting stronger with King Kai, but then confusion crossed his face. "Wait a minute...Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all passed the first test...but what about Piccolo?"

 _On King Kai's Planet..._

King Kai turned and looked back at his newest guests. Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu were all working hard, together, to get ready for the rigors of the Kaioken. Chiaotzu was chasing after Bubbles as fast as he could, Yamcha was swinging the hammer non-stop at Gregory, and Tien, who had already passed both of those tests, was sparring with two of his Multi-Form Clones.

Piccolo, however, was sitting off in the distance, under King Kai's apple tree. The Namekian was deep within his own mind, meditating and mentally sparring with himself. Yamcha had written Piccolo off as being a lazy ass, but King Kai could tell that he was training harder than anyone else. The son of the Demon King was standoffish to the extreme, but the power that was currently pouring from him brought beads of sweat to King Kai's face.

King Kai cleared his throat and spoke to Goku again. "Piccolo is being...difficult..."

 _Back on the Capsule Corp. Ship..._

Goku chuckled as he leaned back in his chair. "That sounds like Piccolo all right..."

Chi-Chi sneered. "Yeah, being lazy and unhelpful and rude...sounds exactly like a no good, two-bit kidnapper!"

Raditz glanced away, looking embarrassed. Gine, meanwhile, was silently reflective upon the mention of Piccolo's name. That Namekian had...left an impression on her with what he did. His actions seemed to match the feeling that Gine had gotten from her brief interaction with him and that made her smile. But, more than anything deep down, Gine couldn't wait to bring him back to life so that she could talk to him. After what he had done, willingly giving up his life to make sure that Gohan was safe...Gine wanted to get to know him better.

After a moment, King Kai spoke again. "Goku...there is something that I must warn you all of. A grave danger is right in the middle of the path you are traveling on. He is on Namek, right as we speak. His name is F-"

Raditz cut King Kai off. "We are aware that Frieza is on Namek and that we're flying right towards our own graves. Thanks for the info. But we don't need your rambling freaking us out any more than we already are..."

King Kai was speechless upon hearing this. He couldn't process that Gine and Raditz would be dumb enough to cross Frieza like this. Goku and Bardock, maybe, but not the two of them. King Kai shouted. "Are you all aware of how foolish this is?!"

Gine flinched at King Kai raising his voice, but she sighed and nodded. "It's a foolish move, yes. But, what choice do we have? It's now or never, unfortunately. If we were to just wait for Frieza to get what he wants...then there is a solid chance that Planet Namek won't be there anymore..."

Goku nodded in agreement with his mother. "Yeah! We need to get there so that we can wish Piccolo back and restore the Earth's Dragon Balls! We'll just have to do our best to stay out of trouble and, if Frieza and us cross paths...then we'll just have to kick his butt!"

King Kai was astounded at how flippant Goku was. He was nervous for his students, but he swallowed the lump in his throat. "O-okay...that's...certainly...an attitude to take towards this..."

The deity shook his head. "G-good luck on your training and just...be careful, okay?"

Goku chuckled. "Sure thing, King Kai!"

Once King Kai was gone, Goku stood up and burped very loudly. The younger brother wiped his mouth and turned to Raditz. "So, what's say we train some more, Bro?"

Raditz stood from the table and stretched his back. "Yes. We need to get all of the training done that we can before we get to Namek. Might as well have Frieza execute us all at our best, right?"

Raditz turned to Chi-Chi and Gine and politely bowed his head. "Thank you both for the meal."

He left the room and Goku followed behind him. Goku turned to Gine and Chi-Chi and smiled. "Hey Mom, Chi-Chi! Thanks for the food!"

Once Goku was out of the room, Gine went over and closed the door. Once she heard the gravity chamber fire up, she turned and smiled at Chi-Chi and the two of them quickly cleared the table. Chi-Chi began to rinse the dishes with a concerned look on her face. As Gine wiped down the counter, she noticed this and nudged Chi-Chi with her elbow. "What's wrong, girl? Talk to me."

Chi-Chi rinsed the residue from the food down the drain and sighed. "Is this Frieza guy really...really as bad as you all say he is?"

Gine looked a bit trepidatious, but she chose to not sugarcoat things. "He's a ruthless, hateful tyrant that often kills before even taking the time to speak. Frieza really is as much of a monster as we say..."

Chi-Chi gently set the bowl down in the sink. "Oh..."

Gine quickly tried to perk Chi-Chi up. "But, that's not important right now! What's really important is...I believe you were going to show me some advanced _Ox-Style_ Martial Techniques?"

Cheering up, Chi-Chi got a look of determination on her face. She quickly marched over to the table and flipped it against a nearby wall. "Why yes! Yes, I was! But once I teach you a few combos, you have to teach me more about Ki Control!"

Gine chuckled and took a fighting stance. "Of course!"

The smiles faded from the faces of both women and they glared at one another. Gine tightened her stance and Chi-Chi focused hard on channeling Ki into her muscles to increase her strength. And then, with a roar, the two women charged at each other and clashed.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	19. Chapter 19: The Heist

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 19: The Heist**

 _Within Bardock's Head..._

Bardock's mental plane was surprisingly calm this time around. He was always confounded by how the visions presented themselves, damning the Kanassans for cursing him with the bullshit, uncontrollable power. But, despite his curses, the older Saiyan watched as the latest vision raced through his mind.

The vision was a clear image. Within Frieza's ship, 5 Dragon Balls glow and flash. Bardock watched the Dragon Balls with intent as a very familiar voice echoed in the background. Vegeta's cocky laugh rang out through Bardock's mind loud and clear. The older Saiyan watched as Vegeta ran rampant through Frieza's ship, making off with all five Dragon Balls. Bardock rolled his eyes at the sight, unmoved at Vegeta's little tantrum...but then the vision smash cut straight to a bloodied, beaten corpse. Vegeta was dead and the Dragon Balls were in new hands: the hands of the Ginyu Force!

 _Inside the Capsule House..._

Bardock's eyes snapped open to the sound of sharp, electrical chirping. The older Saiyan sat up in his chair and roughly rubbed his face. His blurry vision slowly cleared and the sight of Bulma came into view. Bardock glared at the woman as she stood over him, fiddling with the discarded Scouter that Bardock had stolen from Vegeta. "What the Hell are you doing?"

Bulma didn't answer, fiddling with the various buttons on the side of the Scouter. After a few, silent minutes of Bardock glaring while Bulma used him as the Scouters target, Bulma pulled it from her face and sat back at her workbench. Bardock scowled. "Hello?"

Bulma sighed and rubbed her temple. "Yeah, sorry. This thing is just...so much more advanced than the one Raditz had..."

Bardock sneered. "Yeah. Frieza's cheap ass only ever gave the decent equipment to his personal entourage and to his five, pet mercenaries..."

Bulma smiled. "Well, at least it's working again. So, that's good...right?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. We can make good use of that for spying and tracking purposes."

The older Saiyan leaned forward in the chair to better stretch his arms and shoulders, and then he glanced at the Scouter with a bit of curiosity. "So... what's so advanced about that thing anyway?"

Bulma turned to Bardock, a bit surprised that he even cared. But she wasted no time in explaining the new-model scouter and its features. "Oh! Well...in addition to power level reading functions...it has a multi-channel communicator, a digital topographical scanner, a tracking function with I believe that I've disabled, a water and air quality scanner, and even a rudimentary medical scanner!"

Bardock leaned back in his chair, a genuinely impressed look on his face. "Well...shit. Scouters have gotten a lot more complicated since I was around..."

Bulma nodded and began to fish in the pocket of her vest. "Yeah, Frieza must funnel a ton of money into technological advancement, huh?"

Bardock shook his head. "Nah. Frieza's a greedy prick. Only ever spends his money on wine and vacations and shit that makes his life better. Probably King Cold's doing...or maybe his brother..."

Bulma leaned back in her chair as well, pulling a pack of cigarettes from her vest and lighting one up. "Frieza has a family, eh? Are they all bastards like him?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. Basically..."

The older Saiyan glared over at Bulma and cocked his head in confusion. Bulma cocked her head back at him. "What?"

Bardock, unsure of what she was doing, was blunt. "What the Hell are you doing?! Why do I keep having to ask you that?!"

Bulma scoffed and rolled her eyes, blowing smoke into the air. "Look I put up with a lot from you, but I already have my Mom on my back about this. I don't need you scolding me too, asshole!"

Bardock shook his head. "No no no! I mean...wha the Hell are you doing? What _is_ that?"

Bulma was momentarily confused, but then she looked down at her cigarette. "Oh...it's a cigarette. I use them to calm down and relax after I've worked for too long."

She took another drag and crossed her arms. "They didn't smoke on the Saiyan Homeworld?"

Bardock snorted. "Hell no. Saiyans have no use for such weak, pathetic crutches. Stupid human..."

Bulma narrowed her eyes at him. "Yeah. _Stupid human_. That Scouter would be scrap without me. Or are you saying your dumb, knuckle-dragging ass could've fixed it?"

A long pause filled the room. Bardock glared away from Bulma and blushed. Bulma, knowing that she had called him out and he didn't have a response, simply sat there and continued to smoke. Eventually though, to Bulma's surprise, Bardock sighed and agreed. "Yeah...you're right. Being a fighter isn't all that impressive without some sort of brains backing you up..."

Bulma flinched and watched as Bardock's stare grew distant. "Gine and Fasha...they always used to say that the rest of us would've died without them there to think things through. And, they were probably right. So... I guess...good job...uh... _Bulma_..."

Bulma was utterly shocked. She sat there for another long silence, smoking a bit more, before she finally thought of something to say. "Well...thank you too. Um...you're not a total moron, I guess. You've kept us alive all this time so, I mean...I..."

She frowned. "I was wrong when I instantly decided that you were a bad person. You...aren't a bad person, _Bardock_."

Bardock scowled. "Would everyone just cut it with that morality crap?! I swear to-"

Bardock paused. As he was about to go on another rant about people deciding whether he was good or bad, he remembered the words of the Grand Elder. Bardock's brain seemed to go static for a moment, but then he took in a deep breath and sighed. "I'm...tired."

The older Saiyan stood up from his chair and stretched his shoulders some more. "And, it looks like I have some more work to do. Hold down the fort, 'kay? I mean...if you can without some sort of stupid, human crutch to get you through it..."

Bardock walked by Bulma, punching her in the arm and chuckling. Bulma rolled her eyes. " _Prick..._ "

Bulma glared at Bardock, watching as he left. As the older Saiyan reached from the door knob, Bulma called out to him. "Hey, Bardock..."

Bardock turned and faced her. Bulma appeared to be mulling something over...but she ended up just smiling. "Good luck out there, okay? Hope everything goes well..."

Bardock sighed and turned away, waving her off as he walked out the door. "Yeah yeah yeah..."

Once the door was shut, Bulma turned back to her desk. She took one last drag of her cigarette and then put it out in the nearby ash tray. Truth be told, a lot was weighing on Bulma's mind. She picked up the Scouter again and shifted it back to the test she had done with the medical scanner. Bulma leaned back in her chair with worry casting a shadow over her brow. She clicked through the Scouter's readout of Bardock until she got to the scan of his head. "What the Hell is going on with you...?"

Bulma sat there at her desk and stared at the read out of Bardock's head, observing the sheer amount of heat the was radiating from within Bardock's skull as he slept.

 _Outside of the Capsule House..._

Bardock stepped into the Namekian settlement and scanned around for Gohan and Krillin. He eventually came across the two of them sparring with one another while several of the Namekians watched on. For just a moment, Bardock leaned against the side of the house with a prideful smile on his face. Gohan caught one of Krillin's kick and threw the monk into the air, only to be caught off guard by Krillin faking him out. Bardock watched as his grandson was taking to the ground with a solid punch and sighed. "You're getting there, kid..."

Gohan stood up and he and Krillin bowed to each other. Then, the young half-Saiyan looked over and noticed his grandfather. "Grandpa Bardock!"

Bardock smirked at Gohan and motioned for him to come over. Gohan happily did, walking up to his grandfather and chuckling. "How was your nap, Grandpa? You seemed tired after the trip to the Grand Elder's place..."

Bardock shrugged. "It was good, I guess. Hey, where's that Nail guy?"

Gohan pointed to the entrance of the cave. "He stepped out a little while ago. Why, is something wrong?"

Bardock shook his head. "Nah. Just need to talk to him about something. Might be gone for a bit. You and Krillin hold down the fort, alright?"

Gohan nodded. "Yes sir!"

Bardock chuckled and shook his head, ruffling Gohan's hair before going outside to look for Nail.

 _Outside of the Cave..._

Bardock stepped out of the cave and looked around, eventually spying Nail and Talus standing next to the vast, Namekian ocean. As he approached, he heard the two of them speaking to each other in very rapid Namekian. Mid-conversation, Nail noticed Bardock's approach. Both he and Talus turned and the two warriors glared at the approaching Saiyan. Bardock didn't even flinch. Nail grunted to himself and ushered Talus away. The lesser warrior complied, walking back towards the cave and nodding at Bardock as he walked by. Bardock nodded back and stepped up to Nail.

The two warriors stood there for a moment, silent and scowling as they sized each other up. The boost that Lord Guru had given Bardock wasn't much, but it at least put him on Nail's level in terms of power. Eventually, Nail spoke. "I must say, your aggressive actions gave me pause in considering you for any modicum of trust...but I will follow the Grand Elder's command nonetheless."

Bardock smirked at Nail. "Eh, I'm used to not being trusted right off the bat. Can't even be pissed about it, you're certainly smarter than most, Nail."

Nail nodded. "Hmm..."

Bardock placed a hand on Nail's shoulder. "So... how about we try a trust exercise, eh?"

Nail was blunt. "Is this about a vision of the future you have been granted?"

Bardock flinched, a bit surprised. Nail elaborated. "Grand Elder Guru told me all that I needed to know telepathically. Your mind is a truly fascinating tool. It is a shame you cannot properly control it or you could be quite the force for progress."

Nail's summation annoyed Bardock, but he did not allow it to make him lose his temper. "Yeah. You're right, it's related to a vision."

Nail nodded. "I see. Well then, explain to me the content of this 'trust exercise'."

Bardock smiled. "Now we're talking some sense. Come on, Nail. Let's go get the last, five Dragon Balls."

Nail was taken a bit aback, but he immediately followed along as Bardock took off.

 _Meanwhile, on the bridge of Frieza's Ship..._

Frieza sat in his hover chair, his mood souring more and more by the second. Over in the corner, Zarbon stood stalwart. He tried to maintain his normal air of calm, but the Emperor's attendant was sweating bullets. He knew that Lord Frieza was growing impatient and he knew that that meant his life was growing shorter and shorter. Finally, with venom flowing through his voice, Frieza spoke. "Zarbon..."

Zarbon snapped into attention. "Yes, My Lord?!"

Frieza didn't speak after that. Zarbon began to stammer in fear, trying to explain himself. "Lord Frieza, I am so sorry that Vegeta is taking so long to heal. I don't know what exactly _Appule_ is doing wrong, but-"

A Death Beam zipped by Zarbon's head, splitting several hairs from his scalp. Frieza spoke slowly and clearly. "The next beam will not miss, Zarbon."

Zarbon was scared silent. Frieza lowered his hand and began to chastise. "Vegeta mentioned Bardock before you began your thrashing of him. How could you be so stupid as to beat him so thoroughly _to the point he could not speak after he shared such vital details you idiotic, worthless-_ "

Outside of the closed doors to the ships bridge, various Frieza Force soldiers stood and muffled their snickering as they listened to Frieza lay into Zarbon. The jackals all took great joy in hearing their stuck-up boss being so close to pissing his pants in fear. It was such an enjoyable show that every soldier, minus Appule and the perimeter guard were listening in.

 _In the Medical Bay..._

Appule stood from his seat and checked the monitor that was keeping track of Vegeta's vitals. "Damned monkey...hurry the Hell up and heal. Zarbon is probably throwing my ass under the bus right now you short, selfish asshole!"

Appule slammed his fist onto the glass of the healing tank. "Worthless Saiyan! Your entire species was always so pathetic! Can even heal properly and do us better species the service of facing your torture so Lord Frieza doesn't kill us all!"

Appule sighed and rubbed his face. "Shit...maybe it's just...I need to change the fluid?"

Appule pressed the drain button of Vegeta's healing pod and turned his back to it to look for another tank of fluid to load into the filter pump. But, unfortunately for Appule, the Saiyan Prince's eyes snapped open. The medical tech never saw it coming as Vegeta shoved his fists through the glass dome of the healing tank and grabbed him by the mouth. A quick snap later and Appule was dead.

Vegeta stepped out of the pod, fully healed and with new purpose. He smiled down at Appule's corpse and cracked his knuckles. "Now...time to leave."

The Prince smiled wide. "But...I need some souvenirs before I go..."

Stealthily, the Prince exited the medical bay and began to duck in and out of rooms. The entire ship seemed abandoned, but he knew that that couldn't be the case. Vegeta soon came upon the empty security room and saw what was going on: the majority of the ship's staff was standing near the entrance to the bridge listening to the commotion going on within. Vegeta looked at the screen that spied into the bridge and smirked at the sight of Zarbon with tears of fear building up on his eyes.

But, even more than Zarbon in pain, Vegeta was fascinated by the sight of the five, massive orange orbs next to Frieza. "If I were to place a bet...I'd put my money on those being the Dragon Balls..."

Vegeta rubbed his chin. "But...they're right next to Frieza and he would murder me without a doubt if he saw me..."

Vegeta stared at the screen and sat down in a nearby chair. "How to do this...?"

 _Within the Bridge..._

"I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN YOUR SISTER OR ONE OF YOUR BROTHERS AS MY SOLDIER WHEN I CONQUERED YOUR WORTHLESS PLANET RATHER THAN YOU, YOU IGNORANT EXCUSE FOR A WARRIOR! YOU WOULD HAVE MADE A MUCH BETTER CORPSE THAN THEM!"

Frieza was angry enough to be frothing at the mouth at this point. And, much to his dismay, all Zarbon could do was stand there and take it. It was better than dying, he supposed. But, before Frieza could hurdle more critiques and insults as the cowed attendant, a massive explosion shook the entire ship. Frieza took a break from his ranting and turned towards the door. "What the devil was that?!"

Zarbon went running past Frieza and slammed his fist into the door switch. The panels opened to reveal most of the ship staff standing there, bewildered at what was going on. Zarbon snarled at the troops. "What are you ignorant bastards doing?! Get back to work and find the source of that explosion right now!"

And then, to Zarbon's disdain, a very familiar laugh echoed over the intercom. Both he and Frieza stared up at the speaker in a rage as screaming also began to echo through the ship. "Oh no no! Please no! King Cold almighty! Please don't-"

A sickening crunch and a terror-filled scream later and the voice, most likely Monrei, was silent. And then the laugh came again and Vegeta spoke. "So, a riddle for you? How many cowards and idiots does it take to let a ship go to Hell while they bicker?!"

Another heavy explosion. "Well, Zarbon and Frieza, how many cowards and idiots does it take?!"

Frieza was furious, he turned to his dumbfounded soldiers and screamed at them. " _Find Vegeta right now!_ "

The minions all began to fearfully scramble in both directions down the hallway. Frieza turned to Zarbon and prepared to say something, but was cut off by all of the soldiers running back, slamming into each other and being sandwiched and killed by two massive, pink blasts.

As Zarbon stared at the giant, scorched pile of corpses, Frieza reached up and snatched him down to eye-level by his braid. "Zarbon! Find Vegeta! Now!"

The Emperor pulled Zarbon by his braid and practically threw him the opposite way down the hallway. The two of them searched every room as the stalked down the halls. Surely, Vegeta didn't think he'd just be able to slip by them. Unfortunately, the two of them were so distracted by their own thoughts and the sounds of explosions and wreckage, that neither noticed the sound of a falling vent grate from the bridge.

Vegeta fell from the ducts, pulling the intercom headset from his head and crushing it. And then, he took a moment to stare at his five, massive prizes with manic glee. He picked one up, bouncing it up and down in his hand, and then aimed his free hand at the viewing glass.

On the other side of the ship, Frieza and Zarbon met up. Both of them were empty-handed and Frieza was very angry. Zarbon flinched back in terror. "I-I checked every room on the way here, My Lord! Vegeta wasn't in any of them!"

Frieza gripped his fist and snarled at his attendant, scaring the Hell out of Zarbon. But, before either could react, an explosion rocked on the distant side of the ship. Zarbon's eyes widened, but Frieza instantly caught on. " _MY DRAGON BALLS!_ "

Back on the bridge, Vegeta reared his arm back and tossed the final Dragon Ball out of the hole that he had made. He stared back at the ruined bridge of Frieza's ship with pride and then he did a giddy backflip out the hole and to the outside.

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Vegeta landed with a smirk and two of the perimeter guards tried to run up and stop him. He turned to them with a wicked smile and shot a blast through each of their chests. Vegeta took a moment to spit on one of their faces before happily leaping into the water, sinking under the surface and swimming away.

Mere second later, Zarbon came flying out of the hole and scanned the grounds for Vegeta and the Dragon Balls, seeing nothing but two recently deceased soldiers still twitching on the ground. After a moment, more confused soldiers ran up and asked Zarbon what was happening. Zarbon snarled at them, clearly spiraling as he did. " _FIND VEGETA, GODDAMMIT! FIND HIM NOW! RIGHT N-"_

Zarbon was frantic, but his attitude and his blood both chilled upon the utterance of one word from Frieza, within the ship. "Zarbon."

 _Back on the bridge of Frieza's Ship..._

Frieza stood in the burnt wreckage of his bridge and examined all of the work Vegeta had done. The cameras were taken out, so no hopes of viewing what Vegeta had actually done. Ninety percent of his soldiers were dead, so no sending out a search net. Frieza took a deep breath and somehow maintained his composure as Zarbon landed in front of him. Zarbon hastily began to explain himself. "Lord Frieza, I will personally go and-"

Frieza raised a single finger. "Ah tut tut tut."

Zarbon flinched back. "L-Lord Friez-"

The finger bent forward and fired a Death Beam right into Zarbon's right eye, burning it out of the socket and sending the attendant reeling back. " _AGGGGHHHHHHHHH!_ "

Frieza sneered down at his disgraced Number 2. "If I catch you in the healing chamber to repair that eye, I will _boil you alive_ in it."

Frieza climbed into his hover chair as Zarbon rolled on the floor and screamed in pain. "Call in the perimeter guard and tell them to get to cleaning and repairing immediately. I do not wish for the Ginyu Force to see this embarrassment that you have caused."

 _Meanwhile, miles away..._

Vegeta surfaced from under the Namekian sea with a satisfied, toothy grin. Quickly, he scurried onto dry land and shook himself off before he began to look around. "If I'm correct about trajectory...they must have landed somewhere around here..."

"Well wouldja look at that, Nail? The little Prince knows how to math!"

Instantly, Vegeta's head felt hot. He recognized that voice and he was ready to kill the second he heard it. Vegeta ran in the direction of the voice, rounding a corner to a little alcove hidden behind a mountain and came face-to-face with Bardock and some unknown Namekian trash. Vegeta snarled. "You!"

Bardock smirked, patting the Five-Star Dragon Ball he was using as a chair. "Sup Vegeta?"

Vegeta was shaking with rage. Bardock chuckled. "You know, I'm not your Papa...but playing catch with you was fun! We should totally do it again sometime..."

Vegeta summoned two massive ki blasts and aimed on each at Bardock and Nail. "Do you think you're cute?!"

Bardock winked. "Bitch, I'm adorable!"

Bardock stood and held up a staying hand. "But, I'm not here to fight with you right now. We need to have a talk about-"

Vegeta roared at Bardock. " _NO! NO MORE TRICKS! NOT THIS TIME!_ "

Vegeta reared his hand back and Nail immediately took a fighting stance. "I swear, I'm going to kill you and this worthless Namekian and take my goddamned Dragon Balls! Prepare to die, you sc-"

Bardock sighed. "The Ginyu Force."

The blasts immediately dissipated and Vegeta's eyes widened with fear. "Wh-what?!"

Bardock said it again, this time staring Vegeta directly in the eye. "The Ginyu Force."

Vegeta began to tremble. But he maintained a bit of his cocky demeanor. "Like Frieza would actually call Ginyu to this backwater slum! How could you even-"

Without any hesitation, Bardock reached up and tapped his head, glaring at Vegeta. Vegeta fell silent for a moment as he let it register that a known seer of the future was telling him that The Ginyu Force was coming to Namek. And then his shoulders went limp. " _Motherf-_ "

Bardock's smirk returned and he clapped his hand onto Vegeta's shoulder armor. "Why don'tcha come back to our base and we discuss how we're gonna deal with this crisis? Huh?"

Hate poured from Vegeta's eyes as he practically stared a hole through Bardock. But...the Prince eventually ceded to Bardock's suggestion. All it took was a nod for Bardock to chuckle and hand Vegeta a Dragon Ball. And then, the two Saiyans and their Namekian ally took off back towards the base, knowing that a hellish fight was to come.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	20. Chapter 20: Enter the Ginyu Force!

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 20: Enter the Ginyu Force!**

 _On top of Frieza's Ship..._

Frieza and Zarbon both stood atop the ship and stared at the sky. Zarbon was reverently silent next to his Master, the patch now covering his eye a reminder of what happened when Lord Frieza was displeased. The two of them watched a suddenly, five Battle Pods rained down from the sky. Zarbon remained silent as his Master chuckled. "Finally, competent warriors have arrived. Maybe things will finally get done of this miserable, hick planet..."

With five, fantastically loud booms, the Battle Pods landed. A moment passed but then, with a hiss, the doors began to open up...

 _Back at the Base Camp..._

Bardock, Vegeta, and Nail rained down from the sky and landed in front of the mouth of the cave. The three of them quickly entered, Dragon Balls in hand, with Bardock taking the lead. The older Saiyan marched through the crowd of Namekians and found Gohan and Krillin standing around and talking to Dende. The two of them turned and smiled at their older mentor, only for Bardock to scowl. "Into the house! Now!"

Dende flinched back in fear as Gohan and Krillin quickly agreed. The younger Namekian was used to Bardock being harsh, but this was a different kind of harsh. Something was wrong. Gohan and Krillin both ran into the house and Bardock followed them. And then, Vegeta walked in.

Although the armor was damaged, Vegeta was still clearly dressed like one of Frieza's soldiers. The Namekians glared at Vegeta and Vegeta, ever bold, glared back. The Saiyan Prince tightened his fist, but Nail quickly corrected this. The warrior tightly gripped Vegeta's shoulder and spoke calmly. "Perhaps maintaining a sense of calm would be best for our fragile alliance..."

Vegeta turned to Nail and snarled. "Do you think you can beat me, insect?"

Nail stared back at Vegeta. "A real warrior need not ponder absolutes."

The two stood off for a moment, but then Vegeta backed down. He looked furious, but the Saiyan Prince stomped off and went into the Capsule House. Nail sighed and pressed his fingers to his brow. And then he followed along behind Vegeta.

 _Within the Capsule House..._

Gohan and Krillin both marched into the Capsule House as ordered, walking over to the closet and grabbing out the two Dragon Balls. They had both come to the silent consensus that Bardock had managed to somehow get the rest of the Dragon Balls and he wanted to discuss their wishes. Gohan and Krillin set the Dragon Balls on the table and stared up at Bardock as he set down the two he was carrying.

Krillin broke the silence. "So...do we have all seven? Can we wish our friends back?!"

Bardock sighed and sat in the chair. "You're going to hate this."

"Hate what?"

Bulma stepped out from the bathroom, finishing drying her hair with a towel. Gohan glanced up at Bardock. "Grandpa, what's wrong?"

Bardock rubbed his face and pointed at the door with his thumb. "Meet the newest member of our little group..."

Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma all turned to the door and they all cried out in terror. The three of them stared at the doorway as Vegeta stepped through. The Prince glared at Gohan and Krillin and snarled. "These weaklings?! Really?!"

Bardock was silent. Nail stepped through the door as well, setting his two Dragon Balls next to the others before going and taking Vegeta's. The Namekian warrior set the final ball next to the others and a gentle smile spread across his face. "The sacred Dragon Balls have been returned at last..."

Nail turned and glanced over to Bardock. "What now, Bardock?"

Bardock looked around the room and saw how high tensions were. He took a deep breath and sighed out before standing up. "Well..."

Bardock cracked his back and walked off. "I gotta take a shit. So, try and get along while I do that..."

Everyone was speechless at how glib Bardock was. The older Saiyan walked to the bathroom, walking past Bulma, and shut the door. Once he was gone, the room became even more tense. Angry and annoyed, the Saiyan Prince stepped forward and sat down where Bardock was sitting before. Gohan and Krillin glared at Vegeta and took a seat at well. Nail stood next to the door, as he was apt to do. And Bulma, both because she was naked under her towel and because she was both scared and furious, ran off to her room.

Vegeta shared a hateful stare with Gohan and Krillin, the three of them remaining silent and enraged. The thick silence laid across the room. And then, Vegeta spoke. "So, I thought you two losers would have died from your wounds..."

Krillin immediately stood and snarled. " _You wanna take this outside you friend-murdering son of a bitch?!_ "

Vegeta smirked and stood, squeezing his hand hard enough to crack the knuckles. "Finally, someone says something to me I like! Let's go outside, Baldy! I'll cave your skull in!"

Nail began to step up to put a stop to the fight, but then the loud cocking of a blaster echoed through the room and the warrior flinched. Bulma was standing there in the doorway, tears built in her eyes. She levied her blaster at Vegeta's chest and coldly threatened him. "Sit your ass down, or I'll blow a hole in your chest..."

Vegeta smirked and chuckled at Bulma. "Do you really think that would work on me? Do you know how strong-"

Bulma snapped. "If it doesn't kill you with the blast, I'll crack your head open with it!"

Bulma was trembling, her breaths heaving. "You...you killed all of my friends. Tien and Chiaotzu... _and Yamcha_..."

Vegeta frowned. "I didn't kill any of your friends. Nappa did. Except for that one long-haired fool that was killed by a Saibaman, one of Nappa's pets."

The Prince shrugged. "I don't care about being accused of murders that I did...but I respect you for having the guts to stand there and take aim at me. So, I just want to let you know that the one who killed all of your friends is long gone."

Bulma put her trembling thumb on the trigger and sneered at Vegeta. Vegeta glared at her. "You'll be sorry if you do."

The human woman didn't care. She prepared to fire, but Nail finally stepped up and gently, but firmly grabbed her wrist. Nail lowered the blaster and calmly spoke. "While I agree that he seems like the type to kill everyone you love...I must remind everyone in this room to point their senses to the immediately northeast."

Gohan, Krillin, and Vegeta all glared in that direction and, once the overwhelming feeling dawned on them, they all flinched. Krillin went pale and Gohan's jaw dropped. Vegeta snarled and sat back in the chair. "That damned future seeing bastard..."

Nail's voice was unwavering, but grave. "Miss Bulma. I understand the feeling in your heart for vengeance, but we must take the greater good into account. I also dislike that man, but his assistance will be vital to the defeat of this 'Ginyu Force' and their wicked boss..."

 _Back at Frieza's Ship..._

The Ginyu Force all stood before Frieza, their special fighting poses held firm for their Lord's enjoyment. Zarbon was still silent, but an embarrassed glow spread across his face at the sight of these inelegant fools and their posturing.

Frieza, however, was overjoyed to see his men so lively. "Yes! Yes! My irreplaceable Ginyu Force has arrived! It is so good to see you all~!"

The Force all smiled wide and immediately saluted their Lord. Zarbon watched, jealous and angry, as Frieza showed none of the disdain that he showed to the other troops and the Ginyu's displayed none of the fear that the other troops felt on a daily basis.

The attendant flinched back, his eyes widening with frustration as Jeice ran up to Lord Frieza without so much as a word of permission. "M'Lord! We've brought the case of Scouters that you requested! Carried in my Pod and personally checked each one for function on the way, sir!"

Frieza chuckled. "Excellent!"

He snapped his tail and Zarbon jumped. On cue, the cowed attendant ran forward and took the case of Scouters from Jeice. Frieza stood in his hover chair, reaching into the case and pulling out a red-tinted Scouter. And then, even more to Zarbon's surprise, Frieza walked up to Jeice and gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Jeice! Dear, loyal Jeice! How have you been? Is your relationship well?"

Jeice smiled and bowed his head. "Yessir, Lord Frieza! Brihe and I are doing great! I'm actually planning on taking her on vacation to Planet #85 on m'next shore leave!"

Frieza nodded. "Yes! Fantastic!"

The Emperor walked up to the other Ginyu's. "Recoome! Your form was impeccable! Not a muscle out of place for your pose!"

Recoome chuckled and pumped his fist. Frieza smiled at Burter. "Burter! I heard that you quelled a riot on Planet 46 all on your lonesome. Did the bonus I had sent make it to your account properly?"

Burter bowed. "Yes, Lord Frieza! I am very grateful! I used it to buy myself a new washing machine!"

Frieza chuckled. "Wonderful~! Guldo, I see that you wore deodorant this time!"

Guldo nodded. "Yes, Lord Frieza! And, once again, I apologize for the formal error I made in front of your brother!"

Frieza shrugged. "Like Cooler's opinion really matters. There's a reason Father sent him to the far-off South Galaxy!"

Finally, Frieza stepped up to Ginyu and the two began to chuckle together like the oldest of friends. Zarbon watched on as the two discussed planets and conquests and acquisitions as if they were equals. Ginyu smiled. "So, my Lord, is Planet 95 subjugated enough that we might start selling Ginyu Force merchandise to the inhabitants? Their spirits are broken, so I assume that now might be the time to build it back up with some well-placed Ginyu Force spirit!"

Frieza nodded. "Indeed. You will be doing publicity rounds there once this is all finished."

Frieza frowned. "But for now..."

He placed his Scouter on and glared at the Ginyu Force. "This planet is crawling with maggots. And I require my best exterminators to hunt them down."

The Ginyu's all smiled and Ginyu laughed. "But of course, Lord Frieza! What other use does the Ginyu Force have than to carry out your will?"

Frieza smiled at his most trusted men. "Excellent~"

 _Back at the Base Camp..._

Bardock emerged from the bathroom and sighed. "Man... nothing feels quite as good in these trying times like a massive shit!"

The older Saiyan looked around the room and saw that things were somehow even more tense than when he went in. "So...how's everyone doing?"

Krillin snarled. "I hate Vegeta."

Gohan quickly added on. "I want to break his nose."

Bulma snapped. "I can't believe you invited a murderer into my camping house!"

Vegeta sneered. "Trust me, I would happily kill every last one of you right now with a goddamned smile on my face."

Nail grunted indifferently, his arms folded behind his back.

Bardock heard how everyone felt and he smiled. "Well, good. At least we're all on the same page."

The older Saiyan sat criss-cross on the floor and cracked his neck. "Now, let's get down to business. Bulma, get the Scouter."

Vegeta reacted with visible confusion. "Scouter? Where the Hell did you get a Scouter?"

Bulma left the room and quickly returned with the Scouter that Bardock had stolen off of Vegeta. It took the Prince a moment to realize what was up, but then he shouted. "Hold it! That was my Scouter! Dodoria destroyed that thing! How did it get fixed so quickly?!"

Bardock glanced over at Vegeta. "What, you don't think I have it in me to fix up a Scouter?"

Vegeta sneered. "You're an ancient hick that just got done being dead for 25 years. I know you don't have it in you!"

Bardock sighed. "That's hurt, kid. But...you're right."

Bardock pointed over to Bulma. "She fixed it. Cuz she's the smartest goddamned person in this room. Might wanna take a mental note on that."

Vegeta turned to Bulma, genuinely astounded. "I'm...impressed. Pretty smart for a human."

Bulma didn't even bother to look at Vegeta, flipping him off instead. "Sit on it and spin on it."

Vegeta snorted at the fire this woman showed. Bulma ignored him. She quickly booted up the Scouter and turned to Bardock. "What's the plan for this thing?"

Bardock confidently smirked. "Well...the Ginyu Force has arrived on this planet. And, for most, they'd piss their pants, cry their eyes out, and die. But, I don't think we should do that! So, we're going to divide and conquer!"

Bardock turned and faced his troops. "We're going to use this Scouter to listen in on the Ginyu Force, track their movements, and kill them one-by-one! Once we do that, we go back into hiding and wait for Kakarot and Raditz to show up. Then, we'll work it out who gets what wishes and how best to use them! And then..."

A raging, toothy grin spread across Bardock's face. "And then we put Frieza into the goddamned ground where he belongs."

Vegeta quickly spoke up. "One of those wishes had better include my immortality that I wanted!"

Krillin snapped at him. "Like Hell! We're not going to let a demon like you have eternal life! Do we look stupid?!"

Vegeta turned to Krillin. "You must be stupid to speak to me like that, worm!"

Nail quickly tried to break up the fight. "Both of you stop this at once!"

Bardock and Gohan both sat there, watching the squabble before them. Gohan looked a bit frightened and Bardock was clearly annoyed. Bulma, meanwhile, glanced over at Bardock with a confused look on her face. The older Saiyan, despite being incredibly blunt, didn't immediately shoot down the immortality idea. Bulma stared at Bardock and then remembered Nail's speech on the greater good. And then, she glanced away with clear hatred burning behind her eyes.

The squabbling and fighting continued on for a few more minutes until, finally, Bardock snapped. " _EVERYONE SHUT THE HELL UP!_ "

Silence fell over the room and Bardock turned to Bulma. "You said you took care of tracking and receiving on the Scouter, right?"

Bulma snapped out of her anger and nodded. "Y-yeah. I shut off the tracking chip and took out the receiver so I could study the long-distance array."

Bardock nodded. "Good. Then, let's get back on the wavelengths and see if we can get some intel."

Bulma nodded and began to fiddle with the Scouter, eventually finding the right signal. After a bit more clicking, Bulma managed to precisely hone in on a conversation between Frieza and Captain Ginyu.

 _Over the Scouter Frequency..._

Ginyu and Frieza both spoke back and forth to one another about their plans for Planet Namek. Ginyu sounded confident as he laid out his strategy. "We will be combing over the planet in a pentagram formation, Lord Frieza! This will allow us to cover the planet evenly and rapidly. As we fly, we will personally check each and every island we come across and, once we confirm it is empty, we will destroy it!"

Ginyu chuckled. "Eventually, these rats will run out of places to hide."

Frieza chuckled. "Excellent plan, Ginyu! Excellent! I am always proud to see your wit hard at work!"

The two of them began to laugh and throw compliments back and forth at one another.

 _Back in the Capsule House..._

Bardock and Vegeta both looked disgusted as Ginyu and Frieza both verbally phallated one another. Bulma, with a visible look of disdain on her face, commented on the mess they were listening to. "So... they're suck-ups. Is that why Frieza likes them so much, because they kiss his ass non-stop?"

Vegeta snapped. "Exactly. That's the only reason they've made it as far as they have! Nothing but sycophantic freaks of nature! All five of them!"

Nail growled under his breath. "They plan to butcher the Namekian landscape to hunt us down?! We must dispatch them immediately!"

Bardock nodded and agreed. "Couldn't agree more, Nail. So, let's get right down to it. We're going to kill Guldo and then Jeice and then Burter and then Recoome. And once the four of them are gone, we'll all gang up on Ginyu and kill him."

The older Saiyan stood and tightened his headband. "So, their powers. Pretty simple mutant abilities. Guldo is Psychic, Jeice can change the frequency of his ki at will, Burter has super speed, Recoome has unlimited stamina, and Ginyu-"

Bardock was cut off by a loud chuckle from Ginyu. "But, I digress Lord Frieza...you were right! The fools didn't factor in that we might be able to hack into their Scouter with our more advanced Scouter!"

Frieza chuckled back. "Yes. Zarbon conveyed that Vegeta was not wearing a Scouter when he found him, so I assumed that he must have left his Scouter somewhere..."

Ginyu sounded smug. "Right, my Lord. Well...we're headed their way now. They might be masking their energy, but let's see them get away when we're already halfway there! The five of us and the contingent of troops you gave us are ready to brawl!"

Frieza chuckled. "Get my Dragons Ball back, my invaluable Ginyu Force!"

The force all shouted back. "YES LORD FRIEZA!"

Once the Scouter call was hung up and the sound of dead air filled the room, Bardock's jaw dropped. Everyone else looked immediately unnerved. Bulma, however, began to freak out. The human woman shouted at the top of her lungs. "WHY ARE YOU ALL SITTING AROUND?! THEY'RE COMING!"

Bulma picked up the Scouter and smashed it on the ground, breaking it in two. "We need to get out of here!"

Bulma grabbed Krillin by the back of his shirt and dragged him to his feet. "Krillin, Gohan! Get up! Go tell the Namekians! We have to run!"

The two of them both remained motionless, frozen in fear at what they were feeling. Bulma shouted again. "Why is nobody moving?! What the Hell is going-"

Vegeta snapped at her. "Shut the Hell up, woman!"

Bulma was confused, but Nail provided clarity. "It is too late to flee. They are already here."

Bulma fell to her knees. "You've gotta be kidding me..."

And then, as if on cue, blaringly loud rock music began to blast from the outside. Bardock, regaining composure, straightened himself out and nodded. "Yup. That's the Ginyu Force alright..."

The older Saiyan glanced over at the Dragon Balls and sighed, and then he motioned for Nail, Vegeta, Gohan, and Krillin to follow him. The five of them exited the house, leaving the door open, and leaving Bulma behind.

Outside the house, the Namekians were all panicking. Nail watched as his weaker brothers all displayed utter fear at what they were feeling outside. Even Talus was reeling at the sheer power that was hammering down on them. Nail raised his hand in the air and yelled something very loud in the Namekian tongue. Everyone stopped and stared at him and he motioned towards the Capsule House. "Everyone into the human domicile immediately!"

Nail took a deep breath. "Keep watch over the sacred Dragon Balls in my absence."

The Four-Star Village immediately complied, with Elder Tsuno and Dende leading them all into the house. Talus and Nail both shared a look before the door shut. Nail turned to his fellow warriors and then the five of them stepped out of the cave.

 _Outside of the cave..._

What the five warriors came across was quite the sight. Twenty of Frieza's men were standing there, lined up and spread out into a half-circle shape. They were all dancing in place and singing along to the tune of the music.

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES!_ _ **GINYU FORCE RULES!**_ _"_

Krillin stared in confusion. "What are they-"

And then, the human warrior was cut off by a large yellow, hulking man and an even larger blue, snake-like man both backflipping onto the scene.

 _ **RECOOME**_ _: "My name is Re-coo-oome! I've got the strongest powers-ah! I'll take all your lives without even breaking a sweat! TOH!"_

" _With my Ultra Fighting Pose! The Miracle Bomber, Oh Yeah! I'll sweep all the scum off of the battlefield!"_

 _ **BURTER**_ _: "The name is Burter! Here comes the Blu~ue Hurricane! Whoa-Oh!"_

" _My speed is un-matched by anyone!"_

 _COMPANY: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **BURTER**_ _: "We have just arrived and we're the most ee-lite! Warriors in the Universe! We even shut up whining kids cuz we're the awesome Ginyu Force!"_

 _Company: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **RECOOME**_ _: "We'll arrive in a flashy way! We'll show you our SPECIAL FIGHTING POSE! So, you had best prepare to kneel before its ultimate beauty!"_

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES!_ _ **GINYU FORCE RULES!**_ _"_

Krillin was even more confused now that a moment ago. He could easily tell how strong just those two were...but why were they dancing and singing like children?! He turned to Bardock and whispered to him. "B-Bardock...is this...what is this?!"

Bardock ignored Krillin, instead turning to Vegeta and trying to strategize. "Vegeta...we need to have a plan here. You, me, and Nail need to try and strike as a team."

Vegeta didn't respond. To Krillin's simultaneous confusion and understanding, he seemed utterly terrified of these clowns. Krillin turned from the Prince and back to the dance number in front of him to the sight of a shorter, red guy and an overweight, green guy both front-flipping in.

 _ **JEICE**_ _: "Hey there my name is Jeice! People call me the Red Magma! I'm also known as the Ginyu Force's Number Two Man!"_

" _Shall I pet you using?! My signature Crusher Ball! And by pet I don't mean just patting you on the head!"_

 _ **GULDO**_ _: "Hey Guldo! That's what they call me! I have the power to stop time! Whoa-oh!"_

" _I am full of real psychic power!"_

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **BURTER**_ _: "We have just arrived and we're the most ee-lite! Warriors in the Universe!"_

 _ **JEICE**_ _: "We're the best in the World! The One and Only mighty Ginyu Force"_

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **RECOOME**_ _: We have just decided on a chocolate parfait as our afternoon snack!"_

 _ **GULDO**_ _: "And we'll never ever share at all! You don't get any!"_

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES!_ _ **GINYU FORCE RULES!**_ _"_

Standing behind the others, Gohan was silently bobbing his head in tune with the music. Something about how flashy and exciting all of this was... _connected with him_. Nail, meanwhile, looked totally lost. The invaders were certainly different from what he had imagined. But, the Namekian warrior only had to take a glance at the terror on Vegeta and Bardock's faces to know that this was going to be a real fight. And so, in preparation, Nail through aside his coat. And, as he did, the final member of their team jumped in. A purple fellow with large, black horns.

 _ **GINYU**_ _: "Now to introduce Ginyu! The One and Only Team Captain! When fighting me you'd better give it all you've got!"_

" _I serve under Lord Frieza! Don't really give a damn who you are! All I know is that you'll be on the ground soon!"_

 _COMPANY: "YEAH!"_

 _ **GINYU**_ _: "You know you should feel honored! How about now I show yo~oou my dance! Prepare your eyes to view my Dance of Joy~!"_

 _COMPANY: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **JEICE, BURTER, GULDO, RECOOME**_ _: "We have just arrived and we're the most ee-lite! Warriors in the Universe!"_

 _ **GINYU**_ _: "I hate frogs but I don't know why! May it's the color?!"_

 _COMPANY: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **JEICE, BURTER, GULDO, RECOOME**_ _: "We decide when we fight with Rock-Paper-Scissors! It's the fairest way!"_

 _ **GINYU**_ _: "Fairness is truly the warriors code! You had better remember that!"_

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES!_ _ **GINYU FORCE RULES!**_ _"_

As wild guitar music began to swell, Krillin was getting truly unnerved. Were they really this confident that they'd win that they felt it okay to do a whole dance recital?! The monk ran up to Bardock and began to shake him. "Bardock! What the Hell are we going to do?! What's going on?!"

Bardock responded with a wake-up slap to the face. "Quit panicking and get it together! This is going to be a war if the Ginyu's are busting out their full theme song! They aren't pulling punches this time around!"

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **GULDO**_ _: "We have just arrived and we're the most elite! Warriors in the Universe!"_

 _ **RECOOME**_ _: "Heroes to the Frieza Force! The totally amazing Ginyu Force!"_

 _COMPANY: "YES THEY ARE!"_

 _ **BURTER**_ _: "We'll arrive in a flashy way! We'll show you our Special Fighting Pose!"_

 _ **JEICE**_ _: "Now prepare yourself to kneel before it's unparalleled beauty!"_

 _ **COMPANY**_ _: "GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES! GINYU FORCE RULES!_ _ **GINYU FORCE RULES!**_ _"_

As the music rounded up, the Ginyu Force struck their signature poses with force and gusto. And the grunts behind them rounded up the performance with several different colors of smoke bomb exploding behind them.

Gohan, still a 5-years-old child in spite of every miserable thing he had gone through over the past year and a half. He laughed and clapped his hands and shouted as loud as he could. "They're all so cool!"

Silence fell over Bardock's side of the battlefield and Bardock, Krillin, Nail, and Vegeta all glared back at him. Gohan stared up at his allies, looking confused and defensive. "Wh-what? Th-they're...really cool..."

The Ginyu's all heard Gohan's compliments to their performance and, to Gohan and Krillin's surprise, they began to celebrate. Ginyu shouted out. "Did you hear that boys?! He thinks we're cool!"

Recoome shouted. "That's amazing!"

Burter chuckled. "Yes! He thinks we're cool!"

Guldo smiled. "Our poses are so inspiring!"

Jeice howled with joy. "Lads! We got a compliment for a youthful heart!"

Ginyu smirked and nodded. "Indeed! A youthful heart is truly high praise! Praise that is second only to Lord Frieza himself!"

As the five, goofy soldiers literally lost their minds over the opinion of a five-year old, Vegeta decided that he had had enough. The Prince roared at the top of his lungs and summoned up all the energy he could muster to shoot at massive Final Crash at the Ginyu Force.

The blast rocketed towards the Ginyu's and their supporting company, crashing onto and around them. The Ginyu Force was hit dead center and the aftershocks of the blast surged around them, catching all of the weaker soldiers and incinerating them to death. Screams echoed out for a moment as the pain of death set in, and then they were all cut off by a massive explosion.

Krillin was amazing. Getting caught up in the moment and thinking that they had been given an advantage, the human monk shouted over to Vegeta. "Nice shot, man!"

Vegeta ignored the human's praise and spat on the ground, snarling. "Dammit! It didn't even gather enough power to kill Guldo!"

Krillin flinched. "Wait...you're telling me that... _that did nothing?!_ "

The smoke cleared and Krillin's exclamation was proven correct. Standing there, with the other four crowded behind him, was Captain Ginyu. The Captain glared at Vegeta, Milky Cannon still glowing on his hand, and then he smirked. Ginyu pointed the blast between Bardock and Vegeta and then fired it. It sailed past them as blinding speed and towards an island chain behind them. And then, with a massive purple explosion, the island chain was gone!

Krillin and Gohan both stared at the Ginyu Force with blue faces. Nail, Vegeta, and Bardock all immediately took up fighting stances.

On the other side of the battlefield, Jeice cleared his throat. "Uh...Cap'n...?"

Ginyu turned to his cohort. "Yes Jeice?"

Jeice looked up at his leader. "Do we have to kill the kid? I mean...he said we're cool and it feels like killing him would go against our Ginyu Force panache. Ya know what I mean?"

Ginyu sighed and rubbed his chin. "Well...we have our orders Jeice. So... let's just beat him to within an inch of his life and then maybe, once we get the Balls and kill the other four, we can beg Lord Frieza to spare him. Perhaps the Lord would be willing to show mercy if sufficiently pleased..."

Ginyu shook his head. "But, down to business..."

Ginyu struck and aggressive pose and shouted. " _GINYU FORCE FIVE STAR FORMATION!_ "

The other four wasted no time in posing in identical ways behind their Captain, ready to take flight on his command. Ginyu smirked and shouted again. " _GINYU FORCE! GO GO GO!_ "

The four lesser Ginyu's took off into the air, ascending into the sky and looping over before falling towards Bardock's group like four deadly missiles. Ginyu smiled wide and charged at his adversaries. " _ **GINYU FORCE SPECIAL COMBINATION BLITZ!**_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_

 _ **Song Credit:** **Friedrich Habetler Music & Son Wukong (I used/slightly modified their lyrics.)**_


	21. Chapter 21: Ginyu Force Assault

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 21: Ginyu Force Assault**

 _In front of the Base Camp Cave..._

The Ginyu Force collided into Bardock's group with intense power. The five warriors each took the hit and glared at the Ginyu Force member that challenged them. Bardock stared into Captain Ginyu's eyes with hate, snarling at the Captain's jovial grin. Ginyu chuckled. "Oh, come on now! Don't be sour~"

Bardock threw a punch as Ginyu, but the Captain caught his fist and tossed the older Saiyan into the air. As Bardock free-fell back down, Ginyu fell to his back and began to spin, eventually catching Bardock on the side of the head with a massive kick and sending him flying, The Captain jumped to his feet and saluted his men. "Have fun, boys!"

As Ginyu chased after his opponent, the other members of the squad took their opponents away from one another. Recoome punched Vegeta in the face and sent him flying across the island. Burter and Jeice booted Gohan and Krillin high into the sky. And Guldo remained to face Nail.

The Namekian warrior sighed and took a fighting stance. "So much for working together as a group..."

Guldo snickered. "You're going to die, insect!"

Nail narrowed his gaze. "We shall see..."

 _Up in the air..._

Gohan and Krillin faced their opponents knowing that they were at a disadvantage. Burter and Jeice dwarfed them in power, but with teamwork, the two fighters of Earth were able to keep up with their opponents. Burter and Jeice both remained confident and calm as these two smaller fighters staved off their attacks, merely chuckling as they both slowly ramped up the pressure.

Soon, they began to bust out their powers. Burter used his blinding speed to vanish from sight, only to appear behind Krillin and knock him away from Gohan with a high-speed chop. Gohan cried out. "Mr. Krillin!"

Gohan was stopped from going and helping Krillin by an extremely dense energy blast hitting him in the face. Gohan moaned in pain and spat out one of his teeth before glaring at Jeice, who was spinning the energy blast on his finger. "What? I thought kids liked to play ball. Me and Salza always used to love playing squash when we were tots."

Jeice tossed the energy blast again and it slammed into the blocking Gohan, knocking the wind from him and sending him tumbling back.

Meanwhile, Krillin was doing his best to avoid being seriously hurt by Burter. The big, blue snakeman's speed was almost too much for Krillin to keep track of and the monk could tell that he wasn't even going half as fast as he could go. Burter chuckled. "You're pretty fast! But you're no match for the fastest!"

Krillin leapt back, firing a ki barrage, but Burter was fast enough to weave through them. Krillin dodged with a panic, barely avoiding a strike that would've split his head open. Krillin held his hands in front of his face. "Solar Flare!"

Burter's eyes widened and he hissed in pain, but quickly used his speed to avoid the brunt of the flash. Burter rubbed his eyes. "That was dirty!"

Krillin shouted at him. "Who cares?! Destructo-Disc!"

Krillin summoned a Destructo-Disc, but he knew Burter would dodge it. So, he threw it at Jeice instead. Higher up, Jeice was chuckling as he played dodged ball with Gohan, slamming several dense energy spheres into the boy and beating him pretty hard.

It was only at the last second that Jeice looked out the corner of his eye and saw the Destructo-Disc. He held up his arm to block and Krillin cheered. But that cheer quickly died out at the Destructo-Disc exploded into nothing. Krillin was confused. "Wh-what?!"

The smoke cleared and Jeice was still whole behind it. His arm that he used to block was covered in a very similar energy to the Destructo-Disc. Jeice glared at Krillin and scoffed. "Pfft. Get real. I'm from Brench, ya dingo. It's nothing to change m'ki frequency to match that puny attack o' yours."

Jeice smiled. "Watch this!"

Jeice summoned a ki blast into his hand and ramped up the frequency to a very high speed. The blast was practically whistling as he flicked it and sent hundreds of high-speed ki needles down at Krillin. Krillin yelped as he was pierced and Jeice laughed. "See? Your attack is neat for such a pathetic race, but it's nothing special to me!"

Gohan jumped at Jeice from behind. "Leave him alone!"

Jeice dodged and kneed Gohan in the stomach. The short, red one smirked and tossed Gohan down to Krillin. "Let's play another game! How about some ol' fashion _Crusher Speed Ball_!"

Jeice coated on hand in super dense energy and then summoned a ball of that same energy in his free hand. "Ready Burter?!"

Burter, having recovered from the Solar Flare, called back. "Ready Jeice!"

 _On the ground next to the water..._

Vegeta was raging as he and Recoome traded blows. Vegeta was much faster than the lumbering, yellow bastard, but that didn't mean much. For everything five hits the Prince got in, one from Recoome quickly evened the playing field.

Vegeta tosses a bevy of desperate punches at Recoome, most of which were caught and blocked. Recoome chuckled. "Hey! You got stronger Vegeta! That's really cool!"

Vegeta snarled. " _Shut your damned mouth!_ "

Recoome headbutted the Prince, splitting his forehead open. "It's a shame you went traitor Vegeta! The Captain was waiting for you to get strong enough to join the Force. We need someone with black hair to do this pose we were planning and-"

Vegeta kneed Recoome in the nose. "I'd rather die than join up with you losers!"

Vegeta landed and formed a massive ki blast above his head. Recoome smirked and ducked just as the blast was about to crash down onto his head. "Well, that's the idea!"

Recoome drew his fist back and shouted the name of one of his 50 signature attacks. "Recoome... _KNEE SHATTER!_ "

The yellow hulk slammed his fist into Vegeta's knee and a solid snap was heard. Vegeta roared in pain, but Recoome shut him up with a harsh punch to the face. And then, as Vegeta was wobbling back and forth in a daze, his opponent grabbed him around the waist and leapt into the air.

Once they reached maximum height, Vegeta's senses came back and his eyes widened. Recoome chuckled and twisted in the air. "Recoome... _SUPLEX PILEDRIVER!_ "

Vegeta screamed in panic as the two of them plummeted back to the ground below. Recoome was having a blast. He ditched Vegeta at the last second and landed with a dancer's grace as Vegeta slammed headfirst into the ground.

Recoome posed and shouted as loud as he could. " _TOH!_ "

 _Over by the Cave Entrance..._

Nail was growing ever more annoyed as he fought Guldo. The little, green slime ball was always just before being hit when, suddenly, Nail was the one taking the blow. The Namekian Warrior charged forth and swung a massive chop at Guldo's neck. But, a split second later, a punch smashed into Nail's cheek.

Guldo chuckled. "I bet you're so confused about what's going on, huh?"

Nail wiped his hand over his face and grunted. "No. You are briefly pausing time to dodge."

Guldo gasped. "H-how did you-"

Nail was dry. "You just sang a song about it."

Guldo was speechless. "Y-yeah...uh...well..."

Nail wiped the last remnants of blood from his busted lip and then glared daggers at the froggy bastard. "Your tricks will only save you for so long, fool."

Guldo cried out in fear and Nail rushed at him. Nail thought to himself as he prepared to strike. ' _I just have to bait him a little more. He's overconfident in his ability and it shows. Just a little more and...'_

Nail threw a punch as Guldo and, a second later, a foot slams into his face. Nail toppled over and Guldo smiled, digging his foot into Nail's cheek. "You're not so-"

Nail's eyes snapped open and he fired two bolts of electricity from his antennae. Guldo took the full-brunt of the shock and cried out. Nail took advantage, overtaking Guldo and harshly smashing him to the ground with his elbow.

Guldo panicked and quickly tried to crawl away. He turned to see Nail looming over him with a blast in hand. Terrified, Guldo held up his hands. "Time Free-"

Nail kicked Guldo in the face and then sent the blast chasing after him. The overweight little scumbag took the blast to the face and smashed into a nearby rock. Guldo shakily pushed himself up to see Nail standing over him. He recoiled in fear at how badly the Namekian was outclassing him.

 _Back in the air..._

Gohan and Krillin were both facing a lot of pain as they dealt with the _Crusher Speed Ball_ attack. If it was just one of the Ginyu Force doing this, it wouldn't be so bad. But Burter and Jeice were the perfect tandem. And that dense ball of energy sent flying back at Gohan and Krillin at the speeds Burter was hitting it was enough to rupture muscle and splinter bones.

The ball came flying back at Gohan, but Krillin jumped in its path. It smashed right into his stomach and sent him flying into Gohan before crashing both of them aside and flying back towards Jeice. Krillin doubled over in pain and coughed up blood, but Gohan turned to Jeice and charged an attack. "Masenko!"

Jeice gasped, unprepared to handle the Masenko, but Burter made the save. Using his speed, the blue snakeman flew in front of Jeice and harshly slapped the Masenko away, right back into Gohan's face.

The boy went tumbling in the air, but Krillin caught him. "Gohan, are you-"

Burter was behind Krillin in a flash, landing five heavy kicks to the human monk's back before he could react. Krillin turned to face Burter, but the speedster was ready. He landed 20 consecutive punches to Gohan and Krillin each before letting them both fall to the ground.

Jeice hovered down next to Burter and the two best mates high-fived. Jeice chuckled and, once Gohan and Krillin hit the ground, he gave his order. " _Charge!_ "

The two squadmates smirked and then flew down at Gohan and Krillin ready to strike again.

 _Back with Vegeta and Recoome..._

Recoome whistled a merry tune as he walked up to the spot Vegeta had landed. The only part of the Prince sticking out of the ground was his legs. Recoome poked Vegeta's foot and smirked when the Prince's foot began to twitch.

With a single yank, Recoome pulled the beaten Prince from the ground just like and quipped. "So... does this make you a _Vegeta_ -ble?"

Vegeta coughed in pain and Recoome chuckled. "Don't worry, it'll be over soon."

Recoome raised Vegeta above his head and began to swing him around like a toy. "Recoome... _LASSO_!"

Recoome spun Vegeta around for a full minute before tossing him into the sky. The Prince was fading, not having enough wherewithal to even attempt to fly. But he got his wake-up call as he fell back towards Recoome. The brute reared his right fist back and, once Vegeta was in range, he shouted. "Recoome... _STRONG RIGHT_!"

Recoome's massive fist slammed into the side of Vegeta's head and Vegeta was suddenly wide awake. The force of Recoome's punch rung Vegeta's bell and made the eardrum it collided with explode. The Prince tumbled across the ground, dragging and eventually coming for a rest. He groaned in agony, but Recoome didn't let up. "Recoome... _KNEE DROP_!"

The hulking brute slammed his knee into Vegeta's back and then sat on him and grabbed his legs, pulling them up. "Recoome... _CRAB HOLD_!"

Vegeta was gurgling with pain as Recoome sunk the Boston Crab hold in more and more, twisted and torqueing the Prince's back into the most horrifying of angles.

Recoome prepared to dish another move, but then...

 _Over by the Cave Entrance..._

Guldo screamed for his squadmates to help him as he desperately tried to flee Nail. Being the weakest Ginyu Force member, Guldo was no match for the seasoned and powerful Namekian. Nail shot another blast and hit Guldo square in the back, leaving the roly-poly frogman helpless on the ground.

Nail raised his hand to strike and Guldo cried out again. "Burter! Recoome! Jeice! Support!"

Burter and Jeice both stopped their charge on Gohan and Krillin. Burter seemed concerned. "Guldo?"

Jeice palmed his face. "He is so lame..."

Over with Vegeta, Recoome stood up. "We really gotta make Guldo go to the gym more..."

The three stronger Ginyu's shrugged...and then they all charged to go and help their friend. Jeice called out. " _Ginyu Force Special Triple Attack!_ "

 _Meanwhile, over with Bardock and Ginyu..._

The Captain and Bardock both traded blows as they fought. Bardock was fuming and Ginyu was happily countering his every attack. The older Saiyan was well-aware that he was outmatched, but he fought on regardless. He just had to wait for someone to come and help him even the odds.

As the fight wore on, Ginyu eventually sighed. "Bardock...why are you so damned stubborn? Why can't you just give up and let the Saiyans die?! Huh?"

Bardock tossed a punch and shouted. "Shut the Hell up, you brown-nosing piece of shit!"

Ginyu caught the punch. "I'm not a brown-noser. I'm just effective at my job. Ya see, as long as you're loyal and do your job properly, Lord Frieza will show you the proper respect in return!"

Bardock snarled and charged a Riot Javelin. "So, kiss Frieza's ass and be his slave and you get results, huh?!"

Bardock slammed the blast into Ginyu's chest and sent him sprawling back. Ginyu shook it off with no ill effects. "Lord Frieza and I are friends! I'm not a slave, I'm _happily employed_!"

Bardock growled at Ginyu and heaved for breath. He was totally winded and Ginyu seemed no worse for wear. Bardock grunted and took a knee. "Damn it guys...hurry the Hell up and beat those other four..."

Ginyu rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Seriously? Do you... _seriously_ think that your _Loser League_ will ever be able to beat my Ginyu Force? The dregs of this Universe's society standing up to the five most elite warriors it has ever seen?"

Ginyu shook his head. "You're delusional, Bardock."

The Captain stretched his shoulders as he walked towards his opponent. "You should've just burned up in Lord Frieza's Supernova with the rest of the Saiyans. You'd probably be in for a lot less pain if you were in Hell right now..."

Bardock sneered. "Didn't I tell you to shut your damned mouth?!"

Bardock took a deep breath and then roared. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWO!_ "

 _Back over with Nail and Guldo..._

Nail loomed over Guldo with no spite and no malice. He stared down at the terrified, green bastard and calmly addressed his foe. "I pray that you have a peaceful afterlife."

Nail swung his arm down at Guldo, aiming for the kill, but his strike was quickly blocked by Recoome's shoulder. The armor on the yellow hulk's shoulder cracked off and Recoome began to bleed. The brute chuckled. "This Namekian is strong~! Recoome... _KNEE_!"

Nail had no time to react. Shocked by Recoome, he was unprepared to accept the solid knee that smashed into his stomach. The air exploded out of Nail and he was sent flying back. Before he could land properly, Burter dropped from the sky and slammed his foot onto Nail's face, land-surfing the Namekian warrior across the ground until he stopped moving.

Burter leapt off of Nail and scoop-kicked him into the sky. The warrior opened up his eyes and locked eyes with Jeice, looming over him with a hammer made of his own ki. Jeice cried out. "Magma Crasher!"

The hammer smashed into Nail and sent him falling back down to the awaiting Burter and Recoome. The two squadmates allowed Nail to stand. They even allowed him to take a fighting stance. But then, Jeice landed and the three descended on him. Nail held his own for a moment, but soon he was being helplessly pummeled while his original opponent, Guldo, stood on the sidelines and cheered.

As Nail was being beaten, his allies all slowly regained themselves.

 _Over with Gohan and Krillin..._

Gohan was crying his eyes out as he helped Krillin stand up. "Mr. Krillin...why did you take all of those hits for me? You're so hurt..."

Krillin shrugged, barely able to move. "Y-you're a kid, Gohan. But...you're already stronger than me..."

Gohan sniffled. Krillin continued. "Y-you...you need to survive and...be okay so that you can fight. We...we can't outrun the five of them. They're too strong. So... we have to survive until Goku can get here and...do what Goku always does..."

Interrupting the moment, Vegeta dragged his injured carcass up to Gohan and Krillin. "Do you fools really think that Kakarot will be of any help here...? That low-class scum and his family-"

Krillin finished. "Kicked your ass on Earth."

Vegeta glared at Krillin and Krillin glared back. Vegeta coughed up a puddle of blood and then glared at Guldo. "That little toad..."

The Prince didn't address Krillin any further. Instead, he dragged himself past the two humans and up to the distracted weakling. As Guldo cheered for his comrades to dismember Nail, Vegeta reared his fist back and punched the little grease-spot hard enough to make blood spurt from his two extra eyes.

Guldo screamed as Vegeta charged a blast. But, unfortunately, Recoome turned his head and noticed that his meat had gotten back up. The brute was quick to backflip from the beating Nail was getting and save Guldo with a heavy attack. "Recoome... _NECK CHOP_!"

But, before the attack could land and take Vegeta's head off, Gohan and Krillin leapt into the fray. Krillin tackled Vegeta at the legs, knocking him from the attack's path. Gohan, meanwhile, sent Recoome flying with a kick.

The brute tumbled over, only to land on his feet and smile at Gohan. "Let's play, kid!"

Gohan roared and tossed a punch at Recoome.

Meanwhile, Krillin checked on Vegeta. "Hey! You aren't dead, are you?!"

Vegeta snarled and punched Krillin off of him. "I might as well be! My leg is bum and I can barely move! Why didn't you help the boy or the Namekian by going after another Ginyu, damn it?!"

Krillin opened his mouth to respond, but then he gasped. Vegeta sneered. "What?!"

Burter spoke in a mocking tone. "Now Vegeta... _hitting your friends isn't nice_."

Jeice landed behind Krillin, spooking the monk. "Get off it, Burter! _Vegeta don't have friends_!"

Vegeta and Krillin both shakily stood to see two things: Nail bloodied and beaten on the ground and Jeice and Burter surrounding them and cutting them off from helping Gohan. But, before either of them could react, Burter booted Vegeta in the face and Jeice slammed a handful of explosive-frequency energy into Krillin's chest.

As that fight started, Gohan and Recoome continued to fight. Gohan was trying his hardest, but Recoome was clearly just playing with the boy. "So, you seemed to really like our poses! Any suggestions for how we could make them better?"

Gohan shouted, his voice cracking. "Shut up!"

He held out his hands and used a flurry of ki blasts to stave Recoome off. The hulking, yellow brute shook his head. "You're being super rude!"

Gohan's eyes were full of tears. "You're trying to kill me and my friends!"

Recoome shrugged. "Not my fault. If you all hadn't bother Lord Frieza, then the Ginyu Force wouldn't even be on this mud ball of a planet, ya know?"

Recoome stepped forward. "This is kinda all your fault for attacking Dodoria in the first place, from what I've been told."

Gohan snapped. He leapt at Recoome with a blast in hand. "Go to Hell!"

Recoome sighed. "Nah. But you can. Recoome... _KICK_!"

Recoome's kick hit Gohan square in the face and, just like that, the boy's neck snapped. Gohan hit the ground with a thud, his eyes white, and he didn't move.

Meanwhile, Burter and Jeice were giving the final beating to Vegeta and Krillin. Switching and alternating between the monk and the Prince, Burter and Jeice kept themselves fresh while never letting Vegeta or Krillin get comfy.

The two warriors were desperate, totally unaware of what Recoome had just done. After a prolonged beating, each of them managed to get a lucky hit on their opponents and then gain some distance. The skidded away and then stood back to back, both glaring at their Ginyu Force adversaries. Krillin twisted his hands into position. "Kame...hame..."

Vegeta did the same. "Galick Gun..."

" _HA!_ " " _FIRE!_ "

Jeice and Burter both dodged the beams, but were then surprised to see the attacks follow them. The both raced in the opposite direction, with the beams in hot pursuit. Jeice chuckled. "Can you believe these rascals?!"

Burter nodded. "Pulling out such a cool maneuver in the 11th hour. They're actually pretty cool~"

Jeice sighed. "Finish 'em off?"

Burter nodded. "Yup."

The two Ginyu's flew away from one another, taking the beams on a chase. But then, they charged their red and blue energies up high and detoured to collide into one another. " _ **PURPLE CYCLONE CRUSHER!**_ "

The cyclone that Burter and Jeice made did two things. It started firing out ki bolts at Vegeta and Krillin, forcing them on the defensive. But, it also absorbed the Galick Gun and Kamehameha. The two Ginyu's swirled these beams in their energy vortex for a moment, letting the energy stew, and then they aimed right at Vegeta and Krillin. " _ **PURPLE REFLECTOR!**_ "

The Galick Kamehameha fired from the center of the vortex and right at Vegeta and Krillin. The Prince and the monk both stared in horror, and then they screamed.

 _Meanwhile, with Bardock and Ginyu..._

Bardock and Ginyu continued to clash. Ginyu was still pretty safely ahead (120,000 to Bardock's 90,000), but he was genuinely curious about this technique that the older Saiyan had pulled out. "Kaioken? What the Hell is that? Some kinda...multiplier?"

Bardock didn't answer, roaring and slamming his elbow into Ginyu's face. Ginyu reared back and wiped the blood from his nose. He prepared to say something, but then he looked past Bardock and sighed. "Welp...looks like the cavalry is here..."

Ginyu leapt back, appearing to retreat, and Bardock though optimistically. The older Saiyan turned and shouted. "Guys-"

He was met by a high-speed punch to the jaw from Burter. The force of this surprise hit not only took Bardock out of Kaioken, but it sent him sailing across the field and right into Jeice. The Number 2 Man smirked at Bardock and summoned a baseball bat made of his ki. " _Magma Grand Slam!_ "

Bardock quickly guarded, wincing as the bat cracked against his arm. He went to blast Jeice, but his body suddenly froze and Jeice smirked. The red one took another swing, this time cracking the armor around Bardock's ribs and sending him into the air. " _Magma Pop Fly!_ "

Bardock tumbled into the air, but he wasn't stopped yet. He tried to charge a blast, but was frozen again. This time, however, he managed to look over and see that giggling rat Guldo was the one trapping him. Bardock sneered at Guldo, but that was the least of his worries. From behind, Recoome jumped onto Bardock. The brute wrapped his arms around Bardock's neck and shouted. "Recoome... _K.O._!"

The two of them slammed into the ground at a high velocity helped along by Guldo. After the dust cleared, Recoome leapt up and chuckled. " _Recoome K.O. outta nowhere!_ "

Bardock struggled to get up, staring at the Ginyu's with visceral hatred. The Ginyu's all looked down and him and they smiled and waved. Bardock was confused, but then they leaped out of the way and he saw why. Ginyu was hovering above with a Milky Cannon in hand. Bardock groaned. "Shit..."

And then Ginyu fired. The Milky Cannon smashed into Bardock and exploded on the screaming, older Saiyan. The plume of smoke was massive, but Bardock quickly shot out of it, landing hard on the ground and tumbling until he was right in front of the cave entrance.

 _Just inside the Cave..._

Bulma and Talus could only watch on in shock and horror. The five strongest warriors on their side, the five greatest hopes for Planet Namek, had all been picked apart and soundly beaten by the overwhelming might of the Ginyu Force. Bulma was very openly panicking as she watched this happen. Talus, while also very disturbed, watched on in subdued horror.

Talus swallowed a lump in his throat. "N-Namek will die if those five do..."

Bulma quickly nodded in agreement, her hands shaking so hard it made her blaster rattle. "Yeah but...what do we do?! If we draw their attention, those five would slaughter us..."

Talus watched on, considering his options. He had to save those warriors, but how would he convince the Ginyu Force to leave and not come back? The warrior thought over his options and soon came to the conclusion that he only had one choice. "Earth woman..."

Bulma turned to Talus. "Huh?"

Talus clenched his fist hard enough that his palm split. "I... I need you to be ready. Do you understand?"

Bulma was confused. "Be ready for what?"

Talus turned tail and ran back towards the Capsule House. "Just be ready!"

Bulma was about to follow Talus, but then she heard the Ginyu's all gathering. The Earth woman watched in horror as Gohan, Krillin, Vegeta, Nail, and Bardock were all thrown into a pile. Once that was done, the Ginyu Force gathered around them in a circle and each of them charged up a blast.

Bulma was panicking. "No no no! They're going to execute them! No! What do we do?! What do we-"

Suddenly, Bulma was interrupted by Talus, the two other Four-Star warriors, and four Namekian farmers flying over her head. Talus screamed at the top of his lungs. " _FOR THE GREATER GOOD BROTHERS! FORWARD!_ "

This exclamation caught the attention of the Ginyu's who all looked up to see the Namekians rapidly circling overhead. Talus stared down at Ginyu with utter hatred and then addressed his fellows. "Now my brothers! Scatter!"

The Namekians all flew off, each in a different direction. Ginyu shrugged. "Damnable cowards. I'm not saying I have any love for Bardock and his crew here, but those insects could at the very least stay and fight like these five did..."

Once sufficiently far off, Talus turned and shouted. "Captain Ginyu!"

Ginyu glared at him again and Talus, reach into the back of his coat, pulled out the gleaming form of the One-Star Dragon Ball. "I believe we have something that you miserable pirates want! _**RIGHT?!**_ "

Ginyu flinched. "W-wait...Seven Dragon Balls...Seven Nameki... _ **SHIT!**_ "

Ginyu quickly began to direct his confused subordinates. "The Dragon Balls! They're fleeing with Lord Frieza's Dragon Balls! Those damned, dirty Namekians!"

Ginyu roughly shoved each of his men. " _Quit standing around! Hurry the Hell up and chase them! NOW!_ "

Recoome complained. "But, Captain...we have our enemies right here, dead to rights, and-"

Ginyu cut him off. "Lord Frieza's desires are paramount! We could lose those Balls forever at this rate! Hurry the Hell up!"

The Ginyu's all started squabbling, but they followed their Captain's orders and rose into the air. Bulma was quick to respond to this development. In a rush, she ran out and began to save her allies. First, she grabbed Gohan and Krillin and brought them back into the cave. And then she retrieved Bardock. And then she retrieved Nail.

And then, Bulma rushed out to grab the final person, only to realize who it was. Bulma glared down at the inert form of Vegeta and coldly stared at the Prince. She recalled everything he had done, all of her friends that he had ordered dead...and then she aimed the blaster on her hand square at his face. Vegeta was out, there was no way he would survive against this.

Meanwhile, up in the air, the Ginyu Force had managed to lock their Scouter's onto the fleeing Namekians. Now, none of them could escape. They all prepared to take off, but then a familiar voice called down to them from below. " _ **FLAMBOYANT COWARDS!**_ "

On the ground, Bulma recoiled in shock and quickly hid herself behind a rock. Vegeta, perhaps not totally aware of what was going on, was absently mocking the Ginyu Force from his spot on the ground. "Where are you pathetic bastards going, huh?! I'm...not...dead yet!"

Up in the air, the Ginyu's all sneered at Vegeta. Except for Ginyu. "Men! He's unimportant right now! Just-"

Guldo immediately plummeted to the ground. The green scumbag was still furious at Vegeta for punching him in the head, so he grabbed the Prince with his telekinesis and then flew back into the air. Ginyu was furious. "Guldo!"

Guldo smirked and began to summon a pillar of ice. "Don't worry Captain! It won't take long! You guys go after the Dragon Balls and I'll catch up!"

Ginyu snarled. "Dammit Guldo...FINE! But you are in for a serious punishment later for defying a direct order!"

Guldo chuckled as his teammates took off. "So, I don't get ice cream for a week... _SO WHAT?!_ Knowing that Vegeta is dead will fill my stomach more than any sweet!"

The green gremlin finished summoning his ice pillar and he centered it directly over Vegeta's heart. Bulma, still on the ground, spitefully watched on. She was more than happy to just sit back and watch Vegeta get what he deserved. Bulma smiled as Guldo ranted on about what a bastard Vegeta was...but then she began to think. Nail and Talus both had called for the greater good. Neither of them liked Vegeta and yet...Nail was willing to put that aside to work alongside him...and Talus was ready to lay down his life to make sure that Vegeta was safe.

" _Namek will die if those five do..._ "

Bulma swallowed the lump that was growing in her throat. Talus was right. They needed all the help they could get and if Vegeta was anything, he was strong. Bulma looked over to see that Nail was emerging from the cave, shaky and beaten, but conscious. And then, she made a choice that killed her on the inside. " _ **NAIL! FOR THE GREATER GOOD!**_ "

Nail turned to see where Bulma was and was shocked at what he saw. The Earthling woman had stood up, aimed her blaster, and the beam had fired out. Nail watched, in awe, as the laser blast exploded from Guldo's chest. The green psychic's powers faltered and he dropped Vegeta like a stone. And then Nail knew what he had to do. The Namekian warrior drew his arm back and then he fired a massive ki wave right at Guldo.

The Ginyu Force's weakest member screamed in terror, and then he was reduced to ash.

Already quite a ways away, Burter and Jeice and Recoome all stared in shock and horror. Ginyu also took a moment to look back, but then continued on. Burter was livid. "You bastards!"

But, before the Blue Hurricane could speed off to avenge his teammate, Captain Ginyu shouted into their Scouters. "DRAGON BALLS!"

Jeice and Recoome, getting the message, immediately took off. Burter stared hatefully at Nail and shouted. "I'll get you for this you Namekian Scum! This is not over!"

And then, Burter turned and began to give chase to Talus and the other Dragon Ball carriers as well.

The battle was over for now. Bulma knelt on the ground, damning herself for saving Vegeta's miserable life. Nail hobbled from the cave and wistfully stared in the direction Talus had flown. The members of Team Bardock were broken and battered and beaten senseless. And now, the Dragon Balls were gone.

This battle was a definitive loss.

 **Proofreading: StevenBodner**


	22. Chapter 22: Regroup

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 22: Regroup**

 _Inside the Capsule House..._

With a scream and a start, Gohan sat up. Cold sweat poured from the boy's face as he looked around and saw the room still and silent. He looked to his left and saw Dende sitting next to him, a small smile on his little green face. Gohan smiled back and turned around to see Bulma and Krillin sitting behind him. The two of them, however, looked far more grim.

Gohan's memory was foggy. He remembered fighting the Ginyu Force...but then everything went dark. "Wh-what happened? What's going on? Did we beat the Ginyu Force?"

Krillin shook his head. "No buddy...sorry...things aren't really all that great right now..."

Bulma's eyes were glued to the floor, she looked miserable. "Talus and a few other Namekians from the Four-Star Village saved us. They used the Dragon Balls as a distraction. But...none of them have returned yet..."

The door to the Capsule House clicked open and Elder Tsuno stepped it. Wet streaks were still visible on his face, but the Elder remained dignified in his gait. "Indeed, they haven't...but they did what they did for the sake of Namek. We must not...we must...not..."

The Elder sat in a chair and buried his face in his hands. Dende, empathetic as he was, immediately ran to the grieving Elder's side. The young Namekian consoled his elder sibling and spoke softly to Gohan. "Yes...we must not look at what is lost, but what has been saved. Thanks to Talus's bravery, I was able to use the gift Grand Elder Guru gave me to save all five of you from your injuries."

Gohan swallowed a lump in his throat, and then he looked around. "All five of us, huh? W-where are Nail and Grandpa Bardock...and _Vegeta_..."

Krillin stood up. "We should probably go and check on them, Gohan."

Gohan stood as well. "Is something the matter?"

Krillin sighed. "Yeah. They're outside ' _talking_ '..."

 _Outside the Base Cave..._

Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma stepped outside to the endearing sound of a hoarse-voiced screaming match. While Nail stood stalwart between the two arguers, looking noticeably irritated from his most likely ringing ears, Bardock and Vegeta looked as if they were just before beating the shit out of each other. Vegeta screamed right in Bardock's face. " _ **If it hadn't been for you and this green-skinned medler, I could have kept my 5 Dragon Balls! And Frieza wouldn't have them back! You goddamned, low-class piece of garbage!**_ "

Bardock shouted back. " _ **Oh yeah! Totally! Little Prince Vegeta would just skipped-away with his Dragon Balls in tow and he would've lived happily ever after! Wake up you narcissistic headcase! The Ginyu Force would've hunted your ass down and murdered you like a diseased animal! Just like FUCKING GULDO almost did! Dead and face down in a ditch! At least with us at your side, Guldo is dead!**_ "

Vegeta snarled. " _ **Big deal! That human woman proved that literally anything could've killed Guldo! You, me, a Namekian, a human, A STRONG ENOUGH WIND!**_ "

Bardock roughly shoved Nail aside, making him crash into Bulma. He got nose-to-nose with Vegeta and started screaming even louder. " _ **Listen here you overconfident little shit...!**_ "

The Namekian Warrior quickly collected himself and apologized to Bulma. "Forgive me for bumping into you."

Bulma shrugged. "You didn't do it. Those _bickering children_ did."

Nail sighed. "Yes. They have been at it since Dende healed the both of them..."

Krillin was taken aback. "But that was _hours_ ago..."

Nail nodded. "Indeed. But I have learned much of Saiyan history, at least. Apparently, there were three Vegetas before this Vegeta. A... _truly disturbing thought_..."

Gohan watched in stunned silence as Vegeta and Bardock continued to scream. Krillin sighed. "I guess that's what happens when you take two overly strong personalities and let them clash. I wonder how long before fists start being thrown..."

As Gohan and Krillin continued to watch Vegeta and Bardock argue, Bulma silently pulled Nail aside. The two of them walked a bit away from the group and Bulma spoke up. "About Talus and the others...I'm so sorry that-"

Nail stopped her. "Don't."

Bulma flinched. Nail's face fell solemn. "Talus and the others all made the choice they made to protect our home. As long as Namek survives and our kind are able to continue on, then that is all that truly matters. Depressively mourning them would be an insult to the nobility of their sacrifice. Instead of such dishonorable sentiment, we must form a plan to regain control of the Dragon Balls."

Bulma sigh and cocked her head. "So, how do we do that? The Ginyu Squad or whatever they're called kicked all of your asses pretty hard to take them in the first place..."

Nail nodded. "Indeed. But we have improved and increased our might from that altercation. I know that you cannot sense power, but..."

Nail turned and his gaze fell upon Gohan and then Vegeta and then Bardock. "...I genuinely feel as if these invaders can be toppled with this new power."

Bulma and Nail both walked back towards the group and Vegeta's rabid shouting became clear once more. " _ **I should have known better than to trust low-class garbage! I am an Elite Warrior and a Prince! How did I let myself fall for believing that RADITZ'S pathetic bloodline would have anything worth a damn to listen to!**_ "

Bardock snarled. " _ **Two things! One, keep my family's names out of your whiny, little mouth! Two, what the Hell does that title even mean anymore Vegeta?! Prince?! Prince of what?! Planet Vegeta is dead and there are only SIX Saiyans left! Prince of Saiyans means nothing! That title that you scream at everybody like a broken audio-com means NOTHING!**_ "

Vegeta's pupils shrank. He summoned a blast in his hand and sneered at Bardock. " _ **It's means everything! I'll show you what it means!**_ "

Bardock growled at Vegeta. " _ **Bring it, punk!**_ "

In a flash, Nail was between the two Saiyans. Vegeta snarled at the green warrior. "What?! _Do you think I won't kill you to get to him?!_ "

Nail was unmoved by this bluster. "Can you arrogant, screaming heads not see that fighting one another at this juncture is pointless?!"

Nail specifically turned to Vegeta and glared down at the Prince. "We have an advantage. A member of the Ginyu Force is dead! It would be shameful, in the face of everything we have lost, to ignore this golden opportunity!"

Vegeta dissipated the blast his his gaze fell to the ground. "What does Guldo's death matter? Everything is over. Frieza has the Dragon Balls. We've lost..."

Nail closed his eyes. "You are correct in a sense. Frieza does, indeed, have all seven Dragon Balls. But...he does not have the password to gain audience with mighty Porunga."

Vegeta flinched back in shock. As did Bardock and the rest. Bulma stammered. "P-password?! But, the Dragon Balls on Earth don't have a password..."

Nail turned to Bulma. "Your Dragon Balls are mere imitations of the original Namekian set. They hold no access to Namekian history. From your description, they are merely wish-granting baubles. Our Dragon Balls are sacred and hold all of our people's history. They require that a special phrase, known to only a select few and spoken in the native tongue, to be fully accessed."

Bardock spoke up. "So... what you're saying is... _there's a chance_?"

Nail nodded. "Indeed."

Bardock was, surprisingly enough, suddenly very calm. Vegeta was as well. As the five warriors and Bulma all gathered together, Bulma posed the question that everyone was thinking. "So, what do we do?"

That question hung over the group as they stood there. What would they honestly do now?

 _Over at Frieza's Ship..._

Frieza, Zarbon, and the remaining Ginyu Force all gathered around the seven Dragon Balls. Frieza warmly chuckled as he stared down at his prize. "Oh, dear Captain Ginyu...do you have it in you to disappoint me even slightly? It is almost infuriating how competent you are~"

The Captain, as well as the rest of the Force, were all solemn. In spite of their teasing of the little, green slime ball, they four of them were genuinely shaken by the loss of their long-time ally. Frieza immediately noticed this and turned to the Captain. "Captain Ginyu, whatever is the matter? You seem unhappy in spite of success."

Ginyu sighed and sadly stared at his Master. "I am sorry, Lord Frieza. We are...still reeling over the loss of Guldo. He has been a valued member of the Force since its inception 30 years ago. He was the complimentary green in our rainbow of power. We are having trouble repressing our emotions over his...chilling demise..."

Frieza shrugged indifferently. "Captain, it's fine. Guldo was rather weak in comparison to the four of you anyway. I will personally find you a stronger, green solider to replace him."

Ginyu shakily smiled. "Th-thank you for your generosity, My Lord..."

Frieza could tell that this solution did not satisfy. He looked at Ginyu and then looked down at the Dragon Balls. And then, the Galactic Tyrant briefly reflected on the past. Finally, with a sigh, Frieza addressed Ginyu once more. "Captain. If there is more than one wish on these Dragon Balls, after I have gained my immortality that I so desire, I shall grant you my permission to wish Guldo back to life."

The Ginyu's all immediately flinched back in shock at this amazing proposal. Zarbon's jaw, meanwhile, went totally slack. Immediately, the Ginyu Force all fell to their knees and bowed to Frieza. Captain Ginyu lead them in praising the Emperor. "Lord Frieza! That you so much for this kindness! My Lord...this is just..."

Frieza held up a hand. "No need for thanks, Ginyu. I am more than happy to reward competence in my minions. I would have no use for any remaining wishes by any measure, so why not offer you a boon?"

Zarbon silently fumed as he watched this display. The Ginyu Force had always received such kind treatment from Lord Frieza while the rest of the soldiers were little more than potential targets of his ever-changing mood. Zarbon gripped his fist as he silently wished he could strike all four of the brown-nosers dead.

Ginyu stood up from his groveling pose and jutted his leg into the air. "This is amazing! I say that this is the appropriate time for the DANCE OF JOY!"

Frieza, Zarbon, and the rest of the Ginyu Force watched as Ginyu danced with grace and precision. Frieza chuckled on and allowed the Captain to finish the entire dance, much to his amusement. Once that was done, Frieza turned his attention back to the Dragon Balls. "Now then...let us dispense with the ballyhoo and get down to business, shall we?"

The Evil Emperor stared down at the Dragon Balls and recited his greatest desire. " _DRAGON BALLS! DO MY BIDDING AND MAKE ME IMMORTAL!_ "

Frieza began to laugh his wicked laugh as he stared down at the Balls. The Ginyu's all joined him, happy for their Master's success. This laughter continued for a solid minute before eventually breaking down into silence. And then, once the silence became awkward, the smile faded from Frieza's face.

The Ginyu's and Zarbon watched as their Master observed himself with a look of disdain. Soon enough, Captain Ginyu spoke up. "L-lord Frieza? Is everything...okay?"

Frieza glared over at Ginyu, a sweat drop on the side of his face. "D-do I appear immortal, Ginyu?"

Ginyu flinched at how awkwardly that question was posed. But then, he began to do his thing. He circled around Frieza, occasionally poking or jabbing the tyrant with his finger. "Um...I can't say that you look or feel any different..."

The Captain activated his Scouter and scanned Frieza. "530,000...an all readings of your biology seem normal..."

Ginyu rubbed his chin. "Nothing appears different, sir. I would suggest, maybe... _stress testing it_...? But...there is no one on this Planet powerful enough to even superficially harm you, My Lord..."

Frieza was nonplussed. "Indeed. I had just assumed that...the Balls would provide some form of indication that they were effective..."

Frieza stopped looking himself over and sneered at the Dragon Balls. " _DRAGON BALLS! DO MY BIDDING AND BRING THE GINYU FORCE MEMBER KNOWN AS GULDO BACK TO LIFE!_ "

Yet still, nothing happened at all.

Jeice, fearing Lord Frieza's temper might be close to breaking, quickly spoke up. "M'Lord. Perhaps Guldo, if he was brought back to life, was brought back to life where he died. Ya know, back at the cave where the Saiyan filth is licking their wounds..."

Frieza was seething as he glared at the Dragon Balls with gritted teeth. " _A valid point..._ "

Ginyu quickly brought up another suggestion. "My Lord! Why not wish for something immediate to test the Balls and their effectiveness?"

Recoome quickly gave his two cents. "Like a chocolate nut bar~!"

Ginyu turned to shush Recoome, but Frieza immediately shouted at the Balls. " _DRAGON BALLS! DO MY BIDDING AND PRODUCE FOR ME A CHOCOLATE NUT BAR!_ "

Once again, nothing.

Frieza smashed his tail against the ground hard enough to fissure the land beneath him. "I swear, if I lost so many soldiers because of a Namekian fable that _Vegeta and the other one_ fell for, I'm going to-"

Burter silently mumbled to himself. "You would think that _Dragon_ Balls would involve a _Dragon_ in some way..."

Frieza's glare snapped towards Burter. "You would think that, wouldn't you?!

Burter flinched in fear. "P-perhaps our Namekian prisoners would know something?!"

It took a moment, but Frieza's temper soon cooled. A smile spread on his face. "Fastest speed in the Universe with a very quick wit to boot. Excellent work, Burter."

 _Inside the Ship..._

Frieza, followed by Zarbon and the Ginyu Force, stepped into the bridge of the ship to find several heavily beaten Namekians sprawled all over the floor. Frieza stepped forward with purpose and reached down to the first Namekian within reach, only for Talus to fall from the ceiling with the intent to kill!

Talus roared. " _Die you monster!_ "

Frieza, not even bothering to look, tail-slapped the warrior away. Talus smashed into the wall and slid down, leaving a trail of purple as he did. Frieza picked up his original target, a simple farmer Namekian, and began to interrogation. "How do the Dragon Balls work? Tell me at once!"

The farmer coughed. "I...I don't...know..."

Frieza growled under his breath and fired a Death Beam into the farmer's forehead, killing him instantly. And then he moved on to his next target.

A warrior interrogated. A negative answer. A Death Beam.

Another farmer interrogated. Another negative answer. Death Beam.

Interrogation. Negative. Death Beam.

As Frieza picked up his fifth soon-to-be victim, Talus cried out. "Stop! Please! None of us know the password! It is sacred knowledge that only the Grand Elder knows! Please stop killing my brothers!"

Talus shakily stood, tears in his eyes. " _Please..._ "

Frieza, still clutching a barely conscious farmer by the neck, glared at Talus. "The Grand Elder, eh? I see..."

Frieza murdered the Namekian in his grasp and turned to his subordinates. "Ginyus! Zarbon! Begin to scan at once! I want-"

Talus snapped. " _YOU COLD-HEARTED BASTARD!_ "

The warrior charged at Frieza with his fist raised, screaming like a madman. However, right as he reached Frieza, the Emperor jammed his fist into Talus's wide-open mouth, shattering his teeth out. The Emperor sighed. "Any results?"

Ginyu smirked as he pointed in two different directions. "That way is the camp that Vegeta and his ilk are at. But...the other way is a singular, super old vital sign My Lord~"

Frieza smirked. "There's the winning ticket."

Talus's eyes widened. He tried to pull away only to realize that Frieza was holding his tongue. With Frieza's fist in his mouth, he screamed. " _Leff uh Gwahn Ehuh uh_ -"

Frieza charged a blast into his fist and, with a flash, splattered Talus's head all over the ceiling. The final Namekian in the room yelped in horror and Frieza quickly killed him with a Death Beam. "Tell me, Ginyu...are you positive that this 'Grand Elder' is in that direction?"

Ginyu nodded. "One-hundred percent, sir! It is the oldest life-sign on this Planet!"

Ginyu turned to his men. "Come on, boys! We have an old man to interrogate! Let's-"

Frieza quickly cut the Captain off. "I will be handling this, Captain Ginyu. You and your men will be staying here to protect my ship and guard my Dragon Balls. We will suffocate two problems at the same time!"

Ginyu was confused. "My Lord?"

Frieza smiled. "I will get my Dragon Ball password, Captain. You will stay here and wait for a certain pack of rats to scurry here. With me gone, I'm sure that their greed and stupidity will get the better of them. And then... _the four of you can have vengeance_..."

The Ginyu Force all hatefully smirked at that thought. Recoome cracked his knuckles in anticipation. Ginyu smiled. "A tantalizing thought, My Lord! And I will be very annoyed that the Special Fighting Pose will be a man short to face those bastards. So, I will be inspired to brutalize them much harder than normal."

Frieza chuckled. "Your pose short? We can't have that, dear Captain."

Frieza turned his gaze to Zarbon and shrugged. "Captain!"

Ginyu turned and Frieza smirked, pointing at Zarbon. "I happily give you Zarbon as a temporary replacement for Guldo. He is yours to use as you please~"

Zarbon was genuinely taken aback, speaking up for the first time in a while. "B-But...Lord Frieza..."

Frieza ignored him. "Consider him your servant, Ginyu. Your slave even. If he displeases you, kill him. I certainly would."

Ginyu bowed. "Thank you for this generous gift, Lord Frieza. I will use it proudly!"

Frieza chuckled as he walked past the stammering Zarbon, knocking his former attendant to the ground with his tail as he climbed into his hover chair. "Do have fun, Ginyu~"

As Frieza hovered away, Ginyu yanked Zarbon to his feet by the cape. "Now listen here, Pretty Boy. You have a lot to learn for this upcoming conflict! If you want to replace Guldo in the pose, then each and every muscle must be properly trained to do each and every movement at 100% power..."

As Ginyu rambled on, Zarbon's ears began to ring. The former attendant's remaining pupil shrank as it fully sank in what had just happened to him.

 _Back at the Base Camp..._

Bardock was sitting against the wall thinking about what to do. While the others all through ideas out into the open, Bardock tapped his finger against his bicep. No matter what anyone said, and no matter what he tried to think of, there was no plan to be made that didn't end with one of them dying.

Even with him, Vegeta, and Gohan having gotten a zenkai boost from all nearly dying, Frieza was still well beyond their depth. Bardock continued to think hard. "Surely there must be-"

The feeling hit all five of them at once and all five warriors rose to their feet. Bulma looked confused. "Wh-what? The Ginyu Force aren't coming back, are they?!"

Bardock shook his head slowly. Eventually, the older Saiyan managed words. "Why the Hell is Frieza leaving his ship?"

Vegeta snarled. "This can't be real. Why would he...?"

Bardock quickly answered. "It's a trap. Obviously, a trap."

The five warriors all looked at one another. Nail, Gohan, Krillin, Vegeta, and Bardock all realized that they would be walking right into the enemy's hands if they went to the ship that Frieza was so obviously leaving. This is their best chance at regaining the advantage!

Nail spoke in a slightly wavering tone, something clearly wrong behind his otherwise stoic demeanor. "If we leave the Dragon Balls with Frieza, we will lose. But if this is a trap and he circles around to kill us, we lose..."

Gohan and Krillin both looked scared as the same realization came to them that came to Nail. There was only one thing in the direction Frieza was flying. Nail tightly gripped his fists. "But, if this is not a trap, it is our one chance to get the Dragon Balls and save Namek. We must take this opportunity forthwith!"

Bulma looked dismayed at this prospect. But, Bardock quickly turned to address her. "Does that Scouter still work at all?"

Bulma held up the Scouter, haphazardly repaired by her to keep her distracted. "Barely."

Bardock grunted. "Keep it trained on me. If I die, take the remaining Namekians, get on the damned ship, and get the Hell off this Planet. _Got it?!_ "

Bulma swallowed a lump in her throat. "G-got it, Bardock..."

Bardock nodded. "Good."

And then, the older Saiyan turned to his four fellow warriors. " _NO TIME FOR SUBTLETY OR ANY OF THAT CRAP! FLY HIGH AND FLY FAST! LET'S GO!_ "

All five of them ran out of the Capsule House and leapt from the cave, flying as fast as they could towards Frieza's ship with purpose in their eyes. They had to get the Dragon Balls back!

 _Far off, elsewhere on Namek..._

Frieza chuckled as he flew towards the Grand Elder in his hover chair. His Scouter went off and read five power levels rapidly approaching his ship.

Frieza smirked. "Like a pack of rats..."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	23. Chapter 23: Training From Hell

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Sorry this took so long. Writing for a new character. A character that I love nonetheless. Easily my favorite Z-Fighter. So, I wanted it to be good. Also, it turned out long as Hell. So, I hope the wait was worth it._

 **Chapter 23: Training from Hell**

 _On King Kai's Planet..._

" _Haaah!"_

Tien threw a Kaioken-imbued strike at Yamcha who, in turn, blocked it with his own Kaioken-enhanced forearm. The desert bandit whipped a massive kick towards Tien and sent his three-eyed friend flying back. But Tien landed with a backflip and launched himself back at Yamcha.

On to the side, King Kai watched with a smile as these two students of his practiced and sparred with their new power. To his left, King Kai watched as Chiaotzu continued to attempt to access even the most basic form of Kaioken. The Kai sighed, it seemed as if Chiaotzu's spirit was not strong enough to grasp the use of Kaioken. He most likely would never achieve it.

King Kai turned his attention back to Yamcha and Tien and chuckled. "Keep up the sparring, you two! You're doing great!"

Tien and Yamcha both smirked and nodded. Going even harder at one another. King Kai nodded his head and his smile somewhat faded. These two were both handling Kaioken extremely well, but they had a clear limit. Much like Bardock and Raditz, these two would never master the Spirit Bomb.

The three humans continued their training and King Kai shifted his focus. He turned his gaze over to his apple tree and locked it onto Piccolo. The Namekian, in spite of only doing mental training with himself and totally ignoring King Kai, had managed to reach a level higher than Chiaotzu, Yamcha, and even Tien had.

The Kai stared at Piccolo and began to think. He wanted to engage Piccolo in some way. Get him to do some training that would allow him to flourish and access all of that latent potential within. But how?

After some heavy thinking, King Kai sighed and twitched his antennae. Mentally, he connected with the check-in station. "Hey, Yemma! Pick up the phone!"

 _At the Check-In Station..._

King Yemma's ears perked up and he swiveled in his chair. "King Kai?"

The ogre smiled. "King Kai! How are you doing you old so-and-so?"

King Kai sounded offended. "I am not that old! Now, connect me to Kami please. I need to speak to him about something important."

Yemma chuckled to himself. "Of course, King Kai. He just happens to be right here next to me."

King Yemma reached down to his desk and poked the meditating Guardian. Kami opened his eyes and glanced up at the ogre. "Yes, King Yemma?"

Yemma tapped the side of his head. "Phone call. Why don't you join us?"

Kami nodded and closed his eyes to focus. Soon, he had gained access to the telepathic communication occurring between King Kai and King Yemma. Kami was reserved and polite. "Hello?"

King Kai smiled. "Hello Kami, I am King Kai. And I would like to talk to you about Piccolo."

Kami sighed. "My word, what has he done now..."

King Kai quickly answered. "He hasn't done anything wrong. He's just not opening up and I was curious about...well...his entire existence. He feels off in a way and I was wondering if you could explain to me what is his deal?"

Kami nodded and took sighed out. "Piccolo is...a piece of my former soul. He is the offspring of my former evil half, the original King Piccolo. He is comprised of most of his 'fathers' essence and is spiritually connect to me as a result. But, as a result of be an offspring and not a reincarnation as my original evil half had hoped, he is capable of change. The type of change that could render him as a strong, noble warrior the likes of which King Piccolo could never have been..."

King Kai nodded. "I see. So...to put it bluntly...you are the yang, King Piccolo was the yin, and Piccolo as we know him is more of the middle way..."

Kami quickly agreed. "Indeed. And it is a shame that he is stuck in that position. Piccolo has an extreme level of potential within him, but the incomplete nature of his soul is permanently hobbled. If he and I were to re-merge, then he would instantly have access to an entirely new depth of power."

King Kai nodded. "I can tell. The amount of power he would have access to if he merged with you would be enough to handle any Saiyan. Maybe even destroy Frieza..."

Kami sighed. "And yet, our predisposed issues with one another prevent that. And that is as much on me as it is on him. I would rather die than ever rejoin him and I am unsure if that will ever change..."

King Kai sighed as well. "A shame...a crying shame..."

But then, King Yemma spoke up. "What about King Piccolo though?"

King Kai and Kami both flinched. King Yemma continued. "His soul still exists. My men in Hell were unable to properly cleanse it, because it is incomplete. If he were to properly move on, I would have to have Piccolo Junior and Kami rejoin within him. So, being unable to do that, I simply sent him and his wicked ilk to their own personal limbo."

King Kai was cheerful. "So, if King Piccolo still exists and we could strengthen Piccolo's soul and everyone on Namek would have a better chance to survive against Frieza!"

Kami was quick to interject. "Hold it!"

King Kai and King Yemma both fell silent. Kami spoke bluntly. "I agree that re-merging with King Piccolo would make Piccolo much stronger, but at what cost?! Returning that evil to Piccolo's body might just remake a stronger version of the original, wicked King!"

King Kai nodded. "I hear you Kami, but I disagree."

Kami flinched and King Kai, wise and understanding, chuckled. "You said it yourself. Piccolo is not his father. He is a more balanced path, not wholly good, but not wholly evil. And, if he is ever going to improve, he should face his past. I am not saying that they have to join back together, but I am saying that Piccolo facing down King Piccolo could work to our favor in training him."

Kami was silent. King Yemma sighed. "So, King Kai, am I sending Piccolo Junior to limbo?"

King Kai nodded. "Yeah. Go ahead and do it. But make sure that I have an open channel to keep an eye on him. And be ready to remove him when I say to."

King Yemma raised his gavel. "Right. Well then, I change my ruling and re-sentence-"

Kami spoke up. "Send me as well."

King Kai and King Yemma were both shocked. Kami sighed and stood from his sitting position. "If you are really going to do this, I feel the need to be down there just to make sure that a new problem does not emerge to rival Frieza. Send me as well."

King Kai thought for a moment, and then he nodded. "Do it Yemma."

King Yemma nodded and raised his gavel. "I change my ruling and resentence both Kami and Piccolo Junior to limbo!"

The gavel slammed and, in a flash, Kami was gone.

 _On King Kai's Planet..._

Piccolo's eyes snapped open. " _What the He-_ "

And, in a flash, he was gone. Yamcha and Tien both stopped sparring and stared over at the tree where the Namekian once hovered and meditated. Chiaotzu was spooked. "What just happened?!"

King Kai chuckled. "Nothing to worry about. I just sent Piccolo off for some alternative training. You all get back to work! You're all doing great!"

Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all looked at each other, and then with a nod, they each went back to their training with one another.

 _Down in the Dark Limbo..._

Piccolo appeared in the dark void of limbo. " _-Hell?!_ "

Piccolo immediately began to look around, snarling at the sight of a gnarled, black forest and fields of sharp, thorned plants. The Namekian snarled and clenched his fists. "What the Hell has that meddling, nosy Kai done?!"

And then, as if Piccolo's mood were not sour enough, a familiar and much loathed voice spoke up behind him. "Hello Piccolo."

Piccolo turned and sneered at the sight of the shriveled prune himself. He practically spat at Kami as he spoke. "What did you do?! Why am I here?! I have to train so that I can be ready to help Gohan on Namek when I'm brought back to life!"

Kami as blunt. "This is, apparently, training. King Kai himself approved it. Apparently, being down here and facing the monsters that inhabit this Hell will help you to grow stronger than simple meditation or mental sparring ever will..."

Piccolo growled. "I didn't ask you fools to step into my affairs! I am perfectly capable of training on my own! _Now send me back!_ "

Kami opened his mouth to speak, but he was quickly cut off by a green blur rocketing towards him. The Guardian quickly dodged and Piccolo took up a fighting stance. The younger Namekian snarled at this new adversary. "Who in the Hell dares to attack the great Piccolo?!"

The green monster, King Piccolo's son Drum, stood up and chuckled. "Oh please! I'm not that stupid. You ain't King Piccolo! You're just fresh meat for the grinder!"

Drum stepped towards Piccolo, cracking his knuckles. But, then he looked up and noticed Kami hovering in the air. The demon laughed out loud at the sight of this. "Hoo boy! I didn't see you at first! King Piccolo should get a decent laugh outta you ending up here~"

Piccolo's snarl faded into a mere sneer. He heard what Drum was saying and he paused to think. King Piccolo was here? His...father? Piccolo glared up at Kami and listened to the Guardian speak down to Drum. "Your wicked progenitor should have faded long ago. Both myself and the world have moved on from his influence. The Demon King is nothing more than a scary story parents tell their kids on dark nights!"

Drum chuckled and lurched over. "That's the thing old fella... _EVIL NEVER FADES!_ "

Drum leapt into the air to charge at Kami, but Piccolo quickly intercepted and knocked the unruly thug into a nearby briar patch. The beast immediately rocketed up screaming bloody murder. "OUCH! DAMMIT THAT STINGS!"

Piccolo gave no quarter. He charged after Drum and stomped his foot into the fat bastard's chest. Drum yelped in pain and tried to stand back up, but Piccolo quickly and brutally slammed his foot into Drum's knee. The mutated Namekian fell forward and his face landed right into Piccolo's open hand. Piccolo smirked and, with a massive Destructive Wave, he took Drum's head off.

The demon's body slumped over onto the ground and then, with a piercing screech, the remains turned into black smoke and rushed away, deeper into the forest.

Piccolo reacted with confusion, but Kami was quick to land and explain. "Nothing in this realm can truly cease unless faced with overwhelming force, Piccolo. You have not actually slain Drum and nor will you be able to. Not unless you get str-"

Piccolo roared at Kami. "What is the game here, you old bastard?! King Piccolo?! My deceased father?! What are you playing at?!"

Kami grunted. "This was not my idea. King Kai was the one who suggested that you come down here to face this particular specter. In order to calm your spirit and help you to draw out more power so that you might actually stand a chance against Frieza."

Piccolo's hateful gaze went skyward and he screamed at the top of his lungs. " _KING KAI! ANSWER ME RIGHT NOW!_ "

King Kai was quick to pick up the call. "Yes? King Kai call service! How may I be of assis-"

Piccolo snapped at him. "Cut the crap and recall me to your planet now! I'm wasting valuable training time down here on this pointless farce!"

King Kai sighed. "That attitude is what keeps you from gaining even greater power. You're strong, Piccolo, but you could be _so much_ stronger."

Piccolo flinched and King Kai continued. "You've had a very selfless change of heart recently. Your soul is unbalanced. You need to gain a sense of who you are if you are to progress. So, who better to train with than the other fractured pieces of your spirit?"

Piccolo sneered. "That isn't your call to make!"

King Kai countered. "You came to me for training. It is very much my call to make. Face your past demons Piccolo, and use them to find out who you are."

Piccolo roared. "Cut the bullshit and bring me back!"

King Kai chuckled. "I will. But only once I think you are ready to face Frieza..."

Piccolo screamed to the heavens above. "KAI!"

But, no answer. King Kai had left the communication and Piccolo was stuck in limbo with Kami. Piccolo was livid. He began to destroy the surroundings around him to vent his anger as a bemused Kami watched on. Kami sighed. "We are stuck down here until King Kai and King Yemma come to the consensus to bring us back out. Perhaps we should head deeper into this gnarled wood?"

Piccolo snarled at Kami. But then, with a flourish of his cape, the Namekian marched forward into the forest. Kami followed along in silence. The two halves continued on their path simply choosing not to address each other. This went on for a while, with Piccolo only becoming more and more angry and Kami only becoming more and more sullen. But, right as Piccolo was about to reach his boiling point, two more fiends descended from the dark tree tops above and attacked them both!

Two more of King Piccolo's children, Cymbal and Tambourine, rushed at Piccolo and Kami and slashed at the two wanderers. The Guardian and the Namekian Warrior both easily blocked these strikes and repelled their foes. Cymbal landed on his back from the force of Piccolo's strike, but Tambourine managed to land on his feet despite Kami's best efforts.

Tambourine charged again and smashed his shoulder into Kami, knocking the Guardian into the nearby brush with a wicked screech. Cymbal, meanwhile, attempted to overtake Piccolo, but he was quickly shown the power gap. Piccolo caught Cymbal's arm and tore it from its socket, casting it aside and then kicking Cymbal in the gut. The demon sputtered in pain and Piccolo fired two blasts, taking off both of his wings.

Cymbal fell to the ground in pain and Piccolo stood over him. Except, something was off. Piccolo sneered at the lack of enjoyment he felt. Two years ago, he would be finding nothing but immense joy in picking a weakling like Cymbal apart. But, now, the scenario felt so banal. Maybe King Kai was right about him changing?

Tears filled Cymbal's eyes as he fearfully crawled away, but Piccolo did not let him escape. The Warrior blasted his demon sibling in the back and reduced him to a cloud of shrieking smoke. And then, Piccolo turned and raced after Tambourine and Kami.

On the other side of the forest, Kami brawled with his cackling, demonic nephew. Tambourine was easily one of the most vicious of King Piccolo's children and attempted to terrorize Kami with total glee. The elder Guardian grunted as Tambourine's claws tore through his cloak. He botted the gremlin in face and tosses a ki blast after him. Tambourine stood and slapped it aside. "So, Kami, how did you end up down here you goody-goody old geezer? You don't seem like the Pits-of-Hell type."

Kami was blunt. "I'm also not the talkative type."

And then, the old Guardian fired eye beams as Tambourine. The winged gargoyle dodged and fired a beam from his mouth which Kami deflected with his staff. Tambourine prepared another attack, but then he saw Piccolo approaching from behind. "Heheh...I guess you're more like King Piccolo than you'd care to admit..."

Kami flinched and Tambourine rushed past him. "So, I think I'll kill your spawn first, Kami!"

Kami turned and saw that Tambourine was flying right at the approaching Piccolo. On instinct, the Guardian called out to his younger companion. "Piccolo!"

Tambourine shrieked with glee as he slashed his claws at Piccolo. But, to Tambourine and Kami's collective shock, Piccolo simply extended his hand and clamped it over Tambourine's mouth. The Warrior lifted his wicked sibling into the air and slammed him hard into the ground. "You're so noisy..."

Tambourine stared with hate at Piccolo. His wicked gaze scanned over the stronger warrior from head to toe and then he came to a realization. Piccolo Junior! This being was Piccolo Junior. Tambourine's eyes widened and he began to beg for mercy. But, his muffled cries were ignored by Piccolo who simply fired a massive ki blast into Tambourine's mouth. The demon's head exploded and his body faded into mist.

Piccolo stood up straight and he glared at Kami. And then, without a word, he turned and continued to march towards the heart of the forest. Kami was taken aback, but he began to follow soon afterwards.

Once again, the march continued in silence. Kami and Piccolo had nothing to say to each other and barely wanted to look at one another. But Kami had to say something to him. He knew that, if this training were to be effective, he had to say something. _Anything_. Uncomfortably, Kami spoke up. "I...must commend you for your recent improvements. It takes a bigger person to admit that his ways were wrong and change himself."

A vein popped up on Piccolo's head as he listened to Kami speak. Kami continued, unaware. "I am especially proud of your decision to trade your life for that of young Gohan. Making the ultimate sacrifice to protect him was a truly noble decision. And furthermore..."

Piccolo snapped. "Will you _shut up_?!"

Kami flinched as Piccolo turned and sneered at him. Piccolo marched up to Kami. "You, Old Man, have no right to try and praise me! Hiding up on your Lookout like a coward and overseeing everything, never taking an active part! I'm evil and I think you're unacceptably lazy! All you do is judge those that dwell beneath you, acting high and mighty and as if you have any say on any person's life! I hated Goku as much as I hate you! But at least I can say I respect Goku!"

Kami was baffled at this response. He fumbled his words. "I am just attempting to say that I respect you attempt to make amends-"

Piccolo sneered. "Amends for what?! Do you think I regret a single thing I've ever done?! I don't! I am Piccolo, everything I have done is for the benefit of Piccolo! And I will never apologize for trying to benefit myself!"

Piccolo waved his hand at Kami's feet and shot a ki wave that knocked the older Namekian onto his ass. "I am not an extension of you! I am not a clone of King Piccolo! I am me! Piccolo! I will never apologize for my desire to surpass Goku or for wanting to take the Earth that is rightfully mine. So, you can cut your self-righteous speeches..."

Kami sneered. "You're still such a child."

Piccolo narrowed his eyes and fired a beam through Kami's knee. The elder Namekian cringed in pain. Piccolo wickedly grinned down at Kami and chuckled. "You call me a child. But I take that as a compliment. I still have my youth, Kami..."

Piccolo grabbed him by the scarf and pulled him close. "So, you had better prepare for the day I decide to come for you. The day that I take all of your years as Guardian and reduce them to nothing. I don't believe in Gods. I am Piccolo, the greatest demon! And, my friendship with Gohan unaffected, I will still wrest the stewardship of the Earth out of your shriveled hands for myself."

Bemused and irritated, Piccolo dropped Kami onto the ground and continued his march into the forest alone. Once Piccolo was out of sight, Kami began to think to himself and heal his knee. He began to think about what Piccolo actually was. A being totally detached from himself and his evil half, and yet still connected. Not bound by the preset morality that had initially come with Kami's split from his evil side. A being not good, but not evil. A shade of gray that the previous Guardian of Earth ensured was not possible.

Kami stood and rubbed his chin. Despite Piccolo feeling entirely new...there was also something truly old within him. Something that Kami instinctively considered lost to time. Kami gritted his teeth. He tried to ignore and he tried to relate, but Kami had finally come to a conclusion on this matter. Truly, he would never be able to relate to Piccolo in full. He did not have it in him to see from Piccolo's point-of-view. Kami sighed. "Perhaps he is right. Maybe I, as the Guardian of Earth, am simply incapable of understanding in the same way Piccolo does..."

The aged Guardian followed the same path Piccolo did, not trying to catch up. He took the straightforward route, heading deeper and deeper into the gnarled forest. Soon enough, he found that he had totally lost track of Piccolo. Kami grunted in frustration but continued his march forward.

Kami continued to walk farther and farther towards the center of the forest, feeling a dark presence as he continued on. He knew this presence and it filled him with dread. Kami stepped into the clearing and a booming, evil laugh met him. The Guardian sneered as the evil force spoke to him. "Kami! So _glad_ to see you here!"

Kami grunted. "I cannot say that I feel the same. Seeing your face again is just as miserable as I had imagined it would be."

The evil force stood and loomed over Kami. "Come now. Don't be bitter..."

With a leap, the evil presence landed directly in front of Kami and sneered. King Piccolo stood tall over his good half. "You've shrunk."

Kami's voiced was flat. "And you're just a big as your overbearing ego is."

King Piccolo laughed out loud. "At least your acidic tongue still functions. That's good to see!"

Kami sneered as King Piccolo had a good, hearty laugh. "But, Kami, let us skip the pleasantries and get right down to business, shall we...?"

King Piccolo leaned over and locked eyes with his aged, good half. "I hear that Junior has accompanied you down to my little slice of Hell. _Where is he~?_ "

Kami truly didn't know where Piccolo had gone, but he had no intention of telling a thing to his wicked half. Kami sneered. "I will divulge no information to a wicked specter such as yourself."

King Piccolo's smile faded. "I see..."

The King turned and snapped his fingers. And, with a screech, Tambourine and Cymbal and Drum all leapt from their spots next to King Piccolo's throne and swarmed Kami. King Piccolo sat down and chuckled as Piano began to fan him. "If you will not reveal what I wish to know, Kami, then it shall be beaten out of you!"

The evil King watched as his hateful, mutated sons attacked Kami. The Guardian was easily stronger than any of these wretches individually, but they were able to overwhelm him together. Tambourine landed a heavy kick onto Kami's back and then Drum slammed his fist into the old man's gut. Kami crumpled to the ground and tried to get back up, only to have Cymbal axe handle him. Forced to the ground, Kami could barely protect himself as Tambourine, Cymbal, and Drum beat him with their fists and feet.

The brutal display was swift and severe, eventually ending with Kami laying in a small puddle of his own blood. The three demons loomed over the battered Guardian and King Piccolo laughed and bragged. "You fool! We're dead! Don't you realize that?! I have no need to fear your death anymore, so I may torture and maim you at my own leisure!"

King Piccolo stood and aimed his finger at Kami. "Now! Tell me where Piccolo Junior is or I will end you permanently!"

Kami shakily pushed himself up and snarled at King Piccolo. "Go...to... _Hell_..."

King Piccolo laughed. "That's the spirit!"

And then the evil King's smile faded. " _MAKOSEN!_ "

A stream of ki blasts flew as Kami and the Guardian flinched, his eyes squeezing shut. However, the impact never came. And explosion rocked right in front of Kami and he opened his eyes to see King Piccolo and his four children all staring towards the entrance to the clearing.

"Beating the elderly? Is your afterlife really so banal?"

Kami rolled over and saw the approaching form of Piccolo. The younger Namekian's cape flowed to the side as a heavy, howling wind rushed through the clearing. King Piccolo's lips spread into a malevolent smirk. "Junior! It's so nice to see you, son!"

Piccolo was terse, a subtle growl rumbling in his throat. King Piccolo didn't seem to notice or care as he broke into an evil rant. "You have gotten so much stronger, son! So much stronger than myself or Kami or any of these fools that I have produced! It is fantastic! Now, you can carry on my will! You will serve as a newer, more well-trained body for my evil spirit! We will take Kami back into ourselves and suppress his disgustingly good nature! And then, _oh yes then_ , we will rise from this miserable Hell with a brand-new army of demons and we will terrorize the Earth once more!"

King Piccolo's evil laughter echoed through his limbo. He was soon joined by his lesser sons, all of them laughing at the thought of a world burning and the screams of the meek. Kami glowered at his evil half on the ground, and then he glanced over at Piccolo. The younger warrior was standing there, his face expressionless.

King Piccolo reached out his hand. "Join me, my son! Let me fill your powerful body with my evil!"

Piccolo smirked and held out his hand, much to Kami's dismay. King Piccolo stepped forward with his hand outstretched as well. Kami sprung up from his spot. "I will not let you-"

King Piccolo stomped his foot down and crushed Kami into the ground. With Kami squirming under foot, father and son stared at one another for a moment. King Piccolo chuckled. "You are the best tool I have ever made, son. Our evil legend shall inspire terror in the hearts of even the Gods!"

Piccolo let loose a small chuckle. He reached out his hand as if he were going to grasp King Piccolo's. But then, to the surprise of everyone present, Piccolo straightened his hand out and fired a massive ki blast past his wicked Father and straight at Piano. The meek pteranodon screeched in fear as the blast overtook him and then obliterated him.

King Piccolo quickly shifted his attention to where his weakest son once stood, only to find nothing. No smoke, no fog, no trace. Piano was well and truly permanently gone. The evil King turned his attention back to Piccolo. "What the Hell did you just-"

Piccolo sighed and delivered a sharp kick to his Father's chest, sending King Piccolo flying back into his throne and smashing it into pieces. Cymbal and Drum both stared with anger and hate at their "little brother". Cymbal snarled. "You wretch!"

Drum glowered. "We'll kill you for that!"

They rushed Piccolo from either side. The young Namekian was quick to react. He grabbed his demon kin by their faces and twisted them around, slamming each into the ground. Cymbal and Drum both shakily pushed themselves up and looked up, but their gaze fell upon Piccolo's palms. Piccolo chuckled to himself and then fired two ki blasts. Cymbal and Drum screamed, and then they were gone as well.

Tambourine stared in horror. But he quickly got the message. The winged imp immediately took to the air to get away from eminent, permanent death. King Piccolo pulled himself from the rubble of his dark throne and shouted at Piccolo. "Junior! Stop this at once!"

Piccolo cocked a brow at his Father and then thrust his hand into the air. With a quick charge of his energy, Piccolo fired a Special Beam Cannon through Tambourine's chest. The demon screeched in pain and then he exploded into pieces.

King Piccolo stared in shock where Tambourine once was, but then he snarled at Piccolo. "Insubordinate, disobedient brat! If you won't submit, then I will force you to join me!"

King Piccolo sprung from his prone position and lunged at Piccolo with an open hand. Piccolo dodged his Father's swipe and then levied a massive fist into the Demon King's cheek. Piccolo roared and drove the Demon King's head into the dirt, slamming him so hard that his body stuck straight up in the air before limply falling to the ground. In one hit, the formerly fearsome King Piccolo was totally defeated.

Piccolo loomed over both Kami and King Piccolo and snarled. "I have explained this to Kami, now let me explain this to you. I am a reflection of neither of you. I am not a future Guardian of the worthless Earth and I am not the pathetic heir to a long-forgotten Demon King. I am Piccolo, the true future ruler of the Earth and the greatest warrior!"

King Piccolo and Kami both stared up at Piccolo as he lectured them. "And one more thing that I need to say. I hate Kami. I always have and I always will. He's a pathetic, shriveled slug who does nothing but watch events unfold! And yet..."

Piccolo gave a mocking laugh and pointed at his father. "You're even worse! Languishing down here waiting for the day I would come and save you! Let me tell you something, if that bastard Kai hadn't sent me down here, I never would have come!"

Piccolo glared at the sky. "You hear me?! I told you this was a goddamned waste of my time! _Spiritual awakening, my ass!_ "

 _Up on King Kai's Planet..._

King Kai recoiled in shock and fell from his chair. Tien and the others didn't seem to notice as the Kai laid there, in shock from Piccolo's forceful tone.

 _Back down in Limbo..._

Piccolo sighed and cracked his neck. "But..."

The younger Namekian stretch and glared down at King Piccolo. "I do have to say that I am aware of the danger on Namek. I didn't need you old fools to tell me that."

Piccolo cut a glare at his Father. "A monster much bigger than you and your big fish in a small pond shtick. And, if I don't do something about making myself stronger, people that are valuable to me will be placed in harm's way..."

King Piccolo scoffed. "People who are valuable to you. You're a pathetic excuse for a demon! You're a failure!"

Piccolo snorted. "And you're a relic that was killed by a child."

The young Namekian shrugged. "But I guess that's just who you are. Useless old fools that refuse to evolve with the times. Wicked conquest is overrated. Ruling through strength is the way to go. I don't need an army of mutated freaks to hold Earth in my ironclad grip."

King Piccolo sneered. "Disobedient brat! I revoke your right to use my name! You are no longer Piccolo!"

Piccolo smirked. "And who's going to stop me? No other Piccolo's exist, so I think me using the name is just fine..."

King Piccolo poked his thumb into his chest and snarled. "Another Piccolo does exist! I exist! Me! _King_ Piccolo! _And I will exist so long as me evil exists!_ "

Piccolo snorted. "That all depends on how well I can repress it..."

King Piccolo flinched. " _What?!_ "

In a snap, Piccolo shot his fist forward and rammed it into King Piccolo's chest. The Demon King coughed up blood and then his body began to glow. " _Wh-what are you...?_ "

Piccolo chuckled as his father began to fade and flow into his body. "Your personality. Your memories. Your will. Well...all of that can fade into obscurity. I just need the power boost I would get from you. Be useful to me for once, you doddering old fool!"

King Piccolo gasped in total pain. And then, a massive flash occurred, sending a ripple throughout all of limbo. Kami shielded his eyes from the intense light. And then, when the light faded, the Guardian stared at the result of this impromptu fusion. And what he saw and felt rattled him to his core.

Piccolo stood there, the same as always. His appearance had not shifted in the slightest. But, his power was a much different story. His already impressive power from before had sky-rocketed to a level that Kami had never sensed before. And the Guardian could not form the words to speak.

Likewise, King Kai was also stunned. Piccolo's power was still well below King Cold's full power...but this state could easily handle the likes of Frieza in the tyrant's current state. Maybe even beyond.

Kami struggled to stand and finally managed a word. "Piccolo..."

Piccolo held up a hand. "Stop. Shut your mouth."

Piccolo glared at his older counterpart. "You will stay out of my business. Got it? I have the power that I need and I refuse any more of your 'help'. Unless the Universe itself is at stake, I expect to never speak to you again. Got it?"

Kami opened his mouth to speak. But then, after some thought, he nodded in silence. Piccolo turned his attention from Kami and back to the sky. "Return me to your planet at once, Kai! I still have more training to do! If I am to end this Frieza creature, I need to train more!"

Shakily, King Kai mentally answered Piccolo. "O-of course. Let me contact King Yemma..."

Kami stood to the side as Piccolo yelled at King Kai and looked his younger counterpart up and down. In spite of reuniting with King Piccolo, Piccolo showed none of the wicked malice that his Father exuded. The evil of King Piccolo, for all intents, was totally repressed.

As Kami and Piccolo both began to teleport back to their respective afterlives, Kami made note of this in his head. Piccolo, the reincarnation of Kami's evil side, had managed to bury the intense evil of his progenitor. This young man, whatever he was, was superior to either of his predecessors.

Piccolo was something new and different from either of the two of them. And yet, as he and Kami finally teleported, Kami couldn't help but feel as if he were something so much older.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	24. Chapter 24: Bardock Force vs Ginyu Force

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 24: Rematch – Bardock Force vs. Ginyu Force**

 _Rocketing over the Namekian landscape..._

Bardock, Vegeta, Nail, Gohan, and Krillin were all flying as fast as they could over the hills and valleys of Planet Namek. Stealth was a concept that was unneeded in this case. They had to act fast and get their lost Dragon Balls! The mood among the warriors was grave, for none moreso that Nail.

The Namekian warrior was distracted as he flew, his gaze constantly peeking over his shoulder in the direction of Grand Elder Guru's home. Gohan called to him. "N-nail. Do you want to-"

Nail interrupted. "Leaving the four of you would be a catastrophic error on my part. Grand Elder Guru gave me his orders and I would be a disrespectful son to disobey. We must simply hurry and retrieve the Dragon Balls before it is too late..."

Nail gritted his teeth harshly. In response, Gohan promptly quieted down. From the front of the pack, Bardock agreed with Nail's sentiment. "We have a main objective, kid. We have to stick to it. So, focus up! Cuz we're about to go to war all over again!"

Gohan swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded.

The five of them continued to fly, eventually catching sight of Frieza's ship over the horizon.

 _In front of Frieza's ship..._

The five warriors landed in front of Frieza's ship. Krillin and Gohan both glanced up at Bardock. The older Saiyan shot each of them a confident glare and nodded. They nodded back and then stared back at Frieza's ship. Bardock and Nail shared a quick, knowing glance. And then, Bardock glanced over at Vegeta who didn't acknowledge him at all. Bardock took a deep breath and sighed, and then the five warriors began their march to the front door of the ship.

Standing outside, around the perimeter, the last few members of the Frieza Force were all standing guard. Raspberry and Blueberry, two low-ranking grunts, were sharing a ration of juice when they noticed the approaching group of potential Dragon Ball thieves. Raspberry immediately called out. "Apricot! Strawberry! Guys! They're here!"

A score of random Frieza grunts all gathered together to meet the approaching five warriors. Apricot, the most senior amongst them, called to the five approaching foes. "You there! Stop!"

Apricot pointed his blaster at Bardock's chest. The older Saiyan didn't flinched or break stride. Vegeta, meanwhile, held up his right hand and made a finger gun. "Bang!"

A beam of energy shot from Vegeta's finger and flew into Apricot's throat, killing him instantly. Vegeta did it again. "Bang!"

Strawberry took a bolt of energy to the chest and fell down. Vegeta continued, unfazed by the lives he was taking. "Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

5 more soldiers fell dead. Blueberry's jaw dropped and he and the lot behind him all screamed and began to run back to the ship. Raspberry was left standing there with a blue shade over his face. Vegeta scowled and pointed his finger at Raspberry. The soldier shrieked in fear and immediately took to the air, screaming at the top of his lungs and flying away.

Vegeta didn't care, not even bothering to shoot at the coward. The rest of the fleeing troops were busy clogging the entrance to the ship. Bardock snorted in annoyance and summoned a Riot Javelin into his hand, only to be surprised by a sudden shout. "RECOOME BOOM!"

An explosion rocked from the front of the ship and the various weaker grunts all splatted across the field, burnt and dead. Through the billowing smoke, four figures emerged: the remaining Ginyu Force. Captain Ginyu had a scowl on his face as the four elite warriors descended the ramp with Zarbon tailing behind them. "I can't believe that these losers were allowed onto Lord Frieza's personal vessel! Forget the publicity tour! The first thing we do after we're done on this hick planet is train our Lord up a proper unit to accompany him!"

The rest of the Ginyu's nodded in agreement with their Captain. And then, Ginyu glared at his foes standing before him. "Well well well, the _Bardock Force!_ Back again so soon? Do you idiots have a death wish or just a crappy memory? Cuz it seems like you've forgotten what happened when we did this song and dance not long ago!"

No member of the "Bardock Force" said a word in response. Instead, they all squared up to their enemies as the Ginyu Force stood within spitting distance of them. Ginyu was slightly taken aback. But then, he began to chuckle. "Such unbroken, manly spirit..."

A wide smile broke across the Captain's face. "The five of you are so cool! Even if you're fools...you're _MANLY FOOLS_! And therefore..."

Ginyu nodded at Burter, then Jeice, then Recoome. They nodded back. Ginyu shouted at his enemies. " _WE WILL GIVE YOU ONE HELL OF A FINAL FIGHT!_ "

Meanwhile, while the Ginyu's all seemed perky and chipper and cheering at the thought of a fight, Zarbon was terse. The former attendant of Lord Frieza refused to look anyone in the eye, his face caked with dread and annoyance.

Ginyu roared at the top of his lungs. "Men! Special Fighting Pose! Go!"

Recoome posed with power. "Recoome!"

Burter posed with speed. "Burter!"

Jeice posed with technique. "Jeice!"

After those three had posed, they all glared over at Zarbon. Zarbon cringed. "I don't want to-"

A harsh slap knocked Zarbon to the ground. He shakily pushed himself up and stared with fear in his eyes at Captain Ginyu. The Captain glared at Zarbon expectantly. Zarbon quickly got the point. He posed with reluctance. "Z-Zarbon..."

And then, Ginyu posed with authority. "Captain Ginyu!"

The force all cried out. " **TO!** **GE!** **THER!** _We..._ **ARE!** _ **THE GINYU FORCE!**_ **"**

The Bardock Force barely reacted to the Ginyu Force's poses, keeping their fighting stances ready for any attacks that came at them. Except for Vegeta. Vegeta burst out laughing as loud as he could. "Oh...oh this is rich! I can't believe that Frieza did that to Zarbon! But, it's perfect! Being an inferior substitute to Guldo, that's the proper aesthetic for you, Zarbon!"

Vegeta was doubled over, he was laughing so hard. Bardock kept a straight face for the most part, but then he shared a snorting laugh with the Saiyan Prince. Zarbon was shaking with rage. He stood up straight and immediately went into his Monster Form. " _ **I will butcher every last one of you!**_ "

Ginyu smirked as he and the rest of the Force stood up. "Well, he's finally learning the Ginyu Force way, boys~!"

And then, with a mighty battle cry, the Ginyu Force charged at their foes again. Bardock was the first to rush back, smashing his forearm against the Captain's. Ginyu was given a jolt as Bardock at the force behind Bardock's blow, but decided to ignore it. He threw a punch at the older Saiyan, but Bardock was prepared. He caught Ginyu's fist and used that as leverage to swing the Captain around before tossing him into a nearby mountain.

The rubble briefly buried Ginyu, but the Captain had no trouble pulling himself out of the rocks. He tried to wryly chuckle, but Bardock was instantly on him with a heavy kick to the face. Ginyu was sent spiraling and slammed, back first, into the leg of Frieza's ship.

Ginyu was no longer amused, he was angry. He sneered as Bardock charged at him again. "You're getting too cocky, you monkey bastard!"

Back with the others, Gohan and Recoome clashed once more. Recoome chuckled like a moron as he and Gohan exchanged blows with one another. "Hey kid! Didn't get enough last time?"

Gohan didn't answer. Recoome went for the same neck breaking kick from before, but Gohan blocked it with his forearm. Recoome raised an eyebrow and then chuckled. "Aww! I was just trying to end it quick. I don't wanna waste my time fighting a weakling like you~"

Gohan shot a steely glare at Recoome and then, rearing his fist back, he smashed it into Recoome's chest and busted a giant hole into his armor. Recoome slid back and then looked down at his broken armor and the new bruise on his chest. He chuckled. "You know what? I take that back! You might be a fun fight after all!"

Gohan gritted his teeth. Still not speaking, the boy summoned two ki blasts into his hands and began to spam fire at the hulking brute in front of him. Recoome smirked and began to spam fire back as well. The two of them ran parallel to each other, trading fire and running off from the ship and into the wide, Namekian fields.

 _Up in the air above Frieza's Ship..._

Vegeta and Nail stood back to back, trading blows with Jeice and Burter. While the two Ginyu's were a functional team who knew each other really well and had years of experience tagging with one another, Vegeta and Nail both had matching strength to repel their blows.

The only problem was that the Namekian and the Saiyan still very much disdained one another. They were managing to hold their own, but even standing back-to-back was filling them was a level of irritation that distracted them from being effective. The only way they would win this fight would be to split Jeice and Burter apart.

Trying to act in that interest, Nail guarded as Burter rained down a rapid Mach Punch flurry on him. On the fifth punch, Nail grabbed Burter by the wrist and pulled the blue, snake man close. "I seem to remember you shouting towards me that I was to pay a toll for dispatching your ally. Perhaps you would like to settle this one-on-one?"

Burter snarled through gritted teeth. "Namekian scum..."

Jeice called out to his partner. "Burter! Don't let him call you ou _AAAHHHH!_ "

Jeice cried in pain and coughed as Vegeta smashed him in the ribs with a heavy chop. The armor on Jeice's torso cracked and spider-webbed and, as he cringed in pain, Vegeta kicked him away. "Try not to die, you worthless green insect!"

Jeice stopped himself mid-flight and glared at Vegeta, barely managing to block a strike from the Prince. Jeice was apoplectic. "Stupid Saiyan! I'll send you straight to Hell!"

Vegeta smiled. "Oh Jeice, you're in for a shock..."

Burter and Nail meanwhile shared an intense brawl. Nail leapt back and glared at his foe. "This one is much tougher than the green one that I was fighting before."

Burter hissed at Nail. "You're going to regret sending your partner off, fool. Prepare to face the Blue Hurricane!"

Burter charged at Nail at max speed, smashing his shoulder into his opponent and sending Nail shooting through the sky.

 _Back on the ground..._

Krillin was on the defensive as Zarbon heaved heavy blow after heavy blow at him. The poor, human monk was easily the weakest member of the group, so he was reduced to dodging and yelping as he just barely avoided being pulped by his larger, more physically imposing foe. Zarbon, meanwhile, was rabid with utter rage. He screamed at Krillin as he tried to kill him. "This is your fault!"

A massive fist barely missed Krillin's head and smashed into the ground, crumbling the Namekian landscape beneath it. He shouted again. "If you and that brat hadn't stepped in! If you hadn't come in with your worthless altruism and saved that stupid, Namekian brat then none of this would be happening!"

Zarbon stomped, missing Krillin by a hair and cracking the ground beneath his foot. "You should have stayed out of Frieza's business! If you had, then I wouldn't be in this miserable situation I'm stuck in!"

Krillin cried out, leaping away from the rampaging monster and yelling at him. "Quit shifting blame onto me! None of this situation would be happening if you bastards weren't here murdering willy-nilly in the first place!"

Zarbon wasn't having it. He roared loud enough to make the nearby water ripple and charged at Krillin. He finally landed a blow, a massive kick on Krillin's chest, and sent the human flying. Krillin smashed against the ground and tumbled, eventually stopping and coughing up a jet of blood.

Zarbon lunged at Krillin again, but the human rose into the air. He hovered above Zarbon and listened as Zarbon began to scream and shout once more. "We were loyal! All of us! Me and my family, my _five brother_ and _eight sisters_ and my father, were all so loyal to King Cold! We were royalty on our homeworld! We did as he asked and we did it well!"

Zarbon's teeth clenched and grinded against one another. "And then that shrimpy, pink runt was put in charge and all of my family were taken away! As a show of ' _power and domination_ '..."

Tears built in the monstrous brute's eyes and he began to tremble. "I...I... _I HATE FRIEZA! I HATE THE GINYU FORCE! I HATE BARDOCK AND VEGETA AND ALL OF THE REST OF YOU! I HATE THE NAMEKIANS! I HATE MY LIFE! I HATE MY LIFE! I HATE MY LIFE!_ _ **I! HATE! EVERYTHING!**_ "

Krillin flinched back. The human didn't exactly appreciate Zarbon's methods. He still didn't like him for murdering all of the peaceful Namekians. But...he felt just the slightest bit of pity for Zarbon. As the monster foamed at the mouth and rampaged on the ground, he just sounded... _broken_. Krillin called down to Zarbon. "H-hey man...I'm sorry. No one deserves that. No one..."

Krillin swallowed a lump in his throat. "L-listen. We're teamed with Vegeta. You probably know how unbearable Vegeta is, right? So... uh...if we're willing to work with him, then maybe we could work out something with you, ya know? What do ya say?"

Zarbon glared up at Krillin. And then...he charged at the human and tried to clap his head. The shockwave from this clap echoed and then sent a shockwave across the Namekian landscape. "Did you really think I would consider that?! I would rather die than lower myself to teaming up with scum like you!"

Zarbon pulled his fist back and punched Krillin hard in the face, sending him back to the ground. "Now prepare to die, maggot!"

 _Over with Bardock and Ginyu..._

As Bardock and Ginyu continued to clash, Ginyu took note of Zarbon's entire, treasonous monologue. He and Bardock traded massive punches to the face and sent each other flying back. Ginyu skidded across the ground and wiped blood from the side of his mouth. "Welp...looks like I have to put a problem down before it starts..."

Ginyu stretched his shoulder out. "A brawl and an execution all in the same day...what a trip this has been..."

Ginyu smirked. "But at least we're making Lord Frieza happy. So that makes me happy~"

Bardock sneered at Ginyu. "Hey Ginyu. Quick question, not to pry. What exactly does Frieza's ass taste like? I'm going with cheap wine, seafood shits, and old leather from that booster seat he rides around in."

Ginyu spat on the ground by Bardock's feet and snarled. "A miserable punk like you wouldn't get it. You don't understand the comradery and friendship that Lord Frieza and I share! We respect each other for our strength and that is the basis of our manly friendship! What we have is more special than anything you and your simian ilk could share!"

Bardock snorted. "Don't wanna know what if feels like. I'd never bow my head to a hateful, spite-filled lizard like him. Nothing more than a rich, daddy's-boy with no reins and-"

Ginyu rocketed forward and slammed his fist into Bardock's nose. Bardock stumbled back and glared at Ginyu, claret pouring from his nostrils. Ginyu's voice was deadly serious. "You will _**not**_ disrespect his image like that in my presence."

Ginyu struck a powerful pose at Bardock. "Now hit me with your best shot! Bust out that Kaioken nonsense! I want to crush you at your best, you worthless dissident!"

Bardock snarled and wiped the blood from under his nose. He would personally love to indulge the Captain, but he has to be cautious. The Kaioken would allow him to dispatch Ginyu quickly, but it would also wreck his body. He wasn't used to using that shitty move yet. And if he were to wreck his body when Frieza could come back at any second...that would make Bardock as stupid as Ginyu thought he was.

So, Bardock chose the safer option. He charged at Ginyu and they locked up for a brawl. He just had to hold out and avoid heavy damage until someone could join him help to equalize this mess.

 _Back over with Krillin and Zarbon..._

Krillin was still struggling to avoid being killed off by the rampaging Zarbon. Krillin mentally kicked himself as he dodged another deadly blow. "Dammit! I can't just keep running away like this! All of the others are fighting! I can feel it..."

In Krillin's head, he could sense everyone else fighting. Bardock was brawling with Ginyu. Vegeta and Nail were putting out more power than Krillin ever thought he'd be capable of. And even little Gohan was giving that Recoome bastard Hell as he warred with him. Krillin couldn't allow himself to slack. He had to at least take this Zarbon guy out or he would be totally useless.

Krillin turned and stopped retreating. He stood and waited for Zarbon to catch up, steeling his nerve. And then, as a heavy strike came flying towards him, Krillin leapt over the teal menace. He drew his hands to the side and shouted. " _KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

The surprise energy beam smashed into Zarbon's back. Krillin kept his feet off the ground and allowed the force of his attack to send him flying back, creating distance between himself and Zarbon. And then, the monk prepared his ultimate attack. "Destructo-Disc!"

Zarbon turned and Krillin tossed the disc at his enemy. The monster was barely able to dodge in time. The disc dragged across his cheek, opening a massive slit under his missing eye and allowing a waterfall of blue blood to come rushing out. Zarbon snarled in frustration and charged at Krillin like a freight train.

Krillin smirked and, instead of retreating, he leapt up at the last second and kicked his unruly enemy right in the face. Zarbon was briefly staggered, but then he landed a solid punch on Krillin, knocking the short monk across the battlefield. What Zarbon didn't realize was that Krillin was hoping for this. Although the blow hurt, Krillin was now flying out of the direct path. So, with a flick of his wrist, Krillin pulled the Destructo-Disc in the opposite direction he was flying.

Zarbon didn't see it coming and was left screaming in pain as the disc went through his torso like butter. A giant gash was carved into Zarbon's side and left a massive cut marked into his ribs. Zarbon doubled over, holding his side, and roared at Krillin. "Little bastard!"

And then, Zarbon threw up his left hand and gripped the wrist with his right. " _POSSIBILITY CANNON!_ "

Krillin's eyes widened and, reacting quickly, he crossed his arms in front of his face to block the oncoming attack. The brunt of the blast hit him head on and sent a massive explosion across the miles of expanse behind him.

Once the smoke cleared, there was nothing but scorched land and hot sand. And, sticking out of the hot sand was just the smallest amount of orange. The tatters of Krillin's gi fluttered in the Namekian wind. Zarbon fell from the sky and his fist gripped around the gi. He yanked it, expecting to pull Krillin from the sand like a carrot. "Okay human, prepare to d-"

Zarbon's eyes widened as he pulled the empty, orange gi from the ground. The sand poured from the bottom of the shirt and Zarbon shouted. "What the Hell?!"

And then, before Zarbon could react, a shirtless Krillin popped out from the sand to his left and summoned two Destructo-Discs, one on each hand. Krillin shouted. "Double Destructo-Disc!"

He tossed the two sharpened energy circles at Zarbon and forced the stronger alien into a retreat. Krillin directed the discs with his hands and had Zarbon on the defensive. The monster was helpless to do anything but dodge and even that was barely effective. Occasionally, Zarbon was still nicked or gashed by the rapidly encroaching blades.

Krillin was focused, angry at himself that he was unable to manage a solid hit on the beast. But, as this display went on, Krillin had an idea. He had to bait Zarbon to do some real damage. So, he had to keep this little dance going on a bit longer and wait for the right moment.

Zarbon was also strategizing. Although he was dodging the deadly discs as they came at him, he also kept his focusing on a pathway to Krillin. He couldn't risk being hit by a Destructo-Disc, so he had to wait for just the right moment. And, eventually, that moment came. A clear pathway opened to Krillin and Zarbon devilishly smirked.

Fast as lightning, the brute charged at Krillin, the fingers on his right hand stretched out. He would impale this little fool's and kill him instantly. Zarbon loomed over Krillin, but Krillin smirked at him. He dispelled the Destructo-Disc controlled by his left hand and then held his palm up to block Zarbon's strike. He took a deep breath, and then he shouted the name of his newly developed technique. " _DESTRUCTO-SHIELD!_ "

The disc bloomed from Krillin's palm and Zarbon's hand smashed right into it. The former attendant could only scream in agony as his entire left hand was instantly minced and shredded into pieces, exploding into a gusher of blue gore exploding everywhere!

Zarbon stumbled back in a painful haze and Krillin leapt at this opportunity to take an advantage. He boomerang tossed his shield out past Zarbon and summoned the other one back towards the two of them. Zarbon snarled and painfully gasped, but he wasn't dead yet. He dodged the disc coming in on his bum left side and then blasted the one on the right into pieces.

Zarbon's eyes were bloodshot as he charged at Krillin. The monk had no defense as Zarbon lifted his leg high into the air and axe kicked him hard into the ground. Krillin bounced and tumbled onto his back, and then Zarbon went for the kill. But Krillin reacted quickly by squeezing his left fist tight. Zarbon raised his fist, but gasped in pain as he suddenly felt five, sharp stabs into his back. Krillin's eyes were determined as he leapt up and swept Zarbon's feet, knocking him to the ground.

The human backflipped away and smirked at he took the advantage once more. Zarbon shakily stood and shouted. "What the Hell did you just do?!"

Krillin smiled and wiped a trickled of blood from his busted lip. "I'll tell you what I did, I won this fight!"

Krillin summoned two more Destructo-Discs and tossed them both out. The flew towards Zarbon, but then Krillin pulled out another trick. The monk snapped his fingers on each hand and the Destructo-Discs split apart from two giant discs into ten smaller discs. Krillin chuckled and wiggled his fingers and then he shouted. " _Fierce Destructo-Disc Barrage!_ "

Krillin thrusted his hands right at Zarbon and all ten deadly discs went sailing at the monster. He started dodging away again, but it was much harder this time. The discs were hitting him more and more, gashing his entire body and wracking him with the painful of dozens of cuts at once. Zarbon snarled at Krillin as he retreated. "You cowardly little shit! _Why can't you fight fair?!_ "

Krillin sneered. "Fair?! I'm a lot weaker than you in terms of power level! And I offered a chance for us to make peace! You tried to kill me! So, I'm just leveling the playing field!"

Zarbon snarled as he dodged more and more. He was losing ground to this worm and his was losing a lot of blood. He had to think of how to kill this human and quickly. Zarbon was so distracted by trying to live through this assault that he lost track of other things that were important to him.

It annoyed him that his cape was sliced off. It bothered him that his custom armor was gashed and scarred, but Zarbon managed to keep his cool. But then, the unthinkable happened. Zarbon dropped to avoid a disc, and then his eyes widened. He watched his braid, his beloved hair, hovered above him. And then, to Zarbon's terror, he watched as the small Destructo-Disc sliced it off.

Zarbon slowly stood and his eyes became overcast. His hair, the cornerstone of his look, the ONLY thing he had left...and it was just lying there on the ground now. The messy remains of his 'do flopped in front of Zarbon's face and he began to tremble again.

Krillin was ready to end this. He thrust his hands at Zarbon and then clenched his fists, sending all of the discs flying at Zarbon all at once. Zarbon raised his gaze to Krillin and Krillin flinched in sheer terror. Zarbon's pupil was the size of a pinprick. The look in his eye conveyed that he was totally gone, all reason faded. In a flash, he charged at Krillin with an animalistic screech.

He didn't notice or care about the discs. They plunged into his body and drew fountains of blood from the wounds that they made, but Zarbon charged on. Foam and spittle poured from his mouth as his heavy footsteps smashed into the land beneath him. A disc hit him in the face and his eyepatch went flying off, but Zarbon continued his charge.

Soon, to Krillin's horror, the brute reached him and wrapped his massive, remaining hand around the monk's throat. Krillin choked and gagged and kicked as Zarbon lifted him up. "That attack was fierce?!"

Zarbon punched Krillin across his face. " _THAT_ attack was _FIERCE?!_ "

Zarbon punched him attacked. "Foolish runt!"

Krillin was fading fast. Zarbon was killing him. So, desperate, he pulled out a Turtle School classic. Krillin gripped his fist tight and punched Zarbon in the nose. "Rock..."

Zarbon didn't flinch. Krillin tried again, open-palm slapping him in the mouth. "P-paper..."

Nothing. Again. Zarbon smiled wide and tightened his grip. Krillin couldn't breathe at all anymore. His face was turning blue and his eyes were rolling back. So, Krillin tried the final strike in the trio. "S...s...sci...ssors..."

Krillin pulled his hand back, extended his index and middle fingers...and then rammed them right into Zarbon's eyes. This one caused the brute to scream in terrible pain. Zarbon dropped Krillin to the ground and clamped his remaining hands over his eyes. He was dealing with two different types of pain. His remaining eye was watering and his empty socket was throbbing.

Krillin hit the ground with a thud and gasped for air. But he barely had time to breath before having to dodge a massive, life-ending kick. Zarbon was barely capable of words anymore. "Human...die... _DIE HUMAN!_ "

Krillin was on the retreat again as this beast lumbering after him. He had to try his final gambit. The monk turned to Zarbon and summoned a massive blast in each hand. And then, he fired his most powerfully imposing move, the Scatter Kamehameha. "Take this!"

The massive energy beam fired at Zarbon and hit him full force. The blast engulfed Zarbon's body, singing the end of his remaining hair before arcing into the sky. And then, Krillin brought the blast down on Zarbon, surrounding the beast in a pillar of raw energy that gathered and exploded all around him.

Krillin fell to the ground, exhausted, as smoke billowed from where Zarbon had stood. The monk hoped that the battle was over. But then, as quick as he could manage, Zarbon came charging from the smoke. Krillin panicked and shakily leapt back. "G-goddammit! Why doesn't that move ever work?!"

With nothing else to do, Krillin summoned a Destructo-Disc. He tried to toss it at Zarbon, but he was cut of mid-toss. The disc went flying straight up into the air as Zarbon booted Krillin in the face and then stomped the short, bald human into the ground. Zarbon slammed his open palm down onto Krillin's face and smirked. "That pink fellow that was chasing you...Dodoria...say hi to him _in Hell_ for me..."

From under the hand, Krillin shouted a muffled response. "Tell him yourself!"

Zarbon snarled. "Possibility-"

Krillin jerked his arm up and brought it towards him. In shock, Zarbon turned just in time to see the Destructo-Disc right on top of him. He managed one, final fearful yelp.

Krillin squeezed his eyes shut as a splatter of blue came spurting out across his face. A small thump immediately followed. And then, Zarbon's headless corpse smashed into the ground with a heavy thud. Krillin struggled to stand and wiped his face. He stared down at Zarbon's body and the look of terror in his remaining eye.

Carefully, Krillin reached down and shut Zarbon's eyelid, and then he clapped his hands together for a small prayer. Krillin finished the prayer and he turned to limp his way back to the others. He had to help. The monk walked until Bardock was back in view, and then his body gave out.

Krillin leaned against a nearby rock and then he called out to his friend. "Bardock! I... I'm sorry! I beat that Zarbon guy...but I can't fight anymore...I'm...sorry!"

Krillin's eyelids slowly fell and then he passed out.

 _Over with Bardock and Ginyu..._

Bardock smiled as he stared back at Krillin. He couldn't feel Zarbon's lifeforce, so that confirmed that Krillin had done it. He defeated Zarbon. The older Saiyan turned to face Ginyu, his smirk having not faded. He blocked a strike from the Captain and chuckled.

Ginyu stared past Bardock at the unconscious form of Krillin and sighed. " _Worthless friggin' pretty boy..._ "

Ginyu glared at Bardock and then met his smirk with a smirk. "I gotta say, though. That short friend of yours looks like he put up a helluva fight! I can appreciate that!"

Ginyu and Bardock separated and Bardock's smirk faded. Ginyu continued. "That runt has gusto!"

Bardock nodded in agreement. "Yeah, he does."

The older Saiyan charged at Ginyu and kicked the Captain in the stomach. "If you try any funny shut and attack him while he's out, _I'll break you in half!_ "

Ginyu sneered and grabbed Bardock by the leg, slamming the Saiyan hard into the ground. "One of the lyrics in the theme song _I_ penned is _literally_ about how warriors are meant to be fair! I don't attack downed foes while another one is standing and able to fight! _Didn't you listen to the song when we were singing it?!_ "

Bardock responded by booting Ginyu in the face and sending him tumbling away. Bardock leapt off of the ground and back to his feet and Ginyu did the same. And then, Ginyu struck a serious battle pose and he and Bardock rocketed at one another with a mighty shout and their fists drawn.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	25. Chapter 25: Ideals

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 25: Ideals**

 _Beneath the waves of the Namekian Sea..._

Jeice gargled in pain as another heavy punch smashed into his stomach. Vegeta was smiling like the Devil himself as he terrorized the Number 2 Man, beating the Hell out of Jeice all across the Namekian seabottom. A swift left hook sent Jeice sailing across the ocean floor, kicking up dust as he went. He eventually came to a halt when he smashed into something hard.

Jeice regained his bearings and looked up to see a giant, underwater crab. The beast lunged at the solider with its claws, but Jeice was quick to react. He launched a massive blast at the crab's eyes, piercing through the softer, more sensitive flesh and blowing the crab to pieces from within. The red shorty chuckled, but then got hammered by another kick to the back from Vegeta.

Jeice front-flipped through the water and mentally shouted to himself. " _What the bleeding hell is going on?!_ Where did this monkey get all of this strength from?!"

Jeice stopped himself from tumbling and quickly shifted the frequency of his ki into radiation. He splayed he hands out towards Vegeta and fired a beam of energy from each fingertip. The energy beams snaked through the water rapidly, encircling Vegeta and going towards him in a pincer formation. The Prince blocked, but the guard was ineffectual. The beams pierced into Vegeta, leaving no apparent wounds but shooting right through him and doing internal damage to the Prince's muscles. Vegeta cringed in pain and Jeice used this time to escape back to the surface.

The second-in-command coughed and choked as he was finally able to breathe again. He glared down at the water as he massaged his broken ribs. "Damned ape..."

Jeice raised his hands above his head and summoned a massive ball of radiating heat energy. "I'll boil you alive, you cocky bastard! _SCORCHING MAGMA WAVE!_ "

Jeice flung his arms down towards the water and the heat wave hit. In an instant, the sea beneath him began to sputter and boil, as if on top of a stove. Jeice chuckled as he watched all manner of Namekian sea life rise to the surface, dead as could be. And then he changed the frequency of his energy from radiation to explosive. Jeice raised his hand above his head and summoned a massive, shimmering energy sphere. "This'll finish things! _EXPLOSIVE CRUSHER NOVA!_ "

Jeice went to fling the ball down. But, as he did, an energy blast came from behind him and pierced his attack. The ball blew up right in Jeice's face and the red man was sent tumbling. But he was quickly brought to a halt by something catching onto his hair.

Jeice glared up, through the cracked lens of his Scouter, and saw Vegeta was gripping his hair tight. Jeice sneered at the smiling Prince. "How did you get so strong?! What kind of bullshit, bad dream is this?!"

Vegeta chuckled. "Should have made sure we were dead..."

Jeice snapped at Vegeta. "What?!"

Vegeta said it again. "You should have made sure that we were dead. You idiots let us live to chase the Dragon Balls. Myself, that Bardock bastard, even the brat...you let us live and you're going to pay for it with your lives! And then, so will Frieza..."

Jeice sneered. "You're talking nonsense! Lord Frieza will regret it?! Recoome must've given ya brain damage!"

Vegeta sighed. "Stupid, pathetic Jeice. Of course, a cocky punk like you wouldn't know what a Zenkai boost is. You're so busy looking down upon the _Mightiest Race in the Universe_ that you can't be bothered to know how they grow..."

Jeice was unnerved, but still defiant. "You have to be daft if you think Saiyans are-"

He was quickly cut off by a brutal headbutt to the face, shattering his Scouter into pieces and causing blood to erupt from his nose. Jeice gasped in pain and agony, and then Vegeta did it again. And again, this time taking a tooth with it. And again. And yet again. Blood rained from the sky where the two of them hovered as Vegeta began to beat Jeice absolutely senseless.

 _A short way away, on a barren stretch of Namekian soil..._

Nail and Burter clashed with one another yet again, trading blows and dealing a bit of damage before pushing each other away. The two of them glared at one another, and then they charged again. They didn't realize it, being too focused on one another, but they were easily the most even matchup currently raging on the Namekian battlefield.

Nail was outwardly calm as he faced down his opponent, meeting his shows of force with shows of force and counter-attacking for every attack Burter dished out, but he was panicking on the inside. His worry over the status of Grand Elder Guru was eating him alive and his constant need to keep at least a bit of attention on the Grand Elder's location was distracting him from giving his full attention to the matter directly in front of him.

Nail turned his attention away fully to scan for the location of Frieza, and his distraction was very quickly taken advantage of. "Mach Lariat!"

A massive blue arm smashed into Nail's chest and sent him falling backwards, sliding across the ground and eventually skidding to a halt. Nail stood and brushed himself off. And then he took a fighting stance. However, to his shock, he saw a look of pure rage on Burter's face, an odd thing to see on a member of this goofy troupe's face. Burter snarled at Nail. "Pay attention to the fight insect! You killed off my precious ally, Guldo! I cannot forgive that! And I, at least, expect you to acknowledge the beating you're due as a result!"

This struck a chord within Nail. This interloper had the nerve...THE ABSOLUTE GALL...to act as if Nail had taken something important away from him?! Nail gritted his teeth so hard they felt like they were going to break. He tried to hold it together, but then he noticed that he was free of the judgment from his fellow warriors. And so, Nail snapped. " _What a nerve you have! Do you invaders not realize that you have put my race on the brink?! My precious brothers all lie in fields running with purple blood because of you and your disgusting, heartless Frieza Force! Your loss of one ally is NOTHING compared to the rape and pillage you have inflicted onto my people!_ "

Nail snarled and charged at Burter, full speed. "You think that you have any right to say that you will not forgive me?!"

Burter caught Nail's strike, but was forced into a backwards slide as he did. Nail got nose-to-nose with Burter and hatefully screamed in his face. "You have forced me into a position of _never_ being able to forgive you! You've made me betray the ideals that Grand Elder Guru instilled into all of us! My heart is full of vitriol and hatred... _AND IT'S ALL BECAUSE OF YOU PEOPLE!_ "

Burter flinched and Nail responded with a stiff strike to the face. The snake man recovered and gave back three rapid strikes to the chest. But Nail came back with a massive kick to the side. Burter fell to the ground with a choking cough and Nail hit him again with a clubbing strike to the back of the neck. The Namekian warrior went for a chop, but Burter leapt out of the way. Nail's hand smashed into the ground and split is apart and Burter returned for a flurry of well-placed punches.

Nail went rolling away and stood up. And then he charged at Burter again. The two of them traded blows back and forth, dealing what amounted to even damaging to one another. Burter hit slightly faster, but Nail hit slightly harder. Their back and forth lasted for only a short while before the separated again.

Nail wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and Burter did the same. They stared at one another, Nail's face being totally stricken with rage. Burter, however, was more reserved than before. He breathed in and out and kept his gaze trained on Nail. Nail was shaking with rage. And then, whipping his arms forward, Nail fired a massive ki blast directly at Burter. Burter, in response, grunted and threw his arms in front of his face to guard.

The blast hit and exploded, scorching the land around Burter and leaving a smoking crater where he was standing.

Nail was breathing heavy, hatred pouring from his mouth with every single breath. And then, he waited. The smoke eventually cleared and Burter was revealed to be still standing there. His armor was severely damaged, everything above his stomach being broken off and missing. His Scouter was gone as well. Burter was weary, but he marched forward from the small crater beneath his feet. Various wounds marked his body as he made his way towards Nail.

Burter stopped short of his opponent, glaring into the Namekian's eyes. And then, he gave a heavy sigh. Nail sneered and snapped at the blue, snake man. "What? Has the weight of your wicked actions finally bared down upon you? Is guilt flowing into that blackened husk you call a soul?!"

Burter simply shook his head no. "Absolutely not. I make it a point to never feel guilt for anybody whom I've been tasked to kill. This is just my job, after all. But..."

Nail sneered. "But?"

Burter finished. "But...I must say that I do feel pity. Lots of pity. Every planet I land on and I have to do this...all I feel as I do it is pity."

This made Nail angry. " _Pity?!_ "

Burter nodded. "Yeah. I don't feel guilt, but I am sorry about what happened to your people. It's a waste of life that they forced Lord Frieza's hand. If only that had been able to see that joining with him and submitting would have been better for Planet Namek in the long run, then everything would have been great..."

Nail's eyes widened. "Are...are you genuinely implying that the genocide of my people...is _our fault?!_ "

Burter nodded. "Yes! You fools are too blind to see how much good joining the Frieza Empire could have done you! You would have had to supply able-bodied warriors to join the army, of course. But you would have been provided with protection and safety and access to space travel and advanced technology! Namek could have flourished under Lord Frieza's care!"

Nail could only stammer in disbelief as Burter went on. This invader really did believe in this skewed system that he was promoting. Happy under the slavery that that monster of a boss was offering. Nail's jaw had dropped. "I... how can..."

Burter continued. "But it's more than just protection! King Cold was a great leader, but Lord Frieza is taking things in a bold new direction! The Empire is better than ever under his mighty rule and all of you hanger-ons need to get with the program and sign up before it's too late!"

Burter shrugged. "Hell. Even Lord Cooler, for his maverick ways, is running a tight ship. In our meetings with the Armored Squadron, they've done nothing but praise the direction he's taking the Eastern and Southern Galaxies..."

Burter smiled. "Soon, under their bold leadership...we'll be able to go and overtake the Core World, just like King Cold always wanted to. And then Lord Frieza and his family will be able to control the whole Universe! And everyone will be better off as a result!"

Nail shook his head, regaining some form of his senses. And then he sneered at Burter. "So, you're saying that giving up freedom is an acceptable price for all of this? In exchange for the 'protection' that this Frieza is offering...you're willing to become a murderous slave?"

Burter cocked his head. "Isn't freedom just another form of slavery? Having to deal with the rigors and costs of daily life? Lord Frieza is offering a boon to people, no more roadblocks to a steady existence, you just have to obey."

Nail shook his head. "That's psychotic."

Burter shrugged. "So says you. You just need to look from an alternative view, Namekian."

Nail didn't respond this time. He had heard enough, so he took another fighting stance. Burter smirked and sighed, doing the same. "But, like I said, I am sorry that your people had to die. So, I have chosen to forgive you for Guldo's death to make up for it. Lord Frieza has already promised to return him to life once he has gained immortality anyway..."

Burter's lips cracked into a vicious, predatory smile. He loomed over Nail. "Now, I have a new goal. I'm going to educate you on the proper way of life under Lord Frieza!"

Nail sneered. "And just how do you plan to do that?"

Burter chuckled and then he charged. "Through pain! Just like Mama used to teach me!"

Nail dodged backwards, avoiding a swipe from his opponent. Burter hissed at Nail and swiped at him with his other arm. Nail managed to catch this one and stomped Burter right in the stomach. The blue snake gagged in pain and Nail delivered another heavy kick, bringing him to his knees.

Burter roared and quickly got to his feet, spinning his arm like a windmill and tossing a massive flurry of Mach Punches. Nail managed to dodge three of the eight punches and returned with two punches of his own. But, to his shock, Burter was oddly unfazed.

The blue giant pushed Nail backwards and then lunged at him again. He prepared another round of Mach Punches and threw them at Nail. This time, however, Burter tossed the attack with much more fluidity and grace. In a flash, he landed his attack and Nail only managed to dodge one of them this time.

The Namekian warrior tumbled back across the ground and got back to his feet as Burter lunged again. He was incredibly annoyed. So, as a new counter to Burter's speed, Nail reached into himself and pulled out a special trick: Namekian Lightning!

Sparks sizzled between Nail's antennae and he fired a bolt at his opponent. The lightning bolt hit Burter in his center mass and the blue man paused. He hissed in pain and Nail charged at him, delivering a spinning strike to the back of Burter's head and slamming him to the ground.

Nail moved quickly. He reached down and grabbed the floored Burter by his left leg. And then, the warrior quickly turned and slung Burter over his shoulder, heaving him through the air and slamming him into the ground, back first.

Burter was winded by the slam and Nail leapt back, slinging a ki blast at the blue man. The Namekian warrior glared down at Burter and prepared another blast, but the snake man quickly leapt to his feet. "So, we're using elements, eh?!"

Burter smirked. "Fine! Then let's use elements!"

The tallest Ginyu chuckled and began to spin his forearms as fast as he could. The sheer speed he was producing caused miniature, blue tornadoes of razor wind to swirl around. He charged at Nail at top speed and smashed his fists into the Namekian's chest. The sheer force of the wind shredded through Nail's chest and sent him flying back.

The warrior gasped in pain and landed, but Burter was right on top of him. He smashed his tornado clad arm down onto Nail's back and slammed him into the ground.

Nail shakily got back up and just barely dodged a third crippling blow. He summoned more electricity between his antennae and channeled it into his fingernails. And then he leapt back towards Burter and stretched out his limbs. " _Namekian Savage Hunt!_ "

Nail charged forward and whipped his elastic arms into Burter, slashing his opponent with his claws and shocking the speedster in the process. Burter's skin was buzzing with electricity and he was temporarily paralyzed by the raging current rushing through his nerves. Nail leapt back and then rushed forward, shoulder charging into Burter and sending him flying back.

Nail roared with total ferocity and stretched his arm out, grabbing Burter by the neck to reel him back in. He reared his fist back and slammed it into the snake man's stomach. Burter was winded once more and Nail took the opportunity, he went in for the final blow!

But Burter chuckled. He managed to fake his foe out. As Nail's arm came crashing down, Burter grabbed it and gripped it tight. And then, with a twist, he tore Nail's arm off at the shoulder and tossed it over the horizon. The blue man landed on the ground with a skid and a smirk, Nail landed on an elevated mound and regarded his missing limb.

Burter turned and snorted at Nail. "So, I'd say this fight just got a little lopsided..."

Nail didn't respond. He took a deep breath and then, with a roar, Nail regrew his missing limb with an explosion of green fluid. Burter flinched back. "W-whoa! You can do that?!"

Nail sneered at his foe. "The Namekian people are resilient, cur. You have hurt us, but we will not fall to you."

Burter chuckled and then bent over. "Then I'm just not trying hard enough! Perhaps...an _ULTIMATE ATTACK IS IN ORDER!_ "

Nail flinched as Burter stood up straight, sticking his left leg into the air, and then began to spin. " _BLUE HURRICANE!_ "

Nail watched on, with disdain and anger, as a massive blue storm erupted right in front of him. The howling tube of wind began to suck in all manner of foliage and debris and get bigger. Nail stared at the storm, rage burning in his eyes, and then he thought back to the distant past.

 _A couple of decades ago..._

Young Nail sat with his brothers at the feet of Grand Elder Guru. The mighty, hefty Elder sat peacefully in his chair, underneath the Namekian sun, and shared the knowledge of the past with his children. He had just reached the end of the scariest part of the story, the part about the Great Cataclysm.

Many of the young Namekians shivered in their seats as Lord Guru described the terrors, the mighty storms, the famines and the droughts that followed. All but one. Nail sat there in his seat with a determined look on his face. Once the Grand Elder finished that part of the story, Nail spoke up. The other young Namekians were shocked, but the Grand Elder smiled as Nail spoke his mind. "That will never happen again! I refuse to allow it!"

Lord Guru chuckled. "Oh really. And what if the storms were to return?"

Nail stood. "Then I will stop it myself! I won't let anything like that ravage Namek again! Not as long as I can stand and stop it!"

The older Namekians in the field all chuckled at how impetuous young Nail was. His fellow child peers all marveled at how cool he was. And Lord Guru simply smiled and nodded at him. "Very good, Nail. I would expect no less from such a bright, young son of mine..."

The Elder reached down and placed his hand onto Nail's head. "Just remember, Nail. Face your problems with love and kindness. That is what allowed the Namekian people to survive through the cataclysm. Love..."

To the surprise of everyone present, the Grand Elder let loose a wheezing cough. He cleared his throat and then smiled once more. "Love and Kindness..."

Nail nodded in affirmation of the Grand Elder's words. And then he and his fellow younglings ran off to help in the fields.

 _Back in the present..._

Nail clenched his hand and let loose a cleansing, calming breath. He had made a promise to the Grand Elder. In his position, as the strongest Namekian, he could not allow any cataclysms to overtake his home like they had before. Nail glared at the approaching Blue Hurricane and lifted his hand, pointing it at the approaching storm. "The Namekian people survived the last cataclysm...they shall survive this one as well..."

Nail pulled his arm back as the storm got closer. He focused all of his power into his palm and began to charge it up. Within the hurricane, Burter was shocked by this. Despite being protected by a wall of raging, gusting wind, the blue snake man felt unsafe. Even without his Scouter, he could see just how much power his Namekian foe was gathering.

Nail's entire left side was bursting with yellow energy. He glared at the center of the storm and at his opponent. And then, from the bottom of his heart, Nail shouted at Burter. "I am the defender of Planet Namek! The strongest Namekian! And you demons will bedevil my people no longer!"

Nail launched his hand forward and fired off a truly massive blast. The sheer size of it was enough to instantly engulf the Blue Hurricane. Burter screeched in terror as Nail shouted at the top of his lungs. " _GRAND MYSTIC FLASHER!_ "

Burter was not willing to let this attack beat him. In spite of its power, he resisted the force of the attack. The Blue Hurricane and the Grand Mystic Flasher struggled against one another, neither the attacks or the people launching them daring to budge. It seemed to be a stalemate until, to Burter's shock and horror, his ultimate attack buckled in the center, allowing the blast from the Namekian to breach in and envelop it.

The energy beam not only swallowed up the Blue Hurricane, but it pushed it away. The blast shredded across the Namekian landscape, eventually reaching the ocean. It continued on for just a small while before finally exploding, sending a massive jetstream of water firing into the air.

Nail shielded his face for the aftermath. A flash of light and a sturm of winds rippled across the surrounding area, shoving trees over and creating massive tidal breaches. It was a display worthy of the original Great Cataclysm itself. The force of the explosion sent clouds of dust hurling across the surface of the planet, blinding Nail as they boomed outward.

It was a massive display, but soon the dust settled and Nail descended back to ground level. Nail looked about, and eventually his eyes locked onto Burter. The two of them stared at one another once more and Nail took in the sight of opponent. Burter was shaky, barely standing, as he glared at Nail. The Namekian warrior stared back and, eventually, Burter coughed and chuckled. "D-dammit..."

Nail was unmoved by the sight of Burter in pain. Burter smirked at him. "Well...I guess a pat on the back is...is in order..."

Burter's eyes fell shut and he sighed. "I can only pray at this point that...Lord Frieza is kind and will allow Captain Ginyu to wish me back as well..."

Nail's gaze narrowed at Burter and he raised his hand to summon another blast. This was an assured victory for their side. He summoned the blast to finish Burter off. But, as he was about to fire, Nail faltered. The words of Lord Guru rang through his head. " _Love and Kindness..._ "

Nail cringed as those words echoed through his head. He glared at Burter, his hand shaking as he mulled over his options. He clenched his teeth and then, with a shout, he fired his blast. The dust kicked up where Burter once stood, and then Nail turned and walked the other way.

Once the dust cleared, however, Burter was left standing there with a confused grimace on his face. "Wh-what are you doing?!"

Nail sighed as he marched away. "The Namekian people...my generation of the Namekian people...we were born from a desire for love and peace. The desire of our Grand Elder Guru. So long as...so long as his heart continues to beat, then I must stand for those ideals."

Nail turned and glared at Burter. "Make no mistake, I will fight and kill for that peace should I have to...but I would prefer to avoid senseless slaughter if at all possible..."

Burter was confused as he stared at his opponent. "What is that supposed to mean?!"

Nail shrugged. "I'm not sure someone who would so willingly trade their freedom and compassion would understand."

And then, the Namekian spoke bluntly. "But I encourage you to march forward in this Frieza-ruled Empire of yours and remember this mercy as you go along."

Burter was shaken by this. He watched as Nail summoned a new vest and put it on, and then continued to walk away. The blue snake man snarled and began to yell at his foe again. "Do you really think it's that simple?! The Universe is so much bigger and scarier that you seem to realize! You've been stuck on this hayseed planet for your whole life, I've been traveling this Universe for decades! You need to have a reality check! There is so much more terror out there than you give credit for!"

Nail sighed and turned to speak to his opponent again, but then he was shocked. Coming flying in from out of nowhere, Jeice's bloodied and battered body crashed mere feet from Nail. Nail flinched and then a familiar voice spoke up. " _He's right, you know..._ "

A massive blast quickly followed. Jeice sat up just in time to see it and scream in fear. The blast hit him head on and overtook him. And then, in a flash, Jeice was obliterated. The blast faded away and all that was left where the red man once sat was a burnt slag mark.

Burter was horrified by this. He turned to face the man who had just murdered his best friend, but was met by Vegeta ramming his fist through his back. Burter couldn't speak. He stared down at the bloody hand jutting from his chest and began to choke and gag. Vegeta chuckled, clamping his hand down onto Burter's face. The Prince didn't look at Burter, however. He instead stared over at Nail. "The Universe is a truly scary place, Green Man. Pacifists win nothing, warmongers sit on the throne."

And then, in another flash and scream, Burter's entire upper body was blasted into pieces, leaving only a pair of quivering legs behind.

Nail was stunned. He glared at Vegeta with total disdain. Vegeta glared right back. "What? Have something to say?"

Nail opened his mouth, but Vegeta cut him off. "No. You don't. Let me make one thing clear to you, Namekian: You do NOT spare people. Ever. Burter could have been the impetus to all of our deaths if I had not stepped in. He could have run off and gotten Frieza and that would have been it."

Nail snapped at Vegeta. "Vicious mongrel."

Vegeta shrugged. "I'm still alive, aren't I?"

Nail flinched. He did not have a retort for that. Vegeta chuckled and smirked. "I'm going to join in on the fight with Captain Ginyu. You should make your green ass useful and search Frieza's ship for the Dragon Balls."

Nail sneered at Vegeta, but he didn't have time to rebuke. Vegeta simply took off and flew towards the fight happening on the far side of the ship.

Nail sighed. "Very well then..."

Nail took off, flying to the nearer side of Frieza's ship and blasting himself a door to get in.

Once inside, Nail began to search the various rooms that he found for the sacred Dragon Balls. The entire time, he began to debate in his head the merits of the various lifestyles these intruders to his home had brought.

For a moment, Nail let himself think that Vegeta had a point to his madness. But, as he continued to open and search rooms, Nail pushed that thought from his mind. He couldn't let himself think that. The Grand Elder would be ashamed of those sorts of thoughts. Nail opened yet another door and his mood lifted as he saw a flash of glowing orange.

The warrior stepped into the room and found all seven Dragon Balls laying together in a bunch. "The Dragon Balls..."

He knelt down to regard and checked each ball and then, Nail had a small laugh. "The ultimate sign of love and kindness. The gift from Grand Elder Guru..."

Nail's attention was pulled away from the balls by an explosion rocking outside the ship. "The battle appears to be raging. But I have found the Dragon Balls."

Nail stood up and turned. "I must go and help so that we-"

Upon turning, Nail's gaze fell upon a devastating sight. Piled up on either side of the door, like little more than garbage that was no longer needed, were the bodies of Nail's brothers that had fled with the Dragon Balls. Nail fell to his knees and regarded each of them before his gaze finally fell upon Talus. The top of Talus's head was gone, leaving just a slack, lower jaw to hang open for all eternity.

Nail's heart sank and his arms went limp. And then, as a massive, loud explosion rocked out behind him, Nail let out a massive scream of rage and agony, rendered silent by the war going on outside.

 _Meanwhile, on the far side of Planet Namek..._

From the sky, a large ship descended onto the Namekian landscape. The bright, white sphere sat onto the grassy knolls of Namek and its humming came to a halt. All was silent for a minute, the sun shining off of the hull of the ship. But then, the door opened and a ramp extended out.

And then, four figures emerged from within the ship. Goku, Raditz, Gine, and Chi-Chi all stepped out into the bright, Namekian sunlight. And they all looked determined to face the hardships and battles ahead.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	26. Chapter 26: A Family Again

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 26: A Family Again**

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Bardock and Captain Ginyu were still going at it. The ferocious fighting style of the Saiyan was clashing against the fluid fighting style of the Captain and was coming up just short. Or, in another sense, despite the even power levels, Ginyu was still a superiorly skilled fighter to Bardock just from having that many more years as a foot soldier. Not to mention, Ginyu had been alive and active for 20 years while Bardock had been down in Hell.

Being knocked back by a graceful kick to the chin, Bardock began to weigh his options. Would it really be that much worse to pull out the Kaioken at this point? Ginyu was slowly overwhelming him, so maybe performing a rapid, powerful assault on Ginyu was the better option...

Bardock was weighing his options as dodged a storm of ki blasts from the Captain. What should he do? What should he...?

Bardock's eyes widened as two feelings suddenly hit his senses. One of these feelings was close and rapidly approaching and the other was still quite far away. Bardock tossed a ki bomb as Ginyu, scarring the land around the Captain and landing on a nearby ridge.

The older Saiyan smiled and chuckled. "Okay then...that changes things. I think that I can make it through this without having to hurt myself too bad..."

Having escaped the majority of Bardock's attack, Ginyu leapt into the air with a twirl. "You think you're going to escape this unscathed?! You insult me, Bardock!"

Captain Ginyu descended from the sky for a flying kick, but he was cut off midway. Rather than being hit by a surprise shock from Bardock, though, Ginyu was hammered from his blind spot by an entirely different foe.

Crashing into the ground hard, Ginyu pushed himself up. He glared down at the busted remains of his Scouter and growled under his breath, turning to face his foes. And what he saw made Ginyu very angry, Bardock had been joined by another rat. "What the Hell are Burter and Jeice doing?! Can they really not be flummoxed to split their attention between two foes?!"

Vegeta wryly chuckled to himself as Ginyu glared at him. "Burter and Jeice... _pfft_ ~"

Ginyu seemed to blow this off. Instead, he addressed Bardock and his newest opponent directly. "Quite the unfair move, Saiyan Filth! Teaming up two-on-one is hardly sporting!"

That bit of pretentious peak annoyed Bardock something fierce. " _Two-on-one_ is unfair?! _Two_ -on-one?! Have you forgotten that FIVE-on-one beating that you and your fellow flamboyant assholes all ganged up on me and beat the shit outta me?! _Huh?!_ "

Ginyu leapt to his feet, his face crossed with rage. The Captain looked as if he were ready to blow...but then he immediately calmed down. Ginyu let loose a playful chuckle and wiped his nose, trying to look innocent. "Y-yeah...I guess...from that perspective...I really don't have...uh...have a leg to stand on...do I?"

Ginyu blushed and scratch his cheek, looking rather awkward at being called out like that. But then, striking a mighty pose, Ginyu shouted at the top of his lungs. "But all is fair in love and war! So, I will accept the punishment for my earlier, less-than-honorable actions! _Have at me, Saiyans!_ "

Captain Ginyu struck and even more epic pose. "The last thing a man of my pedigree is afraid of is a couple of brats!"

Vegeta and Bardock both glared down at Ginyu, watching as the Captain shouted of manliness and youth. And then, the two of them turned their glares towards each other. Bardock was gruff and blunt. "I'm getting sick of hearing his goddamned voice. Let's get this shit over with."

Vegeta chuckled. "You're not fooling me with that glib attitude. I know that Raditz and Kakarot are here. And so is that irritating woman of yours that dared to strike my face..."

Bardock's brow furrowed. He hid it as best he could, but Vegeta mentioning Gine served to draw up Bardock's ire. Vegeta continued. "Once this Ginyu Force situation is done...I can't wait to have the four of you bastards to myself..."

Bardock barked at Vegeta. "Keep my families names out of your mouth. Once we're done with Captain Ginyu, I'll write a hole in my schedule to kick your ass! Anything to make you happy, Your Highness..."

Bardock rolled his eyes at the phrase "Your Highness".

Vegeta laughed out loud. "Sure! I'll kill you first. You're the one that has succeeded in pissing me off the most, after all!"

Vegeta's lips cracked into a wicked smirk. "But...first..."

With a roar and a mighty burst of energy, Vegeta left Bardock behind and charged directly at Captain Ginyu. Bardock sneered at the Saiyan Prince, and then he followed behind him. The two Saiyans charged at Captain Ginyu with killing intent in their eyes.

 _Meanwhile, in a far off Namekian plain..._

The traveling battle of Gohan and Recoome finally came to a resting place. Now, instead of dodging each other's blasts and returning fire, Recoome and Gohan were trading blows like they were free in a brutal back-and-forth brawl.

Recoome's fist bounced off Gohan's face, but Gohan worked through the pain. He summoned a ki blast into his hand and shot it at Recoome's eyes. Recoome dodged, but his hair was split and the ear cup of his Scouters was blasted into pieces. As the lens fell from Recoome's face, he smirked at Gohan and laughed. "Nice shot!"

Recoome went at Gohan again, a manic look in his eye. He was excited to see the leap in power the boy had made sense the last time. Recoome was actually getting a bit of a challenge and it made his blood froth and boil with total joy. He tossed his massive fist forward and caught Gohan on the jaw, taking the boy off of his feet. But Gohan was nearly unfazed. He snapped back at Recoome and fired and even larger blast into the brute's face.

The thug fell back into a tumble, but landed into a tackling position. He dug his heels in and shouted as loud as he could. " _RECOOME SACK!_ "

Recoome launched his broad shoulder directly at Gohan. Gohan flinched and crossed his arms in front of him, taking the brunt of the hit and flying back. The boy crashed, back first, into a rock and the rock crumbled into pieces. Recoome smirked and scrunched over. Using the full force of all of his muscles, Recoome launched himself high into the air. " _RECOOME BODY SLAM!_ "

Gohan looked up just in time to see Recoome's massive, yellow frame crashing down towards him. He quickly rolled out of the way and Recoome smashed into the ground hard, leaving a Recoome-shaped crater where he landed. Gohan leapt into the air and screamed at the top of his lungs. "MASENKO!"

The boy fired the beam directly into the crater and created a massive explosion. The flints and pieces of rubble shot into the air as Gohan landed onto his butt. He thought he had a minute, but then Recoome popped from the ground in front of him, singed and with a smile. "Is that all you have, kid? Come on! _Keep giving me more!_ "

Gohan screamed in frustration and charged at Recoome. Recoome tried to punt the boy, but Gohan leapt up to dodge the kick. Quick as a flash, he landed a kick of his own that dislodged three of Recoome's teeth from their spots. Recoome fell flat on his back and Gohan landed a double knee strike into the yellow thug's stomach.

The wind fled from Recoome's lungs and Gohan went for a furious tornado of strikes. Punches and kicks and slams and headbutts that all ended with one massive spinning axe kick to Recoome's forehead. Gohan's rage was pumping full force in this assault, taking his power to such a point that the very ground beneath Recoome's thick skull cracked and crumbled at the force of Gohan's final strike.

But the boy wasn't done! Gohan leapt off of Recoome's prone form and began to rain bursts of ki blasts down onto his opponent. The sheer force of the power Gohan was putting out pushed him higher and higher into the air. Soon, he was so high above the ground that the spot where Recoome was lying looked like a small campfire. The boy's energy was used up and he was breathing hard. But at least he had made some sort of progress.

Or so he thought! That concept was immediately rendered false as Recoome suddenly rocketed up right next to Gohan. " _SURPRISE!_ "

Gohan had no chance to react as the toe of Recoome's boot swiped across his face. Gohan went corkscrewing through the air, but Recoome quickly caught up and seized him by the hair. Gohan screamed in pain and Recoome responded by whipping the boy around before immediately flying back towards the ground. Recoome slung Gohan into the ground like a sack of bricks.

Gohan went sliding and Recoome pounced on him, grabbing the boy by the face and punching him again and again, harder and harder until he stopped making noise. Recoome plucked the broken 6-year old from the ground and chuckled. "Is that all ya got? Huh?"

Gohan shivered, as if his body was seizing up. His eyes were rolled back and Recoome began to laugh. But then, Gohan's eyes straightened out and he flung another blast into Recoome's gaping mouth. Recoome dropped the kid and Gohan immediately lunged for his foes leg.

Recoome chuckled as Gohan latched on to his ankle. "Damn! You sure have some spunk, kid!"

 _Meanwhile, on the far side of the Planet..._

Goku, Raditz, Gine, and Chi-Chi were all speeding over the Namekian sea. The each were feeling the conflicts and the power levels that dotted the surface of the planet. Goku's attention was solely focused in the direction of the strongest, most sinister power. "That must be Frieza...huh?"

Raditz was blue in the face. "Yeah. It...it is. And..."

The older brother's attention was planted on Bardock and Vegeta and whomever it was they were fighting. Raditz was still knew to this whole "energy sensing" thing, but he was capable of using context clues. He sensed a strong, sinister power other than Frieza. And he didn't want to say who he thought it was.

Gine was blunter in addressing the issue, though. "Don't withhold information from your brother, Raditz. That power that Vegeta and your Father are fighting is almost definitely Captain Ginyu."

Raditz flinched on reflex. "Goddamned Ginyu Force..."

Goku smirked. "Hey, at least he feels strong!"

The Saiyan from Earth smashed his fists together. "I'm pumped for a good fight!"

Gine sighed at both of her sons. "I swear, it's one extreme or the other..."

She turned to look at her daughter-in-law. "Men. Am I right, Chi-Chi?"

Gine cocked her head when Chi-Chi didn't respond. "Chi-Chi? Are you okay?"

Chi-Chi wasn't trying to be rude, she was just very distracted. Lost in her own thoughts and trying to grasp the feeling of searching out specific energies, Chi-Chi was truly lost in her own world. She felt the various powers on the planet, knowing that she was truly out of her depth here. But that didn't matter!

Only one thing was on Chi-Chi's mind. One power. One person. The person that she took this trip for in the first place. It took her a moment, but Chi-Chi soon locked onto a familiar feeling. In spite of never having felt a power level before, she knew it was him It had to be him. She would be able to pick him out from anywhere! Her motherly instinct told her that the person she was feeling was 100% her son!

Chi-Chi's eyes snapped open. " _Gohan!_ "

Gine, Goku, and Raditz all jumped and stared back at Chi-Chi. Chi-Chi, meanwhile, was still feeling what she knew was her son. But something was wrong! His energy was uneasy! Something was hurting him...something... _someone_?! Someone stronger than Gohan was attacking him!

Chi-Chi's eyes steel and she gritted her teeth. " _My baby!_ "

Chi-Chi growled under her breath, pulling from a yet to be accessed pool of power. And then, with an almighty, motherly shout, Chi-Chi took off at a speed that surprised all of her peers.

Goku and Raditz both stared as Chi-Chi flew off, flabbergasted. Gine did as well. And then, they all broke from their distractions and sensed exactly why she raced off as fast as she did. The levity quickly drained from Goku's face and he took off at top speed. Gine and Raditz, the fear and trepidation having left them as well, both took off in the same way!

 _Back with Gohan and Recoome..._

Gohan was rapidly losing ground against his older, more experience opponent. He was out of energy and out of stamina and Recoome didn't seem to be lacking any steam at all. The brute, as a matter of fact, only seemed to have more energy from this ongoing scrap with his child opponent.

A massive kick slammed into Gohan's chest and the boy coughed hard. He went sailing back and bounced off of a rock, landing with a solid thud. Gohan struggled to get up, coughing and wheezing and struggling to breathe. The boy damned himself as he fell back to the ground. "E-even after the power boost from last time...even after that..."

Gohan gagged, coughing up bile and shaking. "...it's still not enough to even help beat one damned opponent...?"

Recoome walked up to Gohan, chuckling and cracking his knuckles. The brute's face and body were both significantly bloodied. Gohan hadn't beaten Recoome, but he sure as Hell left his mark. Recoome stopped a few yards away from Gohan and smirked. "It's a waste of talent and it sucks. You're scrappy, kid! It's a shame that you had to cross Lord Frieza!"

Recoome shrugged. "But...I'm not paid to question orders. I'm just told to carry 'em out..."

Recoome folded his arms above his head. "I'll make it quick kid! A nice thank you for giving me such a good fight!"

Recoome opened his mouth wide. " _RECOOME ERASER GUN!_ "

A pink glow developed in Recoome's gaping mouth. A pink glow of death. Gohan glared at Recoome and tried to move, but he couldn't. He couldn't draw air into his chest. He couldn't will his body to move! Gohan squeezed his eyes shut. He knew that he was going to die.

He squeezed his eyes shut even tighter and tears began to form. He was so sad. So upset. He didn't even last long enough to see Mr. Piccolo be brought back to life. He didn't even last long enough to thank him for taking care of him and saving his life. Gohan began to sniffle and sob as he thought about it. He was scared. He didn't want to die.

Recoome took a deep breath. The energy was there and he was ready to fire. But, as he blew and the beam of energy began to fly out, salvation rained from above. A heavy kicked smashed down onto Recoome's head and slammed his mouth shut. The Eraser Gun discharged in Recoome's mouth and exploded, shattering most of the brute's teeth. Recoome's eyes rolled back and his jaw slacked open, allowing a pillar of smoke to erupt from his throat. The yellow brute groaned, and then fell onto his back with a solid thud.

Hearing this commotion, Gohan cracked his eyes open. He needed to see what was going on. But, as his eyelids cracked, Gohan was seized from the ground and pulled into a tight compression. The boy roared in frustration, trying to get free. But, as he did, he began to realize that he recognized this feeling. It was soft and warm and welcoming. Slowly, Gohan craned his neck upwards and he began to cry at the sight of a familiar, beloved, and long-missed face. "M-Mommy..."

Chi-Chi stared down lovingly at her beaten and battered child. Tears were already streaming from her eyes like gushing waterfalls. Her lower lip quivered as she squeezed her bloodied baby tightly. "Gohan..."

The two of them were quiet for a moment, a little bit of peace laying over a scarred battlefield. And then, they two of them both broke down into inelegant tears.

" _ **MOMMY!**_ " " _ **GOHAN!**_ "

The two of them squeezed each other close, just desperately happy to see one another again. Even in this past year that had forced Gohan to be a warrior, one thing hadn't changed: he was still just a child. Not even 6 years of age yet.

This embrace continued for a short while, Mother and Son shaking and cradling one another as if nothing else existed. The sadness and panic were soon replaced with a heavy wave of relief. The two of them held one another and smiled. And then, that lovely moment was broken into by a brash shout. "What the Hell was that?! _Cheap shot, lady!_ "

Gohan and Chi-Chi's eyes both snapped open and they turned towards the voice. And the two of them were panicked to see a very irritated Recoome looming over them. The two of them were frozen in place and Recoome continued. "You have to wait your turn, ya know?! I'm in the middle of it with that kid right now! But once he's dead I can fight you if you wanna!"

Recoome struck a pose. "Recoome fights anybody! I'm not racist or sexist! So, I'll give it all I have to this fight when your turn comes up!"

With a smirk, Recoome reached down to grab Gohan. But Chi-Chi was quick to leap away. Recoome stared at the woman, confused. "What the heck?!"

Chi-Chi didn't answer. She hugged Gohan tight and then set her baby down onto the ground. And then she turned and shot Recoome a death glare, stepping in front of Gohan and taking a fighting stance. "You won't be killing my son! Not as long as I'm able to stand and defend him!"

Gohan groaned in pain. "M-Mom...don't..."

The boy faltered, crashing to the ground in pain. He couldn't make himself move. Recoome, meanwhile, smirked and laughed. "Seriously?! Look lady, I said I'd fight you...but how long do you think it's gonna last?! You're super weak looking!"

Chi-Chi tightened her stance, not saying a word.

Recoome sighed and shrugged, cracking his knuckles. "Fine. Your funeral."

And then, the two of them charged at one another. Recoome smiled wide and went for a heavy punch. A strike so strong that it would've killed Chi-Chi instantly flew at the woman, but she surprised the brute with her sheer agility. Chi-Chi fell to the ground and dragged her fist through the Namekian soil. Recoome went to stomp her, but Chi-Chi dodged again. She took a mighty leap into the air with her newly learned flight powers and dodged a third punch from Recoome.

Recoome was getting annoyed, growling at Chi-Chi as she landed onto his fist. "You're pissing me off!"

Chi-Chi still said nothing. Chi-Chi threw her hand back and then brought it forward, flinging a massive handful of dirt into the thug's eyes. Recoome growled in pain. "Dammit! That's a dirty move!"

Chi-Chi took a deep breath. She focused every last bit of her power into her foot and then reared back and slammed it into Recoome's nose. The brute clenched his face as Chi-Chi leapt back to the ground. "Owchies!"

Chi-Chi took a fighting stance again, watching as Recoome rubbed his face with both of his hands. "That stung..."

As the yellow monster recovered, Chi-Chi glanced back at Gohan. She knew this was a losing fight, but she also knew that her child needed protecting. And that, in her heart, he life was nothing compared to his. Chi-Chi sighed and then drew her hands to her side. "O-okay...just like Goku..."

Recoome wiped his eyes with a grunt and saw Chi-Chi charging an attack. "What are you-"

Chi-Chi shouted. " _Kamehameha!_ "

A blue beam rushed over Recoome. Chi-Chi winced at the feeling of her own energy whipping against her skin. It burned due to her lack of control. She cursed herself for not practicing more while she was on the ship, but her mental self-reflection was quickly brought to a halt. A massive hand shot out of the beam and wrapped around Chi-Chi's throat.

The Kamehameha dissipated and Chi-Chi went to try and pry the fingers from her neck, desperate for air. But, no dice. Recoome used a mere fraction of his strength to force Chi-Chi to her knees.

From the sidelines, Gohan was in a panic. He didn't care how much it hurt, the boy forced himself to his feet and began to hobble over to help his mother. But, midway, he fell back to the ground. He vision was blurring from his injuries. "Mommy..."

Chi-Chi was fading, but she looked back at her son. With a feeble wave of her hand, she made it clear to Gohan what he needed to do. Runaway while he still could.

Recoome sighed. "See... _so weak_..."

He shook his head, clearly disappointed. "Gonna kill you now."

The brute raised his elbow into the air and shouted. " _RECOOME..._ "

Chi-Chi raised her hands up as best she could and began to fruitlessly struggle. She laid meaningless punch after meaningless punch onto Recoome's chest. No effect whatsoever. Chi-Chi knew that, at the very least, she was about to be maimed. But she still fought. If she could buy Gohan even an extra second, it would have been worth it.

Chi-Chi reared her right fist back as far as she could, desperate to throw even one more punch. Recoome shouted. " _BOOM!_ "

As Recoome's elbow descended towards Chi-Chi's face, her fist shot forward. And then Recoome's attack came to an immediate halt. The yellow thug blew a raspberry, spit and foam sputtering from his mouth as he dropped Chi-Chi and began to stumble back. Chi-Chi fell to the ground and broke into a coughing fit. The human woman looked up from her spot on the ground, and then her tense face immediately lightened up, a loving smile cracking through her stern lips.

Gohan was confused, struggling to get a clear view of what was going on. But, before he could, a feminine hand reached down and pushed a Senzu Bean into his mouth. Gohan quickly chewed and swallowed, rolling over and groaning in relief as the pain left his body. The boy's vision cleared and he looked up to see his grandmother and uncle both standing over him. Gine smile warmly and lovingly at her grandson. "Gohan~! How's my adorable little grandson doing? You look stronger~"

Raditz nodded. "Nephew."

Gohan smiled at the familiar faces. "Hey Grandma Gine. Uncle Raditz. It's good that you're here...Grandpa Bardock and the others-"

Raditz nodded and interjected. "I know. I know..."

Raditz held out his hand. "Mom, give me the Senzu Beans. I'm going to rush ahead to help out Dad and the rest."

Gine nodded. "Krillin's power is flagging. Make sure you find him and give him one first."

Raditz nodded, taking the bag of beans and flying off at top speed. Gohan's eye followed his Uncle as he flew away, scanning across the sky and eventually coming upon his Mother. And, standing next to his Mother, was an equally as welcomed sight. Gohan got to his feet. "Dad!"

Goku and Chi-Chi both turned, smiling at their Son. Goku chuckled. "Wow Gohan! You've gotten so big! Must be that Namek air, huh?"

Gohan didn't respond. Instead, he ran as fast as he could towards his parents. Taking a leap, Gohan jumped into his Mother and Father's arms and the three of them embraced. For the first time in a while, the family was back together. And none of them were even grievously injured!

Slowly, Gine came walking up with a big smile on her face. She watched on with genuine joy at the sight of her youngest son and his family together. But then, to her shock, two hands grabbed onto each of Gine's shoulders. She yelped as Goku and Chi-Chi both tugged on her and pulled her in close, bringing her into a loving, family hug.

Gine's smile fell a bit, going from jovial to gentle. And she just allowed herself to take the moment in.

And then a ki blast came rocketing towards them.

Gine was quick to respond, thrusting her hand out and firing a blast of her own to stop the attack. Goku, Chi-Chi, and Gohan all turned to face the source, each with an angry glare adorning their face. Standing a bit of a distance away, Recoome was back on his feet again. "Hey! There's no time for gentle crap like that! I'm still ready to fight!"

Gohan, Gine, and Chi-Chi all took fighting stances, ready to tangle with the brute. Recoome chuckled and grandstanded. "I didn't mean with you pathetic fools! I wanna fight with _Mister Cheapshot_ in the orange shirt!"

The two women and child all turned to look at Goku. The Saiyan from Earth was calm. He placed a gentle hand on his Wife and Mother's shoulders and carefully pushed them aside. As he walked by, he playfully ruffled his Son's hair. And then the gentle kindness drained from Goku's face and he glared at Recoome with a focused, quiet fury.

Recoome chuckled and sarcastically commented. "Ooh! Scary~"

The yellow thug flipped Goku off, but the Saiyan didn't break stride. Recoome continued to run his mouth. "You're gonna regret walking up to a member of the Ginyu Force so nonchalantly!"

Goku didn't even raise his voice. "Ka..."

Recoome chuckled. "Whatcha mumbling to yourself? Huh? Maybe a little prayer before I break you?! Come on, you loser! Even the kid had the guts to scream out while I was breaking him!"

Goku's glare intensified. "Me..."

Recoome snorted. "Oh! That's the same weak-ass move that that woman used! Puh-lease! Lemme show you a real attack!"

Recoome began to charge all of his power into his core. "You gotta yell your attacks with flair! _RECOOME! ULTRA!_ "

Goku was ignoring the boisterous prick at this point. "Ha..."

Recoome shouted even louder. " _FIGHTING!_ "

Goku was within spitting distance of Recoome. "Me..."

Recoome shouted as loud as he could. " _BOMB-_ "

Goku thrusted his hands right into Recoome's face. " _HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!_ "

A truly monstrous energy blast, the size of a mountain, engulfed Recoome. The attack spread across the Namekian landscape, swallowing several islands and parting the sea as it ripped across the Planet. From an outerspace point of view, it looked as if a Namek itself was firing a ki blast into the cosmos.

Gohan, Chi-Chi, and Gine all stood by visibly flustered. Once the smoke cleared, Goku remained. However, there wasn't even a trace of Recoome left. The brute had been totally vaporized by the overwhelming might of Goku's newly acquired power.

The Saiyan from Earth stood up straight and turned to his family, his stern scowl being replaced with a gentle smile once more. "What say we go and join up with Dad and Raditz?"

Immediately, the family perked back up, they all smiled and nodded at the suggestion. Goku chuckled and took off. "Well then, come on guys! Let's get going!"

Goku, Gohan, Gine, and Chi-Chi all took off, flying towards Frieza's ship. Only one Ginyu remained and it was time for a family reunion on Namek!

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	27. Chapter 27: A Captain's Pride

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 27: A Captain's Pride**

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Vegeta and Bardock both rocketed towards Ginyu, ready to rain attacks down onto the Captain. Ginyu was a much more skillful fighter than either of the Saiyans, his technique working as a decent counter to their combined strength. However, technique only got the Captain so far. As much as he was trying to defend himself, he was being overwhelmed by the total might of Bardock and Vegeta.

Ginyu did a spinning ballet kick to send Vegeta sprawling through the air, but Bardock came in for a heavy punch to the gut. Ginyu coughed and slammed his elbow onto the back of Bardock's head, but Vegeta was already on him with a sneaky kick to the back.

Ginyu slammed against the ground hard. He pushed himself up and glared at Bardock and Vegeta with disdain. Both of the Saiyans out-streched their arms and each fired a massive ki blast at the Captain. Ginyu stood up and roared at the approaching energy spheres. He thrust his hand out and shot his signature move. " _MILKY CANNON!_ "

The Milky Cannon and the two blasts smashed into each other. The energy beams struggled for a bit, pushing and bucking at one another for supremacy. Ginyu's blast was singularly stronger, but the other two blasts combined had more oomph. The Milky Cannon was engulfed and the blasts rocketed right at Ginyu.

The Captain scowled and crossed his arms in front of his face, bracing for impact. And then he was enveloped by the attacks of his foes. A massive explosion echoed out and tore up the surrounding area. Vegeta and Bardock both hovered high above and watched as the smoke cleared. Once it had fully, they saw that Captain Ginyu was still standing. Heavily breathing and with his armor ruined, but still standing.

Bardock scoffed as he glared down at his opponent. "Goddammit Ginyu. Just make it easy on everyone and die!"

Ginyu snarled. "A C-Captain's Pride will not...a-allow him to..."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Cut it out with that ' _Captain's Pride_ ' idiocy. You're not a hero, you freak! You're a giant, purple nuisance! And you're just as much of a bastard as everyone else in the Frieza Force! No one is looking up to you, so quit being so damned belligerent!"

Ginyu sneered. "Yeah! And you're both ones to talk, eh?! You two are no better than me! Just because you rebel against Lord Frieza, doesn't make you paragons of goodness!"

Ginyu coughed and buckled over, but he stopped himself from falling to his knees. "I...I won't be defeated by you two so easily!"

Ginyu thrust his hands into the air. "Parmesan Shower!"

The Captain launched a battery of ki blasts at his Saiyan opponents. The sheer, overwhelming number of shots came jetting towards Bardock and Vegeta and forced them onto the defensive. They both dodged backwards and deflected away what they couldn't dodge.

Vegeta was cocky and arrogant as he easily avoided the attacks, mocking Ginyu with snide laughter. Bardock, meanwhile, was watching. He knew this desperate attack's real purpose. Ginyu was trying to distract them! Bardock kept his eye trained towards the source of the blasts, looking at the gaps between attacks for any sign of Ginyu. Eventually, he did see one and he narrowed his gaze at what he saw. A flash of golden power shined out between the ki shots and Bardock nodded. He knew the score now.

Suddenly, as quick as they started, the flow of ki blasts stopped. Ginyu outstretched his arms, glowing with golden light, and smirked at Vegeta. "CHANGE N-"

A quick ki blast whipped into Ginyu's mouth and cancelled his technique. The Captain was bowled over, coughing and choking as he hit the ground. Vegeta was confused as to what was happening, but Bardock was very aware. "I know your tricks, scumbag! It ain't happening!"

Ginyu shakily stood and, smacking his palms onto his cheeks to wake himself up, screamed in frustration. He reared his arm back and hurled a colossal ki blast at Bardock. Bardock bared his fangs. He steeled up his hand and smashed into the blast once it got close. The power of the blast surged into his arm and rendered Bardock's limb numb. He saved himself, but his arm was briefly dead. Too bad for him that Ginyu had already summoned another ki blast and tossed it once more.

Ginyu smirked. He knew that he had Bardock this time. With his arm numb and his movements slowed as a result, the older Saiyan was trapped. Bardock let loose a ragged sigh. "Goddammit..."

And then, he made the move to save himself. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWO!_ "

Ginyu watched in frustration as red energy poured from Bardock's body. Empowered, the Saiyan quickly rocketed around Ginyu's massive attack. But he instantly damned himself for this. Bardock was already fatigued from the fight so far. He didn't have enough stamina for this move he barely understood. So, with a massive electric shock through all of his nerves, the Kaioken took its toll. Bardock faltered mid-air and he was left a sitting duck.

Ginyu chuckled. "Take this punk! _CHANGE_ -"

A sudden pink blast from left field came in and smashed into Ginyu. The charged energy shot smashed into the Captain as the attacker shouted out. "Saturday Crush!"

Ginyu was reeling, but he recognized the voice as it shouted out. "Vegeta! Father! Blast that bastard!"

Bardock was having trouble keeping his eyes open, but he did as he was instructed. He lazily tossed a ki blast before falling from the sky. Vegeta did so as well, forming a finger gun and shooting out a Bang!

Both attacks went shooting towards Ginyu. The Captain managed to dodged Bardock's attack, but Vegeta's beam hit its mark, puncturing Ginyu's chest. The Captain gagged in pain and stumbled back, leaning against one of the legs of Frieza's ship.

Meanwhile, just before Bardock crashed into the ground, he was caught. The older Saiyan cracked his eyes open and saw a welcome sight, the face of his eldest son. "Yo Raditz...how ya doin'?"

Raditz nodded, kneeling down to set Bardock on the ground. "Hey Dad."

As Raditz began to check his Dad's injuries, Vegeta landed next to them. The Prince smirked and wasted no time in beginning to chastise Raditz. "Hey loser. It's been a minute. Nice to see that, even when you manage to gain some strength, you're still the weakest Saiyan on the Planet..."

Raditz had no time for Vegeta's bullshit. Instead, he went to tending Bardock. Vegeta continued. "...you know, except for the halfling and that _worthless mother_ of yours..."

Bardock's hazy façade quickly faded. He immediately glared over at Vegeta and snapped at the Prince. "Shut the Hell up and go finish Ginyu while we have the chance!"

Vegeta snorted. "What's the hurry? Ginyu is nothing now. He's just waiting to die over there and-"

Bardock snapped back. "Then don't keep him waiting! You need to drop this cocky bullshit and be pragmatic! If Frieza came back, Ginyu could be a hassle to deal with while we're fighting him. Go kill him! Now!"

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

The Prince turned and began to whistle. He strolled up to Ginyu, sprawled out on the ground, and smiled down at the Captain. "Looks like the time is up, Captain~"

As Vegeta did his thing, Bardock turned his attention to Raditz. His son was pulling a Senzu Bean out, the last one apparently, and began to offer it to Bardock. Bardock shook his head and turned it away. "Go help Krillin. Little guy dismantled Zarbon, but he's pretty messed up. Go help him."

Raditz stood and nodded. "Right. Mom mentioned him..."

Raditz turned and began to walk in Krillin's direction. Bardock sighed in relief. The battle was over, maybe he would get to rest for a minute. Bardock leaned back and closed his eyes, thankful for the respite. But then he immediately cringed at an all-too-familiar sound: Vegeta being Vegeta.

The older Saiyan let loose a ragged sigh and turned his attention to the Prince and Captain Ginyu. Vegeta had a massive smirk, stomping his boot down on Ginyu's critical wound as the Captain screamed in pain. Bardock shouted. "Vegeta!"

Vegeta turned to Bardock. "What?! Are you going to give me some big spiel about mercy?! After everything this bastard did to the Saiyan Race?"

Bardock sneered. "Hell no! I want you to stop playing with your goddamned food! Kill him so that he isn't a threat anymore!"

Vegeta was uppity. "Are you saying I don't deserve some fun after years of dealing with this bastard?"

Bardock snapped back. "I'm saying you need to act like an adult!"

Bardock sighed in annoyance and mumbled to himself. " _Fuck me already..._ "

Vegeta glared back down at Ginyu and sadistically smirked. He took a knee and grabbed Ginyu by the horn, bashing the Captain in the face with his fist. "How's it feel? Huh, Ginyu?"

Punch. "Huh? How are those stupid poses and stupid Force helping you now?! Always looking down on me and my race!"

Punch. "Guldo is dead!"

Punch. "Jeice is dead!"

Punch. "Burter is dead!"

Punch. "Recoome is dead!"

Vegeta grabbed Ginyu's other horn and began to whip him around in the air. "And now... _YOU_ can join them!"

Ginyu went flipping through the air as Vegeta charged an attack. He knew that he was dead. Manly tears ran down the Captain's face as he tumbled through the sky. Vegeta was yelling some kind of venomous barb on the ground, but Ginyu's ears were ringing. He thought to his Force and mentally apologized to them. If he were a better Captain...then this would never have happened. Ginyu's eyes began to shut. He was ready for it to end. He had failed his men, he had failed Lord Frieza, and he was helpless.

But, as Ginyu was ready to die, a bit of hope showed up. A flash of hopeful orange that inspired the Captain to continue on! A wide smirk spread across Ginyu's face and he shouted at the top of his lungs. " _CHANGE NOW!_ "

Vegeta was perplexed. He watched as Ginyu, seemingly helpless, suddenly began to glow with golden light. A beam shot from the Captain's unseen face and arced across the sky. Vegeta followed the beam, eventually seeing the target.

Goku stopped dead in his tracks as that strange alien shot a beam at him. He crossed his arms in front of himself to block the attack. The beam hit, but a sudden feeling overwhelmed Goku. He felt himself being pulled, but his body wasn't moving. Something was definitely wrong. This feeling overwhelmed Goku's entire being, and he whited out as a result.

On the ground, Vegeta had a ki blast hovering above his hand. He watched as, in spite of firing at Kakarot, Ginyu's body fell from the sky and splatted against the ground. The Prince walked up to Ginyu's body, looking more confused and annoyed than anything. "What the Hell...?"

Bardock, meanwhile, was in the middle of a panic. He hefted his aching body from the ground and began to run over to Vegeta and Ginyu. " _Dammit Vegeta!_ "

Vegeta wasn't paying attention to Bardock anymore. He stared down at Ginyu, pointing the ki blast direct at the unconscious Captain's body. "I can't stand Kakarot, but I can still feel how little of a match you are for him. Your ignorance was painful right up until the end. So, die, scum..."

Bardock shouted again. "Vegeta, don't do it! Stop!"

Vegeta growled under his breath and shot Bardock a hateful glare. "First, it's kill, and now it's stop?! Will you make up your damned mi-"

From high up in the sky, Goku rained down as fast as he could. Catching Vegeta off guard, the apparent Saiyan from Earth slammed his fist into Vegeta's cheek and sent the Prince sailing into a nearby rock. Vegeta smashed into the boulder hard and was buried by the avalanching rubble. Bardock came to a halt and clenched his fist. The older Saiyan silently cursed to himself as "Goku" began to chuckle with a much deeper register of voice.

As Bardock glared at his Son's body, they were joined by three more new arrivals. Gohan, Gine, and Chi-Chi all descended from the sky. Gine and Gohan were both happy to see nearly everyone they cared about still standing. But Chi-Chi adopted a furious look. Marching across the field and straight up to Bardock, Chi-Chi wasted no time in slapping her father-in-law right across the face. " _What kind of negligent guardian are you to let your grandson fight such a brute like that?!_ "

Bardock totally ignored her question, instead grabbing Chi-Chi by the arm and slamming her and himself to the ground. "Get down, dammit!"

Chi-Chi was shocked and confused as a very familiar, blue wrist band shot above the two of them and right through the air where her head was just moments ago. Chi-Chi didn't know what to say and Gohan and Gine were horrified as Bardock rolled on the ground and smashed the heel of his foot onto "Goku's" blocking forearm.

Goku slid to the side and Bardock hopped to his feet to face down his attacker/son. Gohan shouted as he Father and Grandfather squared up to each other. "Dad?! What are you doing?!"

Gine shouted at her youngest. "What's the meaning of this, Kakarot?!"

As Bardock and "Goku" glared at each other, Goku's voice rang out from the other side of the battlefield. " _Agh! Wh-what's going on...? M-my chest..._ "

Gohan, Gine, and Chi-Chi all turned their attention to the source of the voice. And Gohan gasped in terror at the sight of it. Captain Ginyu's body had hauled itself to its feet and was groaning with Goku's voice. Gine, while initially shocked, grimaced. "Dammit...I forgot that Ginyu could do that...I should have warned him..."

Gohan turned to his grandmother. "Grandma Gine, what's going on?!"

Before Gine could answer, Vegeta roared back to life. He ran from his spot in the rubble right up to Ginyu's body and forcefully jerked it around. Goku gurgled in pain, wincing at his fellow Saiyan. "Ve-Vegeta...?"

Raditz and Krillin both came running up, having observed the fight from a distance. Krillin shouted. "Goku! What are you doing?!"

Raditz sneered. " _Something_ is off..."

Bardock immediately shouted at the Prince. "Dammit Vegeta! I told you to finish him quick...now he's changed bodies..."

Vegeta cocked his head in confusion. "He did _what_?!"

Bardock was hurting, but he explained. "Ginyu screams about being some prideful warrior, but that's only if you're weaker than him! Whenever the dirty bastard comes across stronger opponents, he'll with bodies with them and take the greater power for his own! From what I've heard, he's done it at least three times...but I think this is the first time he's done it in a while..."

Raditz was horrified. "Captain Ginyu is a body thief?! But he's never looked any different for as long as I remember him!"

Bardock sneered. "That's because the purple prick takes any bodies he steals to Frieza and grovels for body modification! Damn, frail-egoed, cheating bastard can't stand not looking the same in his mirror at home!"

Ginyu shouted from his new home in Goku's body. "Shut your mouth!"

The Captain was practically drooling, tossing a punch into the clear air next to him and smirking as the sheer force smashed into the side of Frieza's ship, making it tilt over a bit. "My Body Change is the ultimate sign of respect! A mark of honor from one great warrior to another! You're just mad because, from the looks of it, I took your kid Bardock..."

Ginyu squeezed his new fists shut. "But I'll make sure to use his power well. To continue to serve Lord Frieza to my fullest..."

Ginyu struck a mighty pose. "The _NEW_ Captain Ginyu!"

And then Ginyu charged. He sped past Bardock and right at Krillin and Raditz. He grabbed Raditz by his long hair and began to whip him around in the air. Krillin went for a punch, but Ginyu punted him in the stomach. Krillin buckled over and Ginyu slammed the Saiyan in his hand on top of the human.

Gine pushed Gohan to the side and charged towards Ginyu. The Captain reared his fist back to crush Raditz's head, but Gine slid in and tripped the Captain. Ginyu stumbled over and Gine leapt onto his back, wrapping her arms around his throat for a sleeper hold. "BARDOCK! HAVE KAKAROT READY! WE NEED TO-"

Ginyu reached behind him and grabbed Gine by her armor strap. He flipped the older, Saiyan woman over his back and slammed her onto his knee. Gine coughed up a bit of blood and Ginyu flinged her across the field. And then the Captain turned to glare at Chi-Chi, Gohan, Bardock, and Vegeta.

Bardock clenched his teeth, squeezing his daughter-in-law's shoulders. "Hey...get pissed off at me later..."

Chi-Chi was confused. "What?"

In response, Bardock picked her up from the ground and tossed her away. Chi-Chi landed in the water with a massive splash and Bardock turned to shout at his two contemporaries. "Get your shit together! We gotta stop him!"

As Bardock shouted, Ginyu charged towards him, Vegeta, and Gohan. The three of them powered up to their fullest and charged back at Goku's rampaging body. Bardock went for a punch, but all of his muscles screamed in response. He faltered and Ginyu booted him away with a heavy kick. Bardock crashed into the ground and groaned to himself. " _Shit. Kakarot got really strong..._ "

Meanwhile, Vegeta and Gohan both fought hard against Ginyu. The two of them were both still relatively fresh and, in spite of not really liking each other, their Saiyan instincts allowed them to sync up for some tight defense. Vegeta grabbed Ginyu by the forearm and flipped over the Captain's back, pulling his arm out and leaving the body thief wide open. "Blast him, brat!"

Gohan charged a Masenko, but then he had a major pause. Whether Ginyu was in the body or not, that face was his Dad. This little pause was all Ginyu need. He drew his free hand back and bitch-smacked Gohan to the ground. And then he turned and smashed his fist into Vegeta's lower left side. Vegeta shouted in pain and whipped around, blasting Ginyu in the face. But, Ginyu came right back with a hefty kick to Vegeta's other side. The Prince fell to his knees and Ginyu turned to attack Gohan again, but then a new challenger came charging in for the save! Goku in Ginyu's body speared his own body to the ground and began to wildly fight back. "I don't know what's going on... _but you won't hurt my son, you bastard!_ "

Ginyu reached up and grabbed his old body by the horns. "Get this worthless, _rotting shell_ way from me!"

Ginyu headbutted Goku hard and then drove his face into the dirt. The Captain stood to deliver a heavy stomp to his old form, but then Vegeta came in with a massive, raging haymaker. Ginyu went tumbling and Vegeta reached down to pull Goku up. "On your feet Kakarot! It's your body, help fight it!"

Goku was dazed. He clenched his hand over the wound on his chest and coughed up blue blood. "I'd kinda like to have that body back..."

Ginyu recovered and sneered at Goku and Vegeta. "To Hell with the both of you!"

He thrust his hand out and shouted. " _Milky Cannon!_ "

But nothing happened. Ginyu was confused, but then surprise burst onto his face. "Oh shit..."

No one was sure of what to think. As they all got up, every one of Ginyu's opponents stared in confusion, wondering what was going on. Everyone except for Bardock and Gine, of course.

 _A long while ago..._

Ginyu chuckled as he stood over his former body, testing out the new limits of his power by throwing a few punches and kicks. "Such a good body! I'll be able to serve King Cold so much better with this form! Maybe it'll even impress the two Princes..."

Jeice smiled and clapped at Recoome, Guldo, and Burter slaughtered the rest of the platoon that the Force had just defeated. "Indeed, Cap'n! Such a good body! We just gotta get the Doctors to restore ya face!"

Ginyu slapped his new cheeks. "Right!"

On the ground, the former owner of the body gripped Ginyu's ankle. "Wh-what have you..."

Ginyu glared with disdain. Jeice sighed and shot a ki blast through the guys chest and he died instantly. "No witnesses, right Cap'n?"

Ginyu sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well yeah, _obviously_. But you don't have to say that, Jeice. It's so... _uncool_..."

Jeice bowed his head as the other Force members came back. "Sorry Cap'n..."

Recoome, Burter, and Guldo all smiled and looked over their Captain's new body. Recoome clicked on his Scouter and whistled in appreciation. "120,000! Nice!"

Burter interjected. "Can you fly, Captain?"

Ginyu tapped his chin. He thrust his hand out and tried to fire a blast, but failed. "Nah. Looks like this body is too different from ones I've used in the past. I'll need you to carry me until I can figure it out..."

Burter smirked. "Of course, Captain! I'm always happy to let you fly _Air Burter_!"

Ginyu nodded and hopped up on Burter's back. The Force flew away, chuckling and telling jokes and offering to share chocolate nut bars with each other. Meanwhile, on the ground and behind a nearby bit of ship wreckage, Bardock and Gine were both sat. Bardock had an icy, tight grip across Gine's mouth and Gine looked mortified.

Bardock removed his hand and shook his head. "Not a word. Not to Toma. Not to Fasha. _Not to anyone._ If that gets around, Ginyu will kill us all. Got it, Gine?!"

Gine nodded her head trepidatiously, and then she and Bardock went running off.

Back in the present...

Bardock and Gine turned and looked at each other, and then they both glared back at Ginyu as he stared down and Goku's hands. Gine spoke up first, speaking to everyone else present. "He's never possessed a body quite like a Saiyan's before. He doesn't know what he's doing!"

Ginyu snapped his attention to Gine, who was glaring at him. "You stole my son's body, but all you can to is rampage and throw physical strength around! You have no idea how to technically use his body!"

Everyone turned their attention from Gine to Ginyu, who was blushing a deep shade of red. Ginyu didn't say a word, but everyone could see on his face that Gine had hit the nail on the head. Bardock turned to Raditz and Krillin, who had gotten back up. "Any of those bean things left?"

Raditz held the empty bag upside down. "Fresh out. Me and Kakarot used a lot of them to get more training time in."

Bardock sneered. "Dammit..."

Vegeta chimed in. "There are healing tanks on Frieza's ship."

Gohan spoke up. "And we have Dende!"

Bardock nodded. "Right. So, we have options..."

The older Saiyan looked at each one of his cohorts and then at Ginyu. And then, he lifted his hands up and pointed them at the defenseless Captain. Bardock took a deep breath. " _PEPPER HIS ASS! WE'LL BREAK KAKAROT'S BODY AND FIX IT LATER ONCE WE'VE GOTTEN HIM BACK IN IT!_ "

Vegeta smirked and began to instantly fire blasts at Goku's body. "Don't have to tell me twice!"

Everyone else, barring Gohan, immediately joined in as well. Soon, Ginyu was being assailed from all sides by hundreds of ki blasts. From within the smoke, Ginyu was screaming in pain. He could block some attacks, even deflect a few, but he couldn't stop all of them at once.

Goku growled from the sidelines. He tried to fire blasts of his own, but nothing doing. He understood Ginyu's body about as well as Ginyu understood his. But he still knew how to physically fight. So, not caring about Ginyu's body, Goku charged into the fray and delivered a heavy punch to his own cheek. The Captain growled and tried to attack back, but the blasts just managed to do even more damage to him.

The blizzard of Ki Blasts was overwhelming. And, with everyone but Vegeta trying their best not to hit Goku in Ginyu's body, the Captain was soon way more damaged. Goku shouted out and reared his fist back one more time, before striking his own body across the face and sending it crumpling to the ground. Captain Ginyu laid in the dirt, defeated for a second time.

As the smoke cleared and the dust settled, Chi-Chi returned from her little trip to the water and ran up to attend to the terrified Gohan. She held her confused and terror-stricken son close while all of the others gathered around Goku and Ginyu's scorched forms. Goku in Ginyu's body was on his knees, but Ginyu in Goku's body was flat on his back.

Ginyu damned himself. "Sh-shit...even with this new body..."

Goku snapped at the Captain. "My body! It's my body! And I want it back!"

Ginyu sneered at Goku. "Bite me."

As everyone else loomed over him, Ginyu began to tear up. Bardock was unmoved. "Either you switch back, or we make you Ginyu."

Ginyu chuckled as tears streamed down his face. "I've already failed Lord Frieza twice...do you really think I'd fail him a third time by just giving this body back? So that...it..."

Ginyu shook his head and became enraged. "So that it can try and stand up to him?! This Saiyan is weaker than Lord Frieza, but I can see that he'll get stronger as time wears on! So even if I have to die in this miserable shell...I'll die to keep Lord Frieza's position in the Universe safe...!"

Vegeta shrugged. "Whatever. We could just kill you and then, if Kakarot really is necessary to have around to fight Frieza, just ask the Dragon to restore his original body."

Vegeta turned to his cohorts from Earth. "Right?"

Krillin slowly nodded. "I-I guess that's an option..."

Vegeta smirked and chuckled. "Exactly. So, see Ginyu? Even with this Body Change of yours, you're still a failure! Kakarot showed up at the 11th hour to give you an out and you still blew it!"

Ginyu's eyes darted around. While Vegeta mocked him, he could see that Bardock, Gine, and Raditz were all really prepared to obliterate him should he try to change again. Vegeta continued. "How does it feel to know that, to a bastard like Frieza, even a loyal dog like you is seen as little more than trash when put into this position?! If he saw you right now, he'd probably kill you out of disgust!"

Ginyu was angry, but Vegeta's words cowed him. The Prince was right, at least in one regard. He had totally failed his Lord Frieza. But...

Bardock turned to Vegeta. "Vegeta. Shut the Hell up. Your mouth has caused us enough trouble already!"

Meanwhile, Goku ignored his Father and Vegeta bicker to watch Ginyu on the ground. And he actually felt a bit sorry for the Captain. At the end of the day, Goku didn't know much about this whole Body Change thing, but he did know his own face. He was able to recognize when there was pain on it. And he could see a ton of pain shadowing his eyes.

Goku spoke up. "Hey...if you just change bodies back with me...you can just go."

Everyone flinched back, falling silent as Goku said that. Bardock snapped at his youngest son. "Kakarot! Are you out of your damned mind?! He's an enemy!"

Goku shook his head. "Yeah. I know. But...I feel really bad for him. He's just trying to do his job and make this Frieza guy happy. So...I'm not upset that he took my body. I'm just, like...why would you try to win a fight with a power you didn't even train to acquire?"

Bardock shook his head. "Kakarot! I have my hands full with Vegeta being 7 Shades of Stupid, I don't need you to do it too!"

Goku looked up at his Dad. "But, hear me out!"

On the ground, Ginyu was blocking all of that bickering out. He was regressing into his own mind. He had failed his Lord Frieza. But...Vegeta was wrong about one thing. Ginyu flashed back, to a time long ago.

 _Long ago, in the past..._

"Tell me another grand tale, Captain. I wish to be entertained by another rousing adventure~"

Ginyu chuckled in response to this. "Of course! I am always happy to use my time off to entertain you! Allow me to show you my _Dance of Triumph_ , done when I dominated the Skuxxoids for His Majesty~!"

 _Back in the Present..._

Ginyu's fist was shaking with rage as he laid there. The thought of his failure was eating him alive. Oblivious, Goku continued his scolding. "But I just feel bad! He took my body with no idea of how it works! He's never used a Kamehameha! He's never used the Turtle Style! _And I know he's never used the Kaioken, so he must be desperate..._ "

Ginyu's eyes snapped open. He glared at the people all standing over him and snarled in a truly threatening voice. "I will not fail Lord Frieza in the end!"

Ginyu caught everyone off guard and he bashed them away. They all took fighting stances and Ginyu clenched his fists. "I'm still able to fight, you miserable Saiyans!"

Suddenly, power began to swell within Ginyu and Bardock flinched back. "Shit...that's right..."

Krillin turned to Bardock. "Wh-what's going on?!"

Bardock was unnerved. "Ginyu is a sight learner. And he's seen me use the Kaioken twice..."

Ginyu roared at the top of his lungs and red power burst from Goku's body. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWO!_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	28. Chapter 28: Ginyu Force Falls

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 28: Ginyu Force Falls**

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Ginyu's new found Kaioken power swelled and bursted out, sending miniature shockwaves across the battlefield and burning a crater beneath the Captain's feet. The others all take on defensive stances, and Ginyu immediately charges!

The Captain goes for Bardock and Vegeta first. He kneed Bardock in the chest and sent the older Saiyan tumbling back, and then he kicked Vegeta in the side as hard as he could. A massive, popping crack echoed out from Vegeta's side and the Prince coughed up blood, his ribs shattered. Vegeta fell to his knees and Ginyu knocked him away with a punch to the cheek. And then he turned his attention to Krillin and Raditz once more.

Krillin panicked and tried to use a Kamehameha, but Ginyu seized him by the wrists and slammed an elbow into the monk's face. Krillin fell back, fading from consciousness and Ginyu went to work on Raditz.

Raditz was able to defend himself slightly better. His higher power level and recent training with Goku allowed him to defend himself from his brother's body. But Ginyu's reckless use of the Kaioken power was putting Raditz on the heavy defensive. Ginyu sent Raditz flying with a punch. As Raditz went sprawling back, Ginyu leapt at the older brother to secure the kill, but a punch quickly intercepted his attack.

The Captain turned to face this new challenger and saw a similarly powered-up Gine. "Oh! You again! Do you really think you can take me?!"

Gine gritted her teeth. " _Kaioken Times Ten!_ "

Ginyu came in for a heaving punch, but Gine blocked it and came back with a kick of her own. The two of them clashed back and forth for a moment, giving Raditz time to recover. The older brother stood and shouted. " _Kaioken Times Six!_ "

The power of the Kaioken flared out from Raditz's body and he rushed at Ginyu to help his mother. The two of them gave their all to fighting the Captain, meeting every strike from Ginyu with a quick guard and a strike of their own. Mother and Son both reared their fists back after deflect two punches from Ginyu and slammed them into his chest. Ginyu went skidding back and Raditz and Gine landed, ready to face more.

Ginyu coughed, tapping his fist against Goku's chest and then smirking at Raditz and Gine. " _Kaioken Times Ten!_ "

Gine and Raditz both flinched. Gine blocked her eyes from the sheer amount of dust that Ginyu was kicking up and cried out. "How did he do that?!"

Ginyu answered. "This 'Kaioken' thing is just a power amplifier! It's nothing to ramp it up even higher after I saw you do it, fool!"

And then Ginyu charged. He zipped between Raditz and Gine and laid into each of them. Gine took a hard kick to the face and was smashed into the ground. And then Raditz got it even worse. Ginyu slammed his shoulder into the older brother's stomach and took him off of the ground. And then, winding up a mighty punch, Ginyu smashed Raditz in the face and sent him flying back. Gine grunted and tried to stand up, summoning a ki blast. But, Ginyu quickly whipped around towards her and pulled his leg back for a kick.

The foot fired forward, with Gine not having any time to defend. But it was quickly intercepted and blocked by Goku in Ginyu's body. The battered, purple form of the Captain's body slammed into Gine and they both went rolling. Goku cringed as he landed flat and turned his attention to Gine. "H-hey, Mom. Are you okay?"

Gine looked up and, flinching, immediately cried out. "Look out, Kakarot!"

Goku turned to see Ginyu was already on top of him, his arm drawn back for a slicing chop. But before Ginyu could seize the kill, an enraged Vegeta rejoined the fray. The Prince slammed into Ginyu and dragged him away in high-speed flight. He stopped short, allowing the momentum to carry Ginyu away and began to spam ki blasts at the Captain.

The blasts, however, had no effect. Ginyu quickly got back onto his feet and sprinted right back towards Vegeta, knocking attacks away until he reached the Prince and began to beat the Hell out of him. Fist after fist smashed into Vegeta's face and torso, injuring the Prince and forcing him to the ground. Ginyu raised his fists into the air to kill Vegeta off, but yet another challenger leapt in for their share of the fight.

A Kaioken-powered Bardock came in with a pinpoint kick to the ribs of his son's body. As Ginyu stumbled back, Bardock reached down and yanked Vegeta to his feet and they both charged. A few punches and kicks were fired off by the two Saiyans, but Ginyu was quick to leap into the air and stomp the both of them into the ground. Ginyu was manic and drunk on this new power of his. "Now I take my revenge tenfold! Die you worthless bastards!"

Ginyu grabbed Vegeta and Bardock by the hair and prepared to yank up, but yet another interruption came in from the side. The Captain turned his attention to this new intruder, a small stream of drool running from his mouth, and locked his eyes onto Gohan.

Ginyu turned to the trembling boy, and the just as terrified Chi-Chi standing right behind him. Ginyu's vision went red as he snarled. "You're going to regret that one, kid!"

The Captain rushed at Gohan, leaving Vegeta and Bardock on the ground. He pulled his fist back and slammed it into the boy's face, sending him flying back to slam into a massive boulder. Gohan cried out in pain and plopped onto the ground.

Seeing someone attack her Son, Chi-Chi's motherly instincts took over. She roared at the top of her lungs and furious laid kicks into her husband's snatched body. Ginyu turned to her, unaffected, and immediately seized her throat. The Captain lifted Chi-Chi into the air and prepared to punch her head off, but then another blast crashed into him. Ginyu's body tensed up and he dropped Chi-Chi, who was immediately grabbed by the recovered Gine and carried to safety.

The Captain didn't care. He turned his attention to the source of the blast and saw an angry Gohan standing there. "A-are you stupid?! You must not have a single, functioning brain cell in your head if you think that you have any chance against me you little prick!"

Gohan shook his head and took a fighting stance. "Maybe I do, maybe I don't! But I will not just stand by and let you hurt my Mom! I'll never forgive you!"

Ginyu roared at Gohan and charged at the boy again. Except this time the boy fought back with much more spirit! Ginyu had made Gohan angry and the kid absolutely refused to back down this time. He took each punch and kick and elbow and knee from his Dad's body with stride and returned with an attack of his own.

As the fight raged on, Gohan realized he needed some sort of plan. He thought hard, and then he came up with one thing he thought might work. Gohan quickly folded his left hand behind his back and began to charge energy into it, continuing to defend from the Captain with his three remaining limbs. Ginyu didn't seem to notice, too blinded by rage.

Soon, after dodging a kick from Ginyu, Gohan leapt into the air and the Captain quickly followed.

 _Meanwhile, over with the others..._

Chi-Chi cried out in fear as she watched her son and the enraged Captain Ginyu brawl. She watched on in terror as Gine, acting quickly, began to gather the injured and crippled together to be taken to safety. The Saiyan Mother felt for Chi-Chi, but she genuinely had more important things to do at the moment than coddle her daughter-in-law.

Gine turned to Chi-Chi and shouted to get her attention. "Chi-Chi! I need your-"

Gine gasped in terror as Chi-Chi, blinded by her need to protect her son, started to take to the air to go and join the fight. Gine stood and cursed to herself. "Dammit!"

Before Chi-Chi could get too far, Gine reached up and grabbed her by the ankle. Quickly, and perhaps a tad brutally, Gine yanked her daughter-in-law from the air and tossed her to the ground. Chi-Chi looked shocked and hurt as she stood up. "G-Gine! What are you-"

Gine quickly grabbed Chi-Chi by the shoulder and shouted at her in the most serious tone she could muster. "Chi-Chi! Listen to me! I agree with you, okay?!"

Chi-Chi was confused, but then Gine clarified. "I agree with you! Was it a stupid move, as a Grandfather, for Bardock to go and let Gohan fight Recoome by himself?! Yes! Absolutely!"

Chi-Chi tried to pull away. "Then, why are you-"

Gine cut her off. "But, do I think that Gohan can't handle himself in a fight?! Absolutely not! He's a Saiyan, Chi-Chi! A half-Saiyan, but still a Saiyan! He's a born warrior and while he might not be the most expert fighter here, he can still help where he's needed!"

Chi-Chi's lower jaw began to tremble. "B-But...I don't want my baby to have to-"

Gine teared up and shook her head. "I know how you feel! I felt the same way with Raditz, but...we all have to help where we're needed! Right now, Gohan is the one here with the best chance at holding Ginyu off! We need to let him serve his role while we serve ours! We have to get the injured out of harm's way, cuz if they die then there is _no way in Hell_ we'll be able to beat Frieza! Understand?!"

Chi-Chi pointed to her baby, who was currently fighting for his life. "But, what will we do about that?! Even after we save the others...Gohan can't beat that monster by himself! Even if he's strong, that freak has Goku's body!"

Gine nodded. "I know he does! And once the others are out of the way, you don't have to worry! I'll go and protect Gohan with my life, if I have to! But we have to focus on the greater good right now Chi-Chi! Can you please do that?!"

After a bit of silent thought, Chi-Chi nodded. "Y-yes..."

Gine nodded back. "Good. Then let's get to it!"

 _Up in the air..._

The fight raged on in the sky. Gohan and Ginyu were going back and forth with all of the ferocity they could muster. Gohan was just barely avoiding being seriously hurt, dodging and occasionally getting in a hit of his own. But that didn't matter to Gohan. The boy was wise beyond his years and he remembered everything Mr. Piccolo taught him about seeking out weak points and was working his hardest to do just that.

And, in Gohan's observations, one thing was becoming very clear: just because his Dad had gotten stronger, that didn't make the Kaioken any less dangerous to use. Ginyu was too enraged to notice, but the Kaioken Times Ten was taking its toll on Goku's body. Slowly but surely, the body's reflexes were slowing. Reaction times were going down. Ginyu was taking all of the damage from Gohan like a tank, but the damage he was doing to himself was taking effect.

Gohan continued his fight with a clear goal in mind. He just had to damage his father's body enough to spring his secret move and take Ginyu out!

 _Back on the ground..._

Gine and Chi-Chi had finished their first saving run. Krillin and Bardock had been moved underneath Frieza's ship and now it was time to take two more to safety. Chi-Chi bent over and began to shake Ginyu's body, trying to wake up her unconscious husband. "Goku! Get up! Please, I need to know that you're still alive in there!"

Meanwhile, Gine turned her attention to her injured, eldest son. "Raditz..."

Raditz turned his attention to his mother, semi-conscious. "H-hey Mom..."

Gine dug her hand under her son's shoulder. "Can you stand?"

Raditz seemed to ignore her, chuckling and staring back up into the sky. "C-can you believe it, Mom? I kidnapped that boy a little over a year ago. He was a screaming, crying mess...and now..."

Gine nodded. "Yes Raditz. Gohan is quite impressive. Now, I need you to help me here. Come on..."

Gine began to lift her son over her shoulder and Raditz continued to talk to himself. "I'm glad I got brought back to life after that Namekian killed me. It's nice to be able...to see..."

Raditz quickly locked onto a familiar feeling as he watched Gohan fight. He scanned his way through the fight between the Captain and his nephew looking for what felt so familiar...and eventually he found it! Gohan was holding his left hand back and Raditz could sense a very familiar type of power within it. That technique... _HE WAS GOING TO USE THAT TECHNIQUE?!_

Raditz used his tactical mind to scan the situation. And he instantly found fault. Ginyu was damaging Kakarot's body with Kaioken overuse, that much was clear, but he was still too fast! At the rate things were going, Gohan would run out of stamina before Ginyu damaged himself enough! He would dodge it, just as Raditz once had, and that would leave Gohan open for a devastating blow. Raditz gritted his teeth. He couldn't let that happen!

As Gine threw her daydreaming, eldest son over her shoulder, Raditz suddenly got his feet under him. And then, with all of his strength, the older brother leapt into the air and towards Gohan and Ginyu!

 _Up in the air..._

Gohan was becoming desperate as the battle wore on. His stamina was wavering as he and Captain Ginyu continued their fight. Having to focus on both dodging for his life and maintain the focus necessary to charge his secret attack was taking more out of the poor child than he expected it to. Now or never was coming towards him with the unyielding speed of a comet hurdling through space.

Gohan gritted his teeth and began to observe his situation, looking for the best spot to fire off his attack. He and Ginyu continued to exchange blows, the Kaioken still slowly breaking Ginyu down. But, at the brawl continued, Gohan realized something utterly horrifying: he wouldn't last until Ginyu was slowed enough to actually hit! At this rate, his special attack would definitely miss!

Ginyu was foaming at the mouth as he levied attack after attack towards Gohan. This brat thought he could stand up to the Captain. And, to his credit, the boy was hanging as best as a child could be expected to. But, Ginyu was still the senior warrior here. And this brat wouldn't be defeating him today!

Gohan continued to analyze the situation in his head. He played out what would happen. He would fire his attack, Ginyu would instantly react and dodge, and then Gohan would be...

Tears appeared in Gohan's eyes and he squeezed them shut. "D-dammit..."

He knew that Ginyu was probably about to kill him. But, Gohan didn't despair. He bought his friends and family on the ground enough time to save themselves, so hopefully they'd wish him back with the Dragon Balls soon. So, with a heavy heart, Gohan thrusted his hand forward.

As the boy did that, Ginyu instantly knew what was up. Whatever attack that was, the Captain did not plan to let it defeat him! He quickly traced a solid path to both dodge the attack and finish the brat off in one shot. Ginyu smiled wide. " _You lose, punk!_ "

But, as Ginyu began to move, something sudden grabbed him from behind and kept him held in place. The Captain cried out. "WHAT?!"

This new assailant of his chuckled and tightened the full nelson he had grabbed the Captain into. "Not today, Ginyu! Can't let you kill my nephew, sorry!"

Ginyu turned, enraged, to see that Raditz was hanging from his back like some kind of goddamned parasite. Ginyu began to resist and fight against Raditz's grip. "Get the Hell off me! You dirty, Saiyan bastard! _Get your filthy hands off me!_ "

Raditz held on tight, unable to be removed given his awkward positioning on the Captain's back. Ginyu snarled and slammed his elbow into Raditz's ribs. The older brother coughed in pain, but didn't let go of his hold.

 _On the ground..._

Gine and Chi-Chi both watched from the ground as Raditz leapt into the fray to help Gohan out. In spite of Ginyu using all of Goku's power, Raditz was somehow able to hold on tightly and securely. The Captain screamed in frustration as Raditz managed to restrain him.

Chi-Chi was still nervous, she remained knelt next to her husband, who was still trapped in Ginyu's body, and kept her eyes trained onto Gohan. Gine watched intently, ready to jump in if she was needed. The two women were both so focused on the fight above that neither seemed to notice of care that Vegeta was waking up.

 _Up in the air..._

Raditz secured his grip onto Ginyu even tighter, eventually managing to grip the Captain's arms from moving. Raditz folded his legs over Ginyu's legs and then wrapped his tail around Ginyu's waist. Now Ginyu was rendered totally helpless, floating in the air with Raditz hanging onto his like an irritating backpack.

Gohan hovered above this scene, confused and watching as his uncle restrained Ginyu tightly. He didn't know what to do. But he was quickly given a clue when Raditz started shouting at him. " _GOHAN! FIRE THE DAMN ATTACK!_ "

Gohan flinched back, his eyes wide. "B-but...I don't want to hurt you..."

Raditz shouted back. "It doesn't matter! We have those Dragon Balls! If I die, I can be brought back! We just have to focus on defeating Ginyu right now!"

Raditz clenched his eyes shut. " _SO, FIRE ALREADY!_ "

Gohan closed his mouth, swallowing a lump in his throat and clenching his teeth. Needing to focus up, he extended his two fingers and pressed them to his forehead. Soon, energy began to crackle from his fingertips and he began to look for the best spot to hit. "Just gotta be pragmatic...just like Grandpa Bardock. Gotta do this for the greater good..."

Gohan stared at his Uncle struggling to restrain his Father's and he began to falter. He didn't want to kill them. He...he couldn't bring himself to kill them. So, rather than aim at center mass of his target, Gohan aimed slightly to the side. He focused all of the energy to a point, and then Gohan fired his secret attack. " _SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

The drilling beam burst from Gohan's fingers, sending the boy recoiling back. The attack smashed into the side of Goku's body and shredded through the ribcage before doing the same to Raditz. Ginyu and Raditz both screamed in pain at the attack rocked them hard. Once it was over, both of the warriors immediately began to plummet, blood bursting from the and leaving a trail of red in the air as they fell.

 _On the ground..._

Chi-Chi and Gine were both in shock. As Ginyu and Raditz both fell from the sky, the two women questions how little Gohan was even capable of such a ferocious attack. As the two watched on, Raditz and Ginyu both splatted against the ground.

Raditz yelped and gurgled at he smashed against the ground. This time, he was down for the count. Ginyu immediately landed next to him, but didn't make a sound. The Captain laid there, unmoving and unsounding, completely still. Everything fell quiet on the battlefield as no one knew how to react.

Vegeta stood and took stock of the situation. Everyone was down, Ginyu included. This was his chance! Vegeta leapt to his feet and rushed over to Raditz and Goku's body. The Prince summoned a massive energy blast and levied it above his head.

Gine cried out. "Vegeta! What are you doing?!"

Vegeta snarled. "We have the Dragon Balls to restore Kakarot's body if we need it! We have to kill Ginyu while he's-"

Ginyu immediately slammed his foot into Vegeta's knee, breaking the Prince's leg. Vegeta roared in pain and buckled over and Ginyu met him with a solid punch to the center of the face. Vegeta was sent rolling back and Ginyu stood up. He didn't even bother to clench his wound, he just glared up into the sky at Gohan. "Cool moves, kid. But... _you should've gone for the kill_!"

Gohan cried out in fear and raised his hands above his head, preparing a Masenko. Ginyu, however, made a shocking declaration. The Captain roared and began to build his power up more and more. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWENTY! NO TIMES FIFTY! NO! TIMES ONE HUNDRED!_ "

The sheer, overwhelming boom of power scared Gohan senseless. His arms fell to his sides and he stared down at Ginyu in terror. At this moment, Ginyu was much, _much_ stronger than Frieza. At this moment, he might've been the most powerful person in the Universe. This sudden surge of power caused all of the unconscious fighters to perk up and stir. Goku, still trapped in Ginyu's body, looked on in sheer horror as Kaioken power ripped from his body. Krillin was shaking next to the still unmoving Bardock at this miserable feeling. The total force of the power pushed Vegeta and Raditz away, sending both Saiyans flying off like paper refuse.

Goku and Chi-Chi's gaze both went from the surging Ginyu and up to their son. Goku was the first to cry out. " _GOHAN! RUN!_ "

Chi-Chi had tears streaming down her face. " _GET OUT OF THERE RIGHT NOW!_ "

But, as the two of them screamed, Ginyu crouched down and leapt into the air with a mighty shout. " _ **FOR THE GLORY OF LORD FRIEZA!**_ "

Everyone panicked at Ginyu rocketed upwards, instantly being on top of Gohan with a killing blow ready to be delivered. Everyone, of course, except for the oddly calm Bardock. The older Saiyan laid under the shade of Frieza's ship, next to Krillin, and let loose a slightly pained chuckle. " _Purple dumbass..._ "

 _Up in the air..._

Gohan was flinching in fear. He was waiting for it, for the mother of all hits to come and finish him off. The boy was trembling in place, waiting for it and waiting for it...but it never came. After such a long, pregnant pause of nothing happening, Gohan opened his eyes and gasped.

He came onto the sight of his Father's body, doubled over in total agony. Ginyu couldn't even formulate the sounds in his throat to scream in pain as his skin and muscles visibly writhed. The Kaioken had taken its toll and Ginyu was left totally crippled as a result. The Captain's eyes rolled back at bit, he glared at Gohan with an odd combination of hate and rage and warrior-to-warrior respect, and then he fell from the sky like a weight.

Ginyu snarled to himself, realizing that the tables had turned on him once again. He had to find a way out of this fast! The Captain ignored the white-hot pain that was rushing over him and scanned over the field. The first thing that he saw was obviously Vegeta. While the Prince was easily the strongest and least damaged person present, somehow, he wasn't within a a clear enough line of sight to use the Body Change on!

Ginyu looked around for a solution to this. And then he realized, his old body was nearly dead...but it was in line of sight with Vegeta! He didn't have to worry about that other Saiyan fighting back, because this body was destroyed! The perfect plan! Ginyu chuckled and smiled to himself, glaring down at his old body. " _CHANGE NOW!_ "

 _Back on the ground..._

Chi-Chi was shocked by a golden beam suddenly crashing down from the sky and hitting her nearly-dead husband. The human woman screamed at the top of her lungs. " _Wh-what now?!_ "

Her question was answered by a surprise jab to the face! Gine turned in shock to see Chi-Chi tumbling away, blood gushing from her nose and mouth, and Ginyu struggling to stand up. The Saiyan mother shouted and fired a ki blast, but Ginyu deflected it back at her. Once Gine fell, Ginyu smiled with malice and glared at the disoriented Vegeta.

Once Goku thudded against the ground, Ginyu laughed out loud and shouted. " _CHANGE NOW!_ "

Ginyu's body began to glow gold and everything slowed down. Gine was still stunned on the ground, struggling to push herself up. Gohan was rushing down from his position up in the air and Krillin was meagerly limping towards Captain Ginyu. No one else was able to move. If Captain Ginyu managed to switch bodies with Vegeta...then it was all well and truly over.

On the ground, Chi-Chi wiped her face, cringing at the sight of her blood staining her hand. She looked up at the miserable purple bastard that had been terrorizing her family and saw him glowing golden again. She knew he was about to go for another switch, even if she didn't know with whom. What should she do?! What _could_ she do?!

Then, suddenly, Chi-Chi felt something slimy on her hand. She looked down and, to her shock, what appeared to be the Namekian version of a frog was right there. Chi-Chi reacted immediately. She grabbed the frog tightly, steeled her gaze, and then she activated her newly acquired ability to Fly. Chi-Chi rocked from the ground and toward Captain Ginyu, frog in hand, and then got right in the Captain's face. Ginyu stared in horror as the Body Change beam began to exit his mouth, and Chi-Chi simply smirked at him.

A mighty flash covered the whole battlefield, blinding everyone watching on.

After a few moments, everyone's vision cleared and they all stared over at Ginyu and Chi-Chi. The Captain's eyes were glazed over and white while Chi-Chi's face was obscured. No one could tell what had happened. And then, to everyone's horror, Chi-Chi whipped her head back. Her eyes were filled with malicious intent and the woman began to evilly chuckle.

Vegeta, having regained his sense, quickly prepared a blast to kill who he thought was now Ginyu. But then, something happened that truly caught Vegeta off-guard. Captain Ginyu's old body fell to its hands and feet, and then it began to croak. "Ribbit. Ribbit. Ribbit."

The body began to hop away as Chi-Chi continued her low, extraordinarily malicious laugh. The human woman held her arm out, showing that she was holding a Namekian frog by one of its hind legs. Chi-Chi looked both smug and angry as she spat utter venom to her amphibian captive. "Do you really think that, after all you've done to my husband and son and the rest of my family, I would just sit there and let you have your way?!"

Chi-Chi spat a bit of blood from her mouth. " _You must be joking!_ "

The frog began to ribbit in terror and Chi-Chi, rather cruelly, began to spin it around like a toy. Vegeta and Gine were both staring, totally dumbfounded as she did, neither able to really process what had just happened. Chi-Chi didn't seem to regard them; she was too focused on the reduced Captain Ginyu.

Chi-Chi summoned a ki blast in her hand and sneered at Ginyu-Frog. "Now I'm gonna show you why you don't mess with my kid."

With all of the force she could muster, Chi-Chi spun Ginyu-Frog around and whipped him high into the air. And then she shouted. "GO TO HELL YOU BODY SNATCHING BASTARD!"

Chi-Chi whipped her ki blast into the air and it hit Ginyu-Frog dead on. The smoking body of the Frog fell from the air like a stone, arcing to the narby water and splashing in. Chi-Chi breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Gine, smiling and shooting a victory sign. "I found a way to make myself useful!"

Gine was slightly taken aback by the Saiyan level of sadistic cruelty that her daughter-in-law had just showed, but she managed a nervous smile and a nod at Chi-Chi's chipper attitude. But then, that chipper attitude quickly disappeared and Chi-Chi ran over to her critically injured husband. " _GOKU!_ "

Chi-Chi knelt next to her husband and began to fret and worry over his injuries. Gohan soon joined her in checking on his Dad and they both fretted over Goku as he painfully, but gently, reassured them. " _G-guys...it's alright...I-I'll be...f-fine..._ "

Vegeta, still unable to process what had just happened, stepped up to the worrying family. "Y-you...Earth woman...you...you just...you..."

Chi-Chi turned and snapped at Vegeta. "What?!"

Vegeta shook his head. "You killed Captain Ginyu!"

Chi-Chi shrugged, looking flustered. "So what?! That's in the past! It's over! We have more important things to worry about!"

She jabbed her finger at the Prince. "You said there were healing pods on that ship, right?!"

Vegeta quickly and silently nodded. Chi-Chi stood. "Good!"

She motioned for Gohan to help her gently lift Goku from the ground and then she snapped at Vegeta again. "Well?! What are you waiting for?! Lead the way! We need that healing pod now!"

Vegeta was just slightly intimidated, but he agreed with Chi-Chi on that regard. They needed to get Kakarot into the Healing Chamber so that he could help in the fight against Frieza. Quickly, Vegeta lead the way to show Chi-Chi and Gohan where the pod was.

Shakily, Raditz stood up and coughed. He nearly buckled over, but was caught mid-fall by Krillin. The Saiyan and the Monk both shared a look before Krillin chuckled. "Hey, you came to help me, right? Might as well return the favor."

Raditz chuckled and allowed himself to rest on Krillin's shoulder. "F-for sure..."

And finally, Gine walked over to her husband, who was still lying on the ground, and gently shook him. "Bardock! Are you okay?"

Bardock shakily pushed himself up, he felt slow and slightly sick. But he managed to get to his feet. "Eh...it took Frieza to kill me before. It'll at least take Frieza to kill me again..."

Gine shot him a worried and annoyed look. "I'd prefer that you not be killed again at all. I mean seriously...I'd like to at least have a small taste of a peaceful life together before you kick off..."

Bardock chuckled and gently rubbed his wife's shoulder, pulling her close. "Oh, come on...you know you ain't gonna be rid of me that easily..."

Gine looked up at her husband and shot him a cheery smile. Bardock smirked back and then was surprised by a quick kiss on the lips from Gine. The two of them stared at each other for a moment and then Gine laughed. "Chi-Chi is probably going to chew you out...and I can't blame her...but I just wanna say that I think you did a good job of keeping everyone alive, honey."

Bardock groaned and nodded. "Yeah...no one's dead so far...I mean, other than most of the Namekian people, but I didn't know any of them so I don't really care..."

Gine sighed and sadly glanced over to Ginyu's old body. It had stopped hopping around and was just lying there. Slowly, the eyes closed and then it went still. "That poor frog didn't deserve that..."

Bardock shrugged. "Necessary sacrifices. Whatcha gonna do? Now...let's get inside so that we can try to get things together. We have the Dragon Balls, so it's about time we start making wishes and shit..."

 _ **And so, with kill total of 5-0, the Bardock Force had managed to defeat the dreaded Ginyu Force. It was a solid victory for the side of our heroes! And yet, further evil still lurked on the horizon! The Z-Warriors are in for their mightiest challenge yet as the dreaded Lord Frieza awaits them on the horizon!**_

 _Over on the nearby shore..._

The water calmly rippled in the Namekian sea as Bardock and his group retreated into Frieza's Ship. For just a moment, it seemed as if all of the threats to their cause had been neutralized. But, unbeknownst to them, a pair of sinister Namekian Frog Antennae popped out from beneath the waves.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	29. Chapter 29: Epiphany

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Hey everybody! If you've stuck around this long...thank you so much for giving this fic so much attention! Your comments and reviews mean the world to me. Next chapter will be a MEGA CHAPTER (so it might take a bit longer) but then the chapter after is the main event of Planet Namek! I hope you all stick around to read it and I cannot wait to hear from you about what you think! :)_

 **Chapter 29: Epiphany**

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Gine stood in front of the ramp to Frieza's ship with a plaintive look on her face. She watched as Krillin and Nail both walked towards the shore. All three of them were grim in the face of what they had seen within Frieza's ship.

Gine flashed back to that miserable sight, finding Nail just kneeling there, surrounded by the corpses of his fallen brothers. There was a massive dent in the wall as if the grieving Namekian had tossed a Dragon Ball into it in a rage. After they had helped him out of the room and had removed the Dragon Balls, Gine and Krillin had requested that Vegeta simply seal the room shut and lock the door tightly.

Gine shook her head, trying to get her mind off of the Emperor's brutality. "A-are you two sure that you'll be okay? I could go and retrieve Bulma and the others so that you two can rest..."

Nail doesn't turn to face her, but his tired voice at least sounds grateful. "I am fine. But your concern is appreciated."

Krillin turned to face Gine, shooting her a reassuring smile. The monk slapped his hand against the breastplate of his new armor that Vegeta had gotten him and shot a thumbs-up. "I'm not too banged up. And Vegeta got me this armor, so I should be good..."

Gine nodded and shot a thumbs up back. "Good luck then. We'll be here when you get back, hopefully..."

Krillin and Gine shared a nervous laugh, and then Krillin and Nail took off. Once they were out of shit, Gine turned and walked back into the ship.

 _Inside Frieza's Ship..._

Gine walked down the hallway towards the Medical Bay. She looked into each room as she passed, finding various messes and states of disrepair. It looked as if several bombs had gone off in the ship fairly recently. Eventually, Gine came upon the former locker room and heard a rustling noise. "Wh-who's there?!"

Vegeta popped his head out from behind a row of lockers. He was clad in a freshly stolen set up armor, a slightly older model with a lack of shoulder protection or stretching shoulder straps, and glared at Gine. The two of them stood there for a moment, regarding each other with silent disdain. Eventually, Gine separated her gaze from his and continued her march. Wordlessly, Vegeta went back to digging for fresh armor.

Gine continued along until she came to the entrance of the Medical Bay. Walking in, Gine looked over the state of her family. She sighed at the sight of them.

Bardock and Raditz were laying on either side of the one functional healing chamber. Bardock was barely conscious, laying there with several damaged muscles and broken bones. He was stressed and fatigued, but his life was in little danger. Raditz was a much different story. The older brother was laid on the ground with several layers of bandage wrapped around his torso. They had managed to bandage him up well enough, but those wrappings didn't take long to become stained a deep crimson.

But, neither of those two were anything compared to what had happened to Goku. The Saiyan from Earth had to be put in the healing chamber. Between the wound from the Special Beam Cannon and how badly Ginyu had wrecked his body through pushing the Kaioken, Goku was nearly dead by the time they had put him into the pod. And, while he was slowly being repaired by the medical fluid in the chamber, it was quite the slow process.

Gine pinched the bridge of her nose and sat next to her husband. "I really hope that that Namekian child is able to heal all of you..."

Gine grabbed Bardock's hand and gave it a loving squeeze. Bardock flinched and cracked his eyes open, glancing up at his beloved wife. "Hey Gine..."

Bardock shuddered in pain. "Are they back with Dende yet?"

Gine shook her head, massaging her fingers over Bardock's. "They just left, Love."

Bardock groaned. "Damn..."

Bardock laid back and squeezed his eyes shut from the pain. And then, he looked around. "Where's Vegeta?"

Gine rolled her eyes. "He's stealing from dead Frieza Forcers. Rummaging through lockers and stuff. You'd think a Prince would have more decorum..."

Bardock shook his head. "Egh...where's Gohan? And that mother of his?"

Gine frowned, looking guilty. "Once we managed to get Kakarot into the tank, Vegeta left and Chi-Chi wanted to talk to you. But you had already passed out. So, she got angry and took Gohan to get a bath..."

Bardock snorted. "What's she so pissy about?"

Gine's eyes became harsher. She shook her head at how thick her husband was acting. "You know why. She's angry because you sent our 5-years-old grandson to fight _RECOOME_! You sent Gohan to fight _RECOOME_ , Bardock!"

Bardock sighed. "And I was supposed to babysit while Ginyu was trying to kill me? Sorry Gine, but I was a bit too busy trying to keep us all alive to dote over him like he's a 5- _month_ old..."

Gine flinched and buried her face in her hands. "Look, I get that Bardock. But-"

Bardock interrupted. "And I had an eye on him the whole time. And it might've killed me, but I would've kicked the Kaioken up as high as possible to go and stop Recoome if I thought he was gonna kill the kid. He was just never in danger of that happening, I felt."

Gine turned to Bardock. "How much higher can you go than Times Two?"

Bardock shot Gine a serious look. "Ginyu pushed Kakarot's body to Times 100, right? So... I guess I would've gone at least that high to keep the kid alive..."

Gine was shocked. "Kakarot barely survived that experience with Times 100!"

Bardock nodded. "Like I said, it might've killed me..."

Gine's face softened. She began to gently massage the top of Bardock's hand again with a small smile. She didn't enjoy the thought of her husband dying, but it had been quite a while since she had heard such genuine care in his voice. She snickered. "I wouldn't ever try going that high. King Kai was frantic when I told him that Ginyu pushed Kakarot's body to Times 100. He'd go through the roof if you tried that..."

Gine frowned. "Kakarot is strong, but it takes so much conditioning and focus to expand your power that far. Even Times 20 is a dangerous risk. King Kai said that Kakarot is lucky his body didn't pop like a bloody water balloon..."

Bardock scoffed. "Old fool has no faith. Kakarot is stronger than some singular technique. He'll be at the Times 100 level in no time. Or, if he doesn't reach it...someone will..."

Gine groaned at Bardock's glib attitude towards that dangerous technique. "You mean and your constant..."

The door to the Medical Bay opened and Gine trailed off. She and Bardock both looked towards the entrance and were surprised to see Gohan rushing in with a brand-new set of Saiyan armor. Gohan chuckled and leapt into the air, showing how stretchy and flexible his new outfit was. "Grandma Gine! Grandpa Bardock! What do you two think?"

Bardock chuckled. "You look like a Saiyan, kid! Should be sending you out to takeover a planet or something!"

Gine was smiling, but she averted her gaze away. She sighed. "Yeah...you look just like a young Saiyan..."

Gohan frowned. "Is something wrong, Grandma?"

Gine crossed her arms. She gave her bicep a squeeze as she flashed back to the sight of a scared, young Kakarot inside his Battle Pod. She remembered how scared he looked. But, she swallowed that lump in her throat and smiled towards Gohan. "No. I'm fine. You look strong in that armor, so I think if you like it...then it looks great..."

Gohan smiled, his confidence boosted, and began to throw punches and kicks into the open air. But the easy-going mood was soon broken by a much harsher voice. "Well I hate it."

Chi-Chi walked into the room with a look of grim anger on her face. She marched past Gine, Bardock, Gohan, and the unconscious Raditz before sitting right next to Goku's Healing Chamber. She reached over to Goku and Raditz's tattered clothes and began to sew up Goku's pants. "I absolutely hate that my baby has to wear that hideous battle armor! He shouldn't even have to know what battle armor is, much less wear it!"

Gine and Gohan both flinched back at Chi-Chi's tone. But, they both shied away to allow Chi-Chi to vent. However, Bardock was never one to back down from a challenge. "So, you'd rather he fight naked or in those tattered clothes?"

Chi-Chi's gaze snapped up from Goku's pants to Bardock. Bardock didn't flinched, glaring right back at her. Gohan and Gine both immediately became nervous as a weird energy filled the room. Chi-Chi sneered. "I would rather my Son not have to fight in battles you so-called 'Saiyan Warriors' should be handling!"

Bardock snapped back, struggling to sit up. "Oh! We're going there, huh?! Well guess what, you're right! Saiyan Warriors are meant to handle the tough fights! And that boy is a Saiyan Warrior!"

Chi-Chi recoiled at that and Bardock continued. "Yeah, I said it! He's a Saiyan! Fighting is in his blood! And no matter how much you think you can mother that out of him, his latent instincts and Saiyan potential will eventually over-write the bullshit pacifism that you're trying to instill onto him! That's just nature, sweetie!"

Chi-Chi was shaking with rage. Bardock continued. "The boy is already showing anger issues and a hair-trigger temper because he hasn't been allowed to work through it properly! Your attempts to muzzle his more natural instincts are only clashing with his Saiyan Heritage and they just show that you have no idea how to properly rear a Saiyan child!"

Finally, Chi-Chi had had enough. She threw Goku's pants to the side and cut off Bardock before he could continue to speak. "So what if I don't know how to rear a _Saiyan_ child?! I'm not trying to!"

Bardock flinched back. Chi-Chi glared at him. "Was your life as a Saiyan child anything to write home about it to the point that your criticizing me for not doing the same thing to my Son?! Do you really have anything that good that you remember for me to replicate from the _Saiyan Book of Raising Children_?!"

Bardock clenched his teeth and Chi-Chi stood up. "Gine and I talked all the way here! I know what you were like as a kid! A troublemaker! A screw-up! A hooligan! And little hoodlum who was made that way because of his shitty relationship with his two miserable parents!"

Bardock glared at Gine, who looked genuinely apologetic. And then, he glared back at Chi-Chi. "What does that have to do with anything?! How my parents were doesn't change that the boy is a Saiyan! And, more importantly, yeah, my childhood sucked, but at least I grew up to be strong! So, I'd say that the ends justify the means!"

Chi-Chi was angry, but she spoke in a calm voice. "Would your little brother say the ends justify the means?!"

Bardock's pupils shrunk and he sprung up from the ground. He pulled back his fist and shot it towards Chi-Chi's head, but Gine and Gohan both quickly caught him. In spite of Bardock's angry outburst, Chi-Chi didn't flinch. She stood there, glaring just as fiercely at Bardock as he was glaring at her. Once Gine and Gohan had wrestled him to the ground, Bardock snarled at Chi-Chi. "You fucking listen to me. I don't give a shit how you feel or what you have to say... _you leave him out of this_."

Chi-Chi shook her head. "See how that feels, Bardock?"

Bardock sneered at his daughter-in-law. But she continued. "See? It doesn't feel great, does it? Knowing that you've lost someone precious to you because you weren't around...Now do you see why I hate this?!"

Chi-Chi took a deep, long breath. "See how it might feel to me, knowing that my Gohan...or my Goku...or even _one of the three of you that I just met might_ be taken away from me and I would have nothing I could do about it?! You're all my family! I love you! _I don't want to think about even the POSSIBILITY that some bastard alien might take you from me!_ "

Chi-Chi gripped her fists. She swallowed a lump in her throat and then began to tremble. "I was doing what a Mother does...I was giving my baby a bath..."

She glared down at Bardock. "And when I went to wash his neck, he flinched. And you know _why_ he flinched, Bardock! I know you do!"

Bardock's face remained with a scowl painted on it, but he shoulders sagged just a bit. Chi-Chi's voice was wavering. "That same yellow brute that I found him fighting...that monster broke my baby's neck..."

Chi-Chi glared down at her father-in-law. "You're right, I'm not a Saiyan. I don't know how a Saiyan is raised...but I'm still a parent. And I don't want to think about my baby being hurt like that..."

Chi-Chi pointed her finger directly at Gine. "And I know she doesn't want to think about things like that! When the two of you had Raditz and he turned out the way that he did, she wanted nothing more than to protect him and keep him safe! And I know that's how you both felt about Goku! Sending him off was _your_ idea!"

Bardock shook his head. "What does that have to do with-"

Chi-Chi shouted. " _LOOK AT THEM_! Goku is in that healing pod wounded to the point he'd be dead without it! And Raditz is hanging on by a thread waiting for a child with magic healing powers to save his life! Are you telling me that, as a parent, this doesn't make your stomach turn?!"

Bardock was silent.

Chi-Chi marched up to Bardock, grabbing him by what little of his chest armor remained and pulled him close. "HEY!"

Bardock glared at Chi-Chi and, to his shock, saw a desperate and saddened look in his daughter-in-law's eyes. "I barely know you...but Gine swears that you're a good person and that, underneath it all, you love your family and you care..."

Tears started to flow from Chi-Chi's eyes. "Can you look at your sons or my son, your grandson, and tell me that you're okay with them all being hurt just because they're Saiyans, they're Warriors, and the greater good called for it?!"

Bardock glanced past Chi-Chi at his unconscious eldest son and then at the job containing his youngest. Chi-Chi let him go and shook her head. "I don't want that to be what my Son's life becomes, Bardock. He told me that he doesn't want to fight, he just wants to impress you...but I don't want that to be his entire life..."

Gohan and Gine both glanced at each other. Gohan bowed his head and Gine lovingly rubbed the back of his head. Bardock was still silent, looking pensive as he tried to think of how to respond. Chi-Chi shook her head. "And it's shameful that you, as a grandparent, sent him off by himself just to try and when a brawl with that body-swapping weirdo and his team of freaks!"

Bardock snapped at Chi-Chi. " _I was ready to jump in and save his ass if he needed me!_ "

Chi-Chi snapped right back. " _THEN HOW DID HIS NECK GET BROKEN?!_ "

Bardock gritted his teeth. And then, he thought back to the aftermath of that fight. He didn't want to show it to the others, he needed to preserve morale among the group, but seeing the kid as banged up as he was bothered Bardock. He sat there for a moment, after Dende had healed him, and watched as the Namekian began to heal Gohan, with Krillin and Bulma both huddled around him. And... he had to leave.

Bardock gripped his fist as he thought back to that, and then he did something that shocked Gohan and Gine and even Chi-Chi: Bardock bowed his head to the ground.

Bardock took a deep breath and spoke in a clear, calm voice. "Up to this point, I didn't have a choice. Gohan had to fight, or all of us would be dead. And it would be permanent. Frieza would have the Dragon Balls and we all would have been gone for good."

Chi-Chi flinched back, still looking rather cross. Bardock continued. "But I agree that that isn't an excuse. Letting Gohan brush against death like that was irresponsible and the fact that I wasn't strong enough to prevent that is a disgrace on me as a Saiyan..."

He lifted his head and glared at Chi-Chi. "You and Gine wanted me to keep the boy safe, and I failed. But that's the last time. From now on, I'll make sure that he's not put into that position again. So long as I can fight, and even if it kills me. I'll make sure that he has someone to help him fight against things he isn't strong enough to handle on his own..."

Chi-Chi and Bardock glared at each other for a long while. Slowly, the majority of the anger left her face. Chi-Chi knelt down and placed her hand on Bardock's aching shoulder, and then she helped him to his feet. "You swear to me? You swear that you'll keep him safe?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. I swear on my life."

The two shared a nod of solidarity and Chi-Chi shot Bardock a friendly smile. He sighed and groaned in pain. A small peace seemed to have been made. Then, a familiar annoyance rejoined the conversation. "Is this pathetic display finished?"

Everyone in the room turned to see the unwelcome sight of Vegeta walking into the room. The Prince tossed two sets of armor next to Raditz and next to Goku's healing chamber, respectively, and then he tossed a third and final set to Bardock.

Bardock glared at Vegeta and then glanced down at the armor in his hands, the same as Vegeta's, but with a black and green coloration. Vegeta spoke up, expressing his disdain. "Bowing your head to some Earth woman. Ridiculous. Do you have no Saiyan Pride left at all?!"

Bardock scoffed. He turned and began to limp over to Gine. "Vegeta, just...piss off until Dende and the others get back. I need a few minutes of peace and your voice isn't helping..."

Vegeta cocked his head, narrowing his eyes. "Oh no! Bardock needs peace! I'm so worried about you and your ability to relax..."

Vegeta was then caught a bit of guard. He showed no outward surprise, but he was inwardly a bit taken aback when Gine suddenly put herself between Bardock and the Prince. Gine glared at Vegeta. "Seriously. Go away. We need a minute of family time and we don't need you here being a jerk to everyone, Vegeta!"

Vegeta paid Gine no heed. He glanced past her and opened his mouth to shout at Bardock again. But, Gine was quick to step forward and shove Vegeta back. "I asked you to leave!"

Vegeta nodded. "I heard you."

Gine clenched her fists. "So, why don't-"

Vegeta cut her off. "I just don't care. Why should I take anything the likes of you has to say seriously? Huh? I mean, you must be aware of what you are right? Little more than-"

Gine rolled her eyes. "Little more than what? A woman? A food prepper? A Low-class? Is your book of insults really that small, Vegeta? Can you not be bothered to at least be creative with you insults?"

Vegeta paused. But then, he smirked and began to chuckle. "No no, you have it all wrong! While women and food staff and Low-class scum have no right to question me, the Prince of all Saiyans, you're something much worse that any of that!"

Gine flinched and Vegeta snickered. "Tell me, why exactly do I have to listen to anything the _Makyan Disgrace_ has to say again?"

Gine gasped and, immediately, both Bardock and Chi-Chi started to get up. Vegeta didn't notice as he laid into Gine. "My Mother and Father used to tell me and my brother stories to make us laugh. They'd entertain us with stories of notable washouts from the Saiyan Army."

Vegeta chuckled. "My favorite was always the story of Gine, the Makyan Disgrace! A loser who froze up at a crucial moment and cost hundreds of Saiyan lives in the process! A pathetic piece of scum who only barely avoided execution because her mate gave up a commendation to save her pathetic life!"

Vegeta leaned in close. "Tell me, can you still see it? The flash of red from the Makyo Star? Can you still hear all of their screams? All because you froze up and couldn't pull a trigger?"

Gine clasped her hands over her mouth. She began to tremble and tears streamed down her cheeks. Vegeta smirked. "I can imagine how you must have felt. You probably wished you could just shrivel up and die, eh?"

Gine's mind began to race. Everything was hitting her at once, like a hurricane of blood and destruction raging through her mind. Gine fell to her knees and began to sob as the PTSD began to set in again. Vegeta continued, unaffected. "So that's why I shouldn't have to listen to you! You're nothing! A piece of trash! An embarrassment not just to your mate, not just to your offspring, not just to your entire class, but to the entirety of the Saiyan Ra-"

A fist smashed into Vegeta mouth and the Prince went flying. He crashed into a window across the hallway from the Medical Bay and tumbled to the ground below.

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Vegeta crashed into the ground hard. The wind knocked out of him by falling flat, Vegeta stood up and glared at his attacker. Bardock landed on the ground and stumbled, still quite injured from the battles beforehand. But then, to Vegeta's shock, Bardock rushed at him with a feral roar. The older Saiyan grabbed Vegeta by his hair and began to beat his face in with his fist. " _I TOLD YOU TO STOP RUNNING THAT GODDAMNED MOUTH OF YOURS! THAT YOU TALK TO MUCH! THAT IT WAS EVENTUALLY GONNA GET YOU INTO A SITUATION THAT YOU COULDN'T SLINK YOUR ASS OUT OF!_ "

After taking the twelfth consecutive punch, Vegeta managed to catch Bardock's fist. He forced his fingers under Bardock's and, with a tug, bent the older Saiyan's fingers back. And then, with all of his might, Vegeta slammed his fist into Bardock's stomach and sent his opponent soaring backwards.

Bardock was hurt, but he landed on his feet. He and Vegeta glared at each other and squared up. Both were too exhausted to fire off ki attacks, but they were ready to go at it regardless. Vegeta snarled. "I was going to save this fight for much later!"

Bardock charged forward as fast as he could, catching Vegeta off-guard with a punch to the throat. "Later is now, brat!"

Bardock slammed his fists onto Vegeta's back, forcing the Prince to the ground. Vegeta rocketed up and delivered a mighty right hook right in-between Bardock's legs. Bardock doubled over in pain and Vegeta punched him in the nose, drawing blood. Bardock responded with a brutal headbutts that sent Vegeta crashing face-first into the dirt.

This was no battle, no war, just two men who were just about done with each other brawling for dominance and pride!

 _Back up in the Ship..._

Gohan and Chi-Chi both watched from the broken window as Bardock and Vegeta brawled. Chi-Chi smirked as the fight wore on and the two men beat the Hell out of each other. "Now that's what I'm talking about! A man standing up for the honor of his wife! It's good to see he really is as good as Gine said he was!"

Gohan swallowed a lump in his throat. "I hope Grandpa will be okay. Vegeta is really, really strong..."

Chi-Chi turned to her Son. "You can't doubt him, Gohan! He's standing up for your Grandma and her feelings! We have to cheer him on!"

" _NO! YOU DON'T!_ "

Chi-Chi and Gohan both turned to see Gine had stood back up. The Saiyan Mother wiped her eyes of their tears and sprinted towards the door. "Damn it! We can't afford this right now!"

Gine shoved Chi-Chi and Gohan aside and leapt down from the broken window. She saw what Chi-Chi and Gohan didn't seem to see. Vegeta and Bardock weren't just brawling, they were trying to kill each other! And she had to hurry up and stop them before they did!

 _Back down on the ground..._

Vegeta and Bardock continued to wail on each other as hard as they could. The two Saiyans traded punches back and forth, beating the shit out of one another. With each delivering a solid blow, they two Saiyan were sent sliding back. They glared at each other with true malice, and then they each charged to deliver a devastating blow.

Both Prince and soldier threw the heaviest punch that they could, but these attacks were quickly intercepted by a red flash. The two of them tried for force their fists forward, but fatigue and lack of energy prevented them from forcing against this new blockade. Vegeta and Bardock both looked down to see a Kaioken-clad Gine blocking their attacks.

Bardock was genuinely stunned by the sight of his wife, but Vegeta was haughty. "Oh please..."

He pushed his fist even harder, but then Gine mumbled under her breath. " _Times Fifteen..._ "

Power surged from Gine's body and she shoved both her husband and Vegeta onto their asses. They each landed with a solid thud and stared up at the enraged woman. Bardock was quietly surprised by such a showing of force from his normally meek wife. " _Holy shit Gine..._ "

Vegeta was left shaken and perturbed. " _What the Hell...?_ "

Gine wasn't stronger than either of the men she had just flattened, but such a showing of power an aggression from her was something that was considered quite strange. This was only compounded upon when she shouted at the two of them. " _WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO?! ARE YOU FORGETTING THAT FRIEZA IS STILL LURKING AROUND SOMEWHERE ON THIS PLANET?!_ "

Both men seemed at tad cowed by the reminder the Emperor was still out and about. Gine began to scold them rather harshly. "Look, I get that you two both really don't like each other! But you need to keep a cool head for just a little while longer, okay?! You can beat the Hell out of each other once Frieza is gone and we've made our wishes on the Dragon Balls!"

Bardock spoke up. "But Gine! He insulted-"

Gine clapped her hands over her face and raggedly sighed. "Bardock...I get that you were standing up for me. I love you so much! And I appreciate you caring about me...but it's fine. He's right! Okay?"

Bardock flinched and Gine shook her head. "I was an embarrassment to the Saiyan Empire. I froze up. A lot of people died because of me! Some on my best friends died _because of me!_ He wasn't lying when he said those things! I own up to that!"

Vegeta snorted and shouted at Bardock. "She! Even she realizes how worthless she-"

Gine turned to Vegeta. "But what does that matter anymore?! Huh, Vegeta?! What does the title ' _Makyan Disgrace_ ' and everything it implies mean when the Empire that I'm a disgrace of is gone?!"

Vegeta opened his mouth to speak, but Gine cut him off. "It means nothing! _NOTHING!_ And you know why?! Cuz it's all gone Vegeta! All of it! Every single Saiyan went straight to Hell! The Empire was blown up, and then it burned!"

Gine slapped her hand onto her chest. "And I would know because I was there to see it firsthand! Every Low-class, every Elite, _King Vegeta the Third himself_! Men, women, children! All in Hell! All gone! The only ones that weren't cleansed and thrown into the reincarnation cycle were me and Bardock!"

Vegeta sneered at Gine. The Saiyan woman shook her head. "It'll never leave me how many deaths my inability caused! So, if laughing at that makes you feel better in this lonely, lonely life you've probably led over the past 20 years Vegeta...then I welcome you to laugh at me as long and as loud as you'd like!"

Gine's arms fell to her sides. "But the Saiyan Empire is gone. Being the Prince of the Saiyans means as much as being the Makyan Disgrace does nowadays. So, I hope that you're eventually able to move on from all of this for your own sake. Otherwise, your life will eventually reach the point where you have nothing left but anger and hate and venom. And does any of that have any real meaning...?"

Vegeta spat at Gine, the blood from his mouth hitting her face and sliding down her cheek. "I have all of the meaning I need! Revenge on Frieza! Revenge on you Low-class clowns! Those are my drives! That's something a Low-class like you would never-"

Gine wiped her face. " _And what do you do when we're all dead?_ "

Vegeta instantly fell silent. His pupils shrank a bit and his jaw was left hanging open. He had...he had genuinely never thought that far ahead. Gine glanced to Bardock, back to Vegeta, and then to Bardock again. Her face softened and she sighed, emotionally drained. "Let's just all try and keep some kind of peace. Krillin and Nail will be back soon and we can summon the Dragon and make wishes. Okay? Let's at least make it to that point..."

Vegeta and Bardock were both silent. Gine walked over to her husband and helped him up. "Bardock, come with me. Vegeta...please don't start trouble with anyone. _Please_."

With that said, Gine grabbed Bardock's hand and pulled him away. Up in the ship, Gohan and Chi-Chi returned to the Medical Bay to watch over Goku and Raditz. And Vegeta...just fell onto his back and stared directly up into the sky.

 _Meanwhile, on the other side of Namek..._

Frieza came to a stop at the house atop the giant, mountain spire. Briefly, the Emperor considered turning his communicator back on the ask Captain Ginyu how things were progressing. But, Frieza quickly decided against it. He stepped out from his hover chair and took in the sights. This was truly the best view on this miserable, backwater planet! That much was certain.

Frieza marched towards the home atop this luxurious view and politely rapped his knuckles against the door. No answer.

Frieza glanced down and came across the sight of a marked grave near the house. He had a small chuckle to himself and then, with a massive crack, he smashed open the door. Frieza stepped into the domicile and took flight to reach the second floor.

He landed in the upper level and glanced up at the person he had come to visit. A sinister smile spread across the Emperor's face. "The Grand Elder, I presume?"

Grand Elder Guru didn't respond. He barely even reacted. The Guardian of Namek simply stared down at this intruder: the creature that had killed so many of his children.

Frieza smirked. "I am here to receive information about the Dragon Balls~"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	30. Chapter 30: Porunga

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 30: The Namekian Eternal Dragon, Porunga**

 _A short time in the past..._

Nail stared up at the Grand Elder with a look of consternation. "Grand Elder Guru...I cannot abide by this! I understand the importance of helping our visitors and stopping that tyrant, but your life is paramount! I must-"

The Grand Elder raised his hand to calm his stalwart bodyguard. "Nail, I will not be argued on this decision, my child. Your talent is needed to help our Planet. It cannot be wasted guarding waning life such as mine..."

Nail shook his head. "Do not say that! You still have many, many years left!"

Lord Guru sighed. "I have lived a long life, Nail. Hardships and pain, I have known all too well. I am aware of the shadow of death hanging over my head and...it is much closer than any realizes. My final moments should not..."

The Grand Elder broke into a coughing fit before continuing. "Should not be spent barring others from helping to protect the defenseless...Tsuno and his village need a hero, a symbol of Namekian strength to remind them not to be discouraged..."

Another coughing fit as Nail watched on, a pained look on his face. Lord Guru concluded. "They need someone to keep them...to keep them appraised of the hope for the future that they have in their lives..."

Nail clenched his teeth. "But your life..."

Lord Guru finished his sentence. "Is not as important as the lives of those we have lost. My fallen children...your fallen brothers...they need you Nail. The Namekian people must survive..."

The Elder slumped into his chair and began to wheeze. "We have not fulfilled our purpose yet..."

Nail glanced up at the Grand Elder in confusion, but saw that the old man had fallen into a restful slumber. Nail's fists trembled as he thought of what to do...but he did eventually give in to the Grand Elder's demands and joined his new comrades in their struggles. As Nail, Gohan, Krillin, and Bardock all flew away, with their newly acquired Dragon Ball, Lord Guru adopted a peaceful smile. "You're an excellent son Nail...I could not...have spawned a finer young man..."

But, as he drew further and further away from the Grand Elder's home, Nail could not help but feel to the contrary.

 _Back in the present..._

Nail was barely containing his tremors as he and Krillin lead the Four-Star Village back towards Frieza's ship. He did not wish to alarm his kin, but he could feel what was happening in the distance and was struggling to maintain his composure. He was doing as the Grand Elder had requested, he was working for the sake of the Namekian people. He could not allow...his personal feelings...to dictate...

Nail bared his fangs and prepared to rocket away from the rest of the group. Whether Frieza was stronger or not, whether the others needed him or not...that didn't matter! He needed to go and provide protection and support to the Grand Elder! And he needed to do it now!

Nail's gaze snapped in the direction of Lord Guru's house and he prepared to rocket away, but he was stopped in his attempt by Dende speaking out to him. "Hey Nail..."

Nail turned to the little Namekian and saw the look of sadness in his eyes. Nail spoke calmly. "What is it Dende?"

Dende seemed nervous. The little Namekian turned his gaze to his reflection in the water below and murmured out a question. "Do...do you think that Porunga will restore Elder Moori and Cargo to life?"

Nail watched as his little brother's lip began to quiver. The warrior sighed and turned his attention away from Lord Guru's house. Nail nodded. "I certainly hope so."

Feeling the tense mood from his Namekian allies, Krillin tried to be chipper. "Hey! No need to worry guys!"

Nail and Dende both looked to Krillin. The Earthling whipped around in the air, jolting Bulma from her distraction. As she slammed her fist into his head, Krillin smiled at Dende and Nail. "If the Namekian Dragon Balls can't, then the Earth Dragon Balls can! Back when King Piccolo killed a bunch of people on Earth, we used the Dragon Balls to revive them all in one go~"

Dende's eyes widened. "R-really?!"

Bulma got over being annoyed and reassured Dende. "Yeah! Krillin would know, he's one of the people that got revived!"

Dende looked as if a fresh wave of hope had washed over him. He turned to Nail and smiled and Nail couldn't help but smile back. Krillin and Bulma shot Dende a thumbs up and Dende shot one back at them. The little Namekian looked over to Nail and Nail sighed, before putting up a half-hearted thumbs up of his own.

The mood went from tense to cheerful in a moment. Nail was thankful that his human allies had lifted Dende's spirits. He truly, truly was. But then...his attention immediately fell back onto Lord Guru's house.

 _At Lord Guru's House..._

Frieza stood at the feet of the Grand Elder Guru with an evil smirk on his face. The Emperor had a look around this home he had just invaded and then let loose a jovial, if sarcastic laugh. He was the perfect picture of acidic politeness. "Pardon my intrusion, good sir. I will not be long... I simply must request a bit of information from you..."

Lord Guru remained silent. Frieza shook his head. "Perhaps I must be a bit clearer. I demand information on how to use the Dragon Balls. _And I know that you know how they work_."

More silence. Lord Guru stared down at Frieza and Frieza stared up at Lord Guru. Neither of them flinched or reacted for the longest time. And then, with a miserable cough, the Grand Elder spoke. "You...have no concept of what the Dragon Balls are actually for."

Frieza cocked his head with an amused smile. "Oh, so?"

Guru continued. "They...they are capable of granting the requests of those who gather them...yes. But, they are so much...so much more than that..."

Frieza chuckled, his smile not leaving his face. Guru coughed again, wheezing a horrific wheeze. He time was rapidly approaching. But, perhaps, he could be of a bit more use before he moved on. "If you have the time...perhaps I could educate you on the true purpose of the Dragon Balls...and the wider implications of their effect on this Universe. Maybe...armed with that knowledge...you might be more inclined to listen to reason..."

Frieza seemed amused. Of course, the Emperor had no plans on paying heed to this dying old maggot or his ghost stories, but he was more than happy to play along. After all, he had nothing better to do with his time while he was allowing the Ginyu Force to do their work. Frieza raised his hand up to his mouth and chuckled. " _Ohohohoho..._ "

The Emperor put on his nicest expression. "I suppose that I have time."

Lord Guru coughed, clearing his throat. He was, of course, perfectly aware that Frieza had no desire to change. The tyrant was truly rotten to the core, but the twisted amusement the monster was showing could work to the advantage of the Earthlings. Lord Guru took a deep breath and began to speak. "It was a long, long time ago...before even I existed..."

 _In the time before time..._

In the ether of the time long past, all of existence was watched over by a single, ancient guardian. A being of infinite wisdom and incredible power. His bottomless well of power could shape the very fabric of existence and he used this power of his to build a base from which all life would flourish. This infinitely powerful being went by many names to many people, but one name has long been passed down among the Namekian people: Zalama.

Under his watch, all life lived in peaceful...limitless...harmony. Everything was able to thrive and glow in the goodness of Lord Zalama's light. But, as is known to every sentient being, not all good things last. Soon, the dark tendrils of evil sprouted into the peaceful reality Lord Zalama had created...

 _Within the Medical Bay of Frieza's Ship..._

Raditz's eyes snapped open in surprise. He sat up like a bolt and touched his formerly injured side, finding that his injuries and his pain were gone. Looking around for an explanation, Raditz's gaze eventually fell upon a resplendent Dende standing next to him. The little Namekian shot Raditz a cheerful smile and gave him a friendly pat on the back. "Are you feeling better?"

Raditz nodded and began to rotate his shoulders. "Better than ever, actually. I feel spry...and a lot stronger than before!"

Raditz leapt to his feet and closed his eyes. And then, with a roar, the eldest child of Bardock let all of his power loose. The force of Raditz's powering up nearly took Dende off of his feet, but Krillin caught the young Namekian. Raditz glanced over and immediately lost focus. "Oh shit! I'm sorry! You okay?!"

Dende nodded and brushed himself off. "I'm fine."

Krillin, meanwhile, was sitting there with his mouth agape. "That's amazing Raditz!"

Raditz cocked his head. "What is?"

Krillin chuckled. "Your power! It's unreal! You're even stronger than that Ginyu jerk was!"

Raditz's face turned red and he looked down at his hands. Gripping them tight and smiling, Raditz nodded. "Y-yeah...I guess I am, huh? I... wow..."

Krillin walked up to Raditz. "You okay?"

Raditz nodded, keeping his gaze glued to his hands. "Y-yeah...I guess...I guess I..."

Krillin cocked his head. "Hmm?"

Raditz turned to the monk and gave a confident smile. "I guess I just never thought that I could be this big..."

Krillin light-heartedly chuckled. Bulma chimed in from across the room where she was examining Goku's Healing Chamber. "Grow some confidence, man! You're a Saiyan just like Goku and Bardock and that prick Vegeta! You're just as capable of getting strong as they are!"

Raditz flinched. Krillin gave him a friendly punch to the arm. "Yeah man! Come on! You're not half bad of a guy, ya know?"

Raditz smiled, his tense features lightening just a bit. "You... _really think so_?"

Before Krillin could answer, the doors to the Medical Bay slid open and Gohan and Chi-Chi came strolling in. Raditz looked over to his nephew and sister-in-law and the first thing he noticed was Gohan wearing a fresh set of Battle Armor. "H-hey there, kid! You...uh...you look good in that armor! Like a proper warrior!"

Gohan smirked at his uncle, and then he leapt up and tossed a punch right at Raditz's face. The older Saiyan caught the attack and he and his nephew stared at each other. And then they both started chuckling. "You even throw a punch more like a warrior now..."

Gohan nodded. "Yeah! I've been practicing!"

Chi-Chi walked up to Raditz and handed him both the pants that he had borrowed from Goku and the armor that Vegeta had found for him. "Here, I mended the pants, but the shirt was ruined. Sorry about that."

Raditz waved her off. "It's fine."

The older brother slipped on his pants and then popped the armor top over his chest. He looked down at the shoes his brother had lent him and then at the Battle Armor boots. After a moment's consideration, Raditz grabbed shoes Kakarot gifted him and slipped them on. "What do you think, Chi-Chi?"

Chi-Chi looked him up and down: the teal green pants, yellow stockings, black shoes, and black and brown battle armor top. Raditz wrapped his tail around his waist and Chi-Chi shrugged. "I can't say that I'm too fond of Battle Armor, but you look fine."

Raditz nodded. "Thank you."

Having gotten dressed, Raditz went about immediate business. He walked over to the Healing Chamber that Goku was sealed in, with Gohan and Chi-Chi and Krillin following him. The four of them peered in through the glass and saw a nearly naked Goku floating in the fluid. Raditz scowled. "He's still pretty messed up. This isn't good..."

Krillin nodded. "It's fine. That's why we asked Dende to come in here!"

Raditz turned and moved out of the way as Dende walked up to the chamber. The little Namekian held his hands up to the chamber and closed his eyes as his hands began to glow. But, after a brief moment, Dende's eyes cracked back open. "This...this is going to take longer than the others. I'm sorry..."

Gohan's face sank, but he shook his head. "It's fine Dende...take your time."

Dende nodded. "Right."

As Dende got back to healing, Gohan turned away from the Healing Chamber and sighed. He was hoping that his Father would be back up quickly. Raditz noticed this and quickly spoke up. "Now now! Don't get dejected!"

Gohan turned to his uncle and Raditz smirked. "How about we pass the time with some sparring, kid? Maybe we could use this little bit of free time to get to know each other, eh?"

Gohan's face brightened up. Raditz turned to Chi-Chi, who already had a scowl on her face. "May I? Please? I'd like a chance to get to know my nephew without...you know...me..."

A bit of shame flashed across Raditz's face. Chi-Chi sighed, but then she nodded. "Fine. Take him and have fun. Just don't let him get hurt, okay Raditz?"

Raditz nodded. "Yes ma'am!"

And then, the older brother turned to Krillin. "Wanna come with us? You could use some conditioning."

Krillin smirked and stepped up to Gohan and Raditz, pulling his belt tight. "I'll take that as a challenge!"

 _Outside, on top of Frieza's Ship..._

Bardock sat there, atop Frieza's ship, in his new armor. Sitting next to him was his wife, Gine. The two of them stared out into the distance with Gine tightly latched onto her husband's arm, her head gently laid upon Bardock's shoulder. Bardock was distracted by what he was feeling happening over the horizon, but Gine was trying to maintain a positive attitude. "Namek sure is beautiful, huh? I gotta say, I always wanted to take a trip to a place like this. Have a vacation, go for a swim...just relax and not commit a mass genocide, ya know what I mean?"

Gine guiltily stared over towards a far-off shore from Frieza's ship. She watched as the grieving Four-Star Village all gathered around the bodies of their fallen members and held a silent prayer. Elder Tsuno's face was streaked with misery as he placed Talus's body into the waters of the Namekian sea for a well-deserved rest.

Gine pulled her gaze from that sad scene and sighed. "Y-you know...Chi-Chi told me all about these beaches they have on Earth. Crystal blue water and white sand. It sounds marvelous, doesn't it?"

Bardock was still distracted, but he grunted a small response. "Yeah."

Gine closed her eyes. The memories of the few missions she had gone on with Bardock and his Squad, the failed Makyan Invasion, he life as a scorned meat chopper that followed. Gine spoke softly. "Back when we were training with Kakarot, King Kai said that we had all earned a better afterlife than being cast into Hell. But...lately I can't help but think that we didn't earn it, more like he just arranged it because he had the power to..."

Bardock nodded. "Uh-huh..."

Gine frowned. "Bardock, after such a short time...do you think that we're really good people like King Kai said?"

Bardock broke from his concentration. He turned to his wife and gently rubbed the back of his hand down her face. "Hey now, don't get upset. I can't really say whether we're good people, but the important people higher up seem to think we are..."

Bardock shrugged. "But...who knows really, ya know? In the grand scheme of things, what measure is there rally of what's good and what's not?"

Suddenly, a third voice broke into the conversation. "Grand Elder Guru used to teach the philosophy that it only takes a bit of dirty water to make a healthy man sick, but it also only takes a bit of clean water to make a sick man healthy..."

Bardock and Gine both turned to see Nail standing behind them. The warrior was staring off into the distance, his hands lightly tremble and his teeth clenched. Gine smiles, unknowing of what Nail was currently going through. "This Grand Elder Guru sound like a wise person..."

Nail nodded firmly. "Indeed."

Silence fell over the three of them, but Bardock didn't allow it to last long. "We can handle shit from here, Nail."

Nail turned his attention to Bardock. Bardock stared right at hm. "Lemme make myself clear, I don't want you to rush off like that, because it would be a shame to lose someone as strong as you to a bastard like Frieza...but I get it if you want to go and try to save the old man."

Nail nodded. "I thank you. But I must decline."

Nail glanced at Gine. "Your mate is correct, Bardock. The Grand Elder is the wisest of our kind. And his wisdom dictate that I stick to the side of our Earthling allies..."

Nail crossed his arms in front, clearly wrestling with his own words. The warrior dug his nails into his bicep and instantly drew a stream of purple. Bardock sighed at the sight of Nail being such a nervous wreck. Gine frowned, feeling so sorry for their guest.

Suddenly, the sound of battle cries drew the attention of all three of them! Nail, Bardock, and Gine all rushed to the edge of the ship and came upon the sight of Raditz sparring with Gohan and Krillin. The three of them down below traded blows as Chi-Chi watched on from the shadows.

Bardock smirked at the sight of his son and his grandson trading punches. "Good to see our boy back on his feet."

As Nail, Bardock, and Gine watched the sparring match, Gine happily sighed. She laid her head against Bardock's arm again as she watched. "A bit of clean water..."

Bardock turned to her. "Huh?"

Gine thought back. She remembered that man that descended down into Hell over a year ago and then she looked down at the man who was happily sparring with his nephew and an Earthling. Raditz's face was less angled, less sharp, less intense and self-loathing. She shook her head. "Nothing dear. It's just amazing what a little bit of time can do..."

Nail nodded. "Indeed."

Breaking their attention from the fight, Nail, Bardock, and Gine all looked at one another. Nail lowered his head graciously. "To answer the question, you posed a few moments ago...I do not believe that you are bad people. Whatever might have occurred in your past is none of my concern, the people I have gotten to know here and now are not evil, so far as I am concerned."

Bardock rolled his eyes, but Gine smiled warmly. Nail smiled back at her...but then he looked past her and saw a familiar shape lounging against a rock. "For the most part..."

Bardock and Gine turned to see what Nail was staring at and reacted with similar disdain. Lounging against a large boulder in the shade was the unwelcome sight of Vegeta. The hateful silence grew more and more bloated, and then Bardock opened his mouth to make a barbed comment. But, after some thought, he held it in. Instead, Bardock opted for the sarcastic question option. "What, you don't think a little clean water could do him some good?"

Nail answered bluntly. "One must ingest clean water for it to be helpful."

The three of them silently regarded the slumbering Prince. In spite of his acidic nature, Vegeta hadn't made a single commotion since the previous blowout. Even Dende healing him of his injuries and fatigue garnered little more than a grunt.

Gine, despite every nasty thing Vegeta had said about her, surprisingly spoke up in advocation for the Prince. "As much of a supreme jerk as he is...Frieza's rules is all he's ever known, you know? It's not hard to feel just a bit sorry for him...when he's not speaking or interacting with anyone that is..."

Bardock quickly countered that point. "Doesn't change the fact that he's a born and bred royal jackass."

Gine nodded. "True. But...he still lost everything, Bardock. Spoiled and bratty nature aside, Frieza stole his life from him. I'm no fan of King Vegeta, but King Vegeta was still his Dad. The Queen was still his Mom. And that's not even mentioning the younger prince..."

Bardock shrugged. "You really think he cares?"

Gine shrugged right back. "Hard to say. The only person who really knows is Vegeta, and even _he_ might not be totally aware..."

Bardock and Gine both stared at Vegeta. After a moment, Gine spoke up again. "Maybe we should...try and reach out? Nobody deserves to be all alone, after all..."

Nail spoke up again. "At this point, given his mindset, I am sure he would reject any offers of peace or friendship. Most likely rather violently."

Bardock took and deep breath and nodded. "Nail's right."

Gine flinched. She lowered her head sullenly. "Oh...okay then...I'm sorry I-"

Bardock interrupted. "Let's shunt Frieza off and then see what we can do. Okay?"

Gine and Bardock looked into each other's eyes. A small smile broke out onto Gine's face. "O-okay~"

And then suddenly, two massive energy blasts erupted behind the couple. Bardock and Gine turned to see that Nail was already staring back down at the sparring mach. The two of them walked over to see Gohan and Krillin fleeing into the air from a Double Sunday that Raditz had fired off. The two of them quickly responded by preparing a Kamehameha and a Masenko and firing them back. The beams clashed and, after a small struggle, exploded in an impressive display.

Gohan and Krillin landed, taking up fighting stances and charging at Raditz. Raditz smirked and used his higher speed to zip behind the two. He went to strike them with his elbows but was shocked as Krillin and Gohan seized him and tossed him to the ground. Raditz quickly rolled over and got back to his feet and started brawling with his two opponents.

The commotion was loud and raucous. It drew the attention of not only Bardock, Nail, and Gine, but of the returning Four-Star Village as well. Even Vegeta was roused from his nap to observe the spar as it continued on.

The three of them clashed and all were sent sliding back. They prepared to go in and go at it again, but before fists could meet, a shout echoed out from the ship. Every watched as Bulma came running out, a mixture of worry and terror on her face. "There's a huge problem! Everyone get in here right now!"

 _Inside the Medical Bay..._

Everyone had gathered around Goku's Healing Chamber, taking turns to look in and see the issue that Bulma had come to yell at them about. As they all took turns, a dejected Dende say in the corner. Once everyone got a chance to see, they all turned to Dende. The little Namekian shook his head with a frown. "I'm sorry. I tried my best...but the power Lord Guru gave me doesn't seem to be capable of healing that..."

Krillin was shocked. "But...you healed all of those injuries that the Ginyu Force gave us just fine! Is Goku really _that_ hurt?!"

Bulma quickly chimed in. "Going by the read outs I got from this machine, his physical injuries are entirely gone. But, Dende says that it's something more than that that's wrong with him."

Dende nodded glumly. Gine nodded. "I see..."

Breaking away from Bardock, Gine walked back up to Goku's Chamber and pressed her forehead against the glass. The Saiyan Mother closed her eyes and concentrated hard. And then, after a few minutes of feeling out her son's energy, Gine opened her eyes back up. "I see what Dende means..."

Dende nodded. "Y-yes. The power that Lord Guru granted me is able to heal physically just fine. But its ability to heal spiritual damage is far more limited at the moment. I do not know what happened to his body, but it is much slower to mend."

Vegeta scoffed. "Useless! What good are you if you can't fully heal us when we need it! I-"

Bardock cut him off. "Shut up Vegeta."

The older Saiyan walked up to his son's healing chamber and pressed his hand against it with a sigh. "I can vouch this not being Dende's fault. Even with him healing me, I still ache. Damage caused by the Kaioken might just be beyond his grasp at the moment. Nothing he can do about that."

Bardock turned to his entire party and shrugged. "So, we'll just have to put on our big boy pants and survive without Kakarot being there to help us for a bit. We're all warriors here, so if we can't survive without Kakarot then maybe we just don't deserve to, ya know what I'm sayin'? We can't rely on him for everything."

Silently, everyone nodded in agreement with Bardock. Vegeta spoke up. "Whoever said we needed Kakarot to begin with?! Frieza's head is mine! Kakarot can just float in that pod until it's his turn to fall to my power!"

Bardock shook his head with a small smirk. "That's the spirit, Vegeta. So, how about we get started?

Gohan reacted confused. "Started with what?"

Bardock pointed to the Dragon Balls, sitting in the corner. "Kakarot will be out for a bit. We need to being lazy. It's wishin' time."

 _Back at Grand Elder Guru's House..._

As Grand Elder Guru continued to prattle on about ancient evils and long-lost Gods and multiple Universes, Frieza's mirth had totally faded. The Emperor let his crossed arms fall to his sides and spoke up. "Pardon me, I-"

The Grand Elder ignored Frieza. He continued to share his tale of the Devil of Uncreation and the infection he tried to spread throughout all of existence. Frieza sneered and then raised his hand behind him. With a single blast, the Emperor blew a hole open in the wall behind him. Sunlight flooded into Grand Elder Guru's home and the ancient Namekian flinched. Frieza spoke in calm, menacing tones. "I have very little patience for this continued fable of yours. If you do not start talking about something that interests me rather quickly, I am afraid that you might meet with a _terrible fate_."

The Grand Elder nodded. "Oh yes, I see...forgive my rudeness..."

Frieza nodded and smirked. The Grand Elder cleared his throat. "Let us discuss _you_."

Frieza flinched. The Grand Elder's eyes opened ever so slightly and he glared down at the monster in front of him. "You are little more than a selfish, arrogant, narcissistic murderer. And I feel it might do you some good to appraise you of your faults."

Frieza gripped his fists, his hands trembling as he focused a hate-filled stare onto Lord Guru. The Grand Elder turned his attention briefly from Frieza to the sky behind him, smiling as it turned totally black.

 _Back with Bardock's Group..._

Everyone minus Goku gathered around the piled up seven Dragon Balls. Dende turned to look to his people and was met with a nod from Elder Tsuno. In the distance, Nail was standing and glaring in the opposite direction, looking ready to bolt at any second. Dende took a deep breath. " _Takkaraput pop porunga pupiritt paro!"_

In a flash, the Namekian Dragon Balls exploded with power and a massive form emerged from them. Spiraling into the sky and wreathed with golden light, the Namekian Eternal Dragon formed. Porunga loomed over everyone gather around him stared in awe. Krillin shouted. "Holy crap! He's huge!"

Chi-Chi and Gohan both stared in awe at the size of the beast. Bardock, Gine, and Vegeta were all totally blank. None of them expected something that large to appear in front of them. Off and away from the group, Nail did not care about the presence of Porunga. He was focused on Lord Guru. And, while he planned to follow the Elder's orders, he also knew the limits of what was expected of him: the moment these wishes were made, he was gone and headed to the Grand Elder's side once more.

Dende turned to his allies. "What is the first wish I should make?"

Vegeta instantly shouted. "Make me immortal so that I can fight Frieza!"

Dende flinched, but Bardock was quick to reassure the little Namekian. "Ignore him. He's talking out of his ass."

Gine nodded. "Yeah. Our first wish is to revive everyone who was a casualty of the Saiyan Invasion of Earth, right?"

Bardock nodded. "That's the smart decision."

Dende nodded at the suggestion and turned to speak the wish. Everyone watched on, looking up to Porunga as Dende spoke. But, after a moment, they were all left confused at the lack of action. Porunga spoke in his deep, booming voice at Dende. The Namekian language flew over the heads of every non-Namekian present, but the look on Dende's face said something was wrong. Bulma spoke up. "Wh-what's wrong, Dende?"

Dende turned to them and shouted in horror. "P-Porunga says that he only has the power to restore one person to life at a time!"

Krillin flinched back. "Wh-what?!"

Suddenly, everyone was panicking. This was a wrench in the plan that no one had expected. Vegeta shouted out. "Forget wishing people back to life! Make me immortal!"

Raditz shoved his former boss. "Will you shut up?! We're trying to think here!"

Vegeta raised his fist. "You insolent-"

Bardock got between the two and separated them as they nearly came to blows. "Both of you calm down! We don't have time for bickering right now! We need to think of something to wish for before Frieza gets back!"

Suddenly, to everyone's surprise, King Kai chimed in. "Why are you all panicking? You already have the answer to your problems."

Gine flinched. "Oh, hey King Kai!"

King Kai chuckled as he spoke. "I'm sure if you all calmed down and thought about it, you would know the answer. But, lemme just let my friend here speak for himself..."

Suddenly, another familiar voice was speaking. "We aren't friends."

Immediately, a wide smile spread across Gohan's face. " _Mr. Piccolo!_ "

Piccolo sounded happy to hear his little friend's voice again. "Gohan..."

The warm reunion between mentor and student was quickly broken up by Vegeta. "You must be joking. You're suggesting we waste a wish on reviving some fool that couldn't even handle Nappa?"

Piccolo snapped at Vegeta. "Don't push your luck, midget. After I get done handling Frieza, _you're next on my list_."

Vegeta scowled. "Oh really? And just how do you plan on doing that?"

Piccolo turned his attention from Vegeta and back to people whose opinions mattered to him. "I have gained enough power that I should be able to annihilate Frieza. So, here's what you do. Use the first wish to bring me back to life. That'll restore the Dragon Balls on Earth. And then, with the second wish, I want you to bring me to Namek so I can handle business there."

Vegeta snorts. "Handle business... _yeah right_..."

Bardock subconsciously agreed with Vegeta. He didn't think, from what he had seen of the Namekians so far, that any of them could handle Frieza. But...they needed all the help they could get. He turned to his family to see what they thought. Gohan looked enthused at the idea of having Mr. Piccolo back. Gine and Raditz both solemnly nodded, the guilt over their indirect killing of Piccolo eating at them. Bardock closed his eyes and nodded. "Dende. Do it."

Dende nodded and turned to make the wish to Porunga.

 _On King Kai's Planet..._

It took a few moments, but Piccolo's halo soon disappeared. The Namekian smiled and let loose a slightly evil chuckle. "Good good..."

He turned and shot a wicked smirk to his former fellows in death. "Well trash, I guess-"

What Piccolo saw caught him off guard. Rather than the normal looks of contempt that the Earthlings usually shot him, Tien and Yamcha and Chiaotzu were all confident smiles. They each nodded in respect at their fellow martial artist. Yamcha spoke up. "We're counting on you, man. Kick Frieza's ass for us a couple of times, kay?"

Tien spoke up. "I look forward to training with you again someday. Hopefully we might be able to spar as equals."

Chiaotzu nodded. "Please survive so that we can all return to life."

Piccolo considered a sarcastic comment...but he held his tongue. Giving the three of them a respectful nod in return, Piccolo turned his back to the three of them. And then he disappeared.

 _In a far-off location on Planet Namek..._

Piccolo appeared in the Namekian Wasteland, the winds sweeping across the plains and blowing his cape to the side. In the distance, Piccolo saw the signature darkened sky that came with usage of the Dragon Balls. Piccolo took in the sights of his Homeworld for the first time, and then he immediately took off towards his allies.

 _Back over with Bardock's group..._

As soon as Piccolo appeared on Namek, everyone was taken aback. Bardock shouted out on pure reflex. " _Holy shit!_ "

This power that they felt was substantial, bigger than any power that was currently on Namek. Piccolo wasn't just joking! He really could kill Frieza at his current power-level. Things were, blessedly, finally looking up for the group. Immediately, everyone got excited over this. Their asses were saved! Victory was assured!

Off in the distance, Nail sighed with relief. Finally, the Gods of Luck had granted them good fortune. Perhaps, Planet Namek would be able to survive and thrive once more.

But then, a sudden terrible feeling snapped into everyone's senses and Nail's composure snapped with it.

Over at Lord Guru's house...

Lord Guru sighed as he finished his long and harsh take down of Frieza's entire character. He finished his rant against the hostile, alien bastard with what was perhaps his most scathing remark. "In my entire 500 plus years of life...I have never found a being I thought was incapable of being good. But, today I have found the exception. You, Frieza, are a miserable, cold-hearted monster. You soul is blacker and colder than the depths of the worst Hell..."

The Grand Elder coughed. "But...I still feel the need to advise you, child. Evil never wins in the ends. Your sense of control is nothing more than the fallacy of a paranoid mind. And your reign of terror over this Universe is destined to end in failure and misery with the end of your life...at the hands of a righteous being..."

Frieza sighed, blowing the Grand Elder off. "I attempted to be diplomatic and I tried to be polite...but it's not like there are not other Namekians out there..."

Frieza raised his finger and nonchalantly fired a Death Beam into Lord Guru's chest. The Elder shuddered and purple exploded from his mouth. As blood ran down the aged Namekian's chin, Frieza turned to leave. "Your last few minutes of suffering shall serve as-"

Frieza stared in shock at something he had never seen on this planet in the week he had been here: night. "Th-this Planet has three suns...how is-"

Lord Guru chuckled. "We...we do not know night on this Planet. The sky here only turns dark for one reason...and that is if the Dragon Balls are used..."

Frieza's face was blanketed in shock. The Grand Elder weakly chuckled behind him. "As I said...your evil has led to overconfidence...and your downfall has begun..."

Frieza was angry, but he turned to the Grand Elder and smirked. "Ohohohoho! I am impressed with you, you sly old maggot! You've managed to pull one over on the great Frieza! But...it matters not! They can have the wishes this time! I will simply rush to them and torture the information of how to use the Dragon Balls from them! And then once they are dead, I will get my desires just fine!"

Lord Guru smiled. "A shame this is the last time those Balls will be used..."

Frieza flinched. "The existence of the Dragon Balls is connected to what was my already fading lifespan. And... adding on to that...you have unfortunately dealt me a mortal blow...the Dragon Balls will soon be no more..."

Frieza's confidence drained from his face and he was rendered speechless. Shakily, Lord Guru raised his hand. "I would say you have... _FIVE MINUTES_...before it is all over..."

Frieza instantly turned, screaming in frustration and rage as he flew off in the direction of his ship. " _DAMNED TRAITOROUS BASTARDS! CURSE YOU ALL!_ "

 _Back with Bardock's Group..._

Nail screamed at the top of his lungs as he felt, to his horror, Frieza's beam strike Lord Guru. He shouted in manic frustration and panic and he ran towards the others. " _NOOOO!_ "

Nail could feel Lord Guru's life draining away. The Elder was dying and Nail's patience had finally broken. He shoved Bardock out of the way and seized Dende by the hand, pulling his little brother away and trying to rush off. Dende could heal him! Dende _must_ heal him! That had to be why the Grand Elder gave him healing powers to begin with!

Standing up, the same feeling that hit Nail hit Bardock like a truck. He cursed very loudly and very angrily. "Damn it all!"

Bardock sensed in the direction of Lord Guru's home and an even more dreadful sense crossed his mind. Frieza was coming, and he was coming fast! And it didn't take long for the others to catch on to this. Immediately, Vegeta spoke up again. "No more games! No more playing around! We need all the advantages we can get and immortality would be a big advantage!"

Vegeta charged a blast and pointed it towards the Four-Star Village Namekians. " _One of you wish for me to be immortal right now!_ "

Raditz grabbed Vegeta by the wrist. "Absolutely not! Frieza is an evil bastard, but fighting fire with fire is never a smart idea! Making you immortal would just make things worse!"

As everyone argued behind him, Bardock tried to think of something, anything, that would make for a good wish. Pressure was getting to him and nobody behind him was shutting the Hell up. Bardock looked around, thinking that maybe making him or Vegeta immortal might not be a half-bad idea. But then, his eyes fell on Frieza's ship and inspiration struck him. "Wait a minute... _LET'S USE THE FINAL WISH TO HEAL KAKAROT! THEN WE CAN ALL FIGHT OFF FRIEZA TOGETHER!_ "

Everyone turned, shocked. They all, except for Vegeta, seemed to come to an agreement that this was a good idea.

Gine turned to the Four-Star Namekians. "Okay, could you guys please-"

But then, the light emanating from Porunga began to flicker and every stared up towards the Eternal Dragon in horror.

 _Back at Lord Guru's house..._

The Grand Elder was fading. He knew that it wouldn't be long. He slumped over in his chair and groaned in pain as his vision started to become fuzzy. He looked over, with his blurry eyesight, and saw the grave of Katas that was erected next to his home. The Grand Elder flash back, back to long ago, back to a conversation that had always been stuck in the back of his mind. Three voice: harsh, soft, and his...and an argument.

 _Long ago..._

The storms had been raging in the Namekian sky more and more over the past years and tensions were high. The advent of hostile foreigners was hurting their Planet.

The soft voice spoke. " _We should just leave...they can't attack us if we aren't here to be attacked. I have scouted out a planet and I am preparing a ship to-_ "

The harsh voice spoke. " **I refuse to leave! This is our damned planet and I will not have it taken like this! We should raise an army and go slaughter those foreign pigs!** "

Lord Guru spoke firmly. "Both of you cease this anti-Namekian speech! This Planet is our home, we will not abandon it. Nor will we be raising an army to go out and act as warmongers."

The soft-voice spoke. " _But, Molluska-_ "

The Grand Elder cut him off. "My mind is made up, Katas. As the leader of our people, I stand firm that Namek will survive this catastrophe. We will survive."

The harsh voice snarled. " **Foolish bastard. That thinking will be your undoing.** "

And then, the harsh voice was gone.

The soft voice spoke. " _I... I cannot risk extinction over foolish stubbornness, Molluska. I have to do SOMETHING..._ "

And then the soft voice faded as well.

 _Back in the present..._

The Grand Elder Guru of the Planet Namek, Molluska, sank into his chair as his final breaths left his body. He thought back to that argument that had fractured his relationship with his brothers...his friends...and then he flashed back to the before times. The young Namekians, playing and rough-housing in the Ajisa Fields, without a care in the world.

Lord Guru gave one final gasp. " _Katas...Slug_...I pray that...we can meet again someday...in whatever might lie beyond..."

 _Back over with Bardock's Group..._

The great Eternal Dragon of Namek loomed over the entire group. However, it was clear that something was wrong. The dragon had not decreased in size, but his once glowing, red eyes were now empty, black voids.

All anyone could do was watch in horror as Porunga's body became visibly less solid, slowly sagging as its light faded. The Dragon of Namek crashed to the ground with not even a thud, but a poof. His body exploded into a green fog and quickly dispersed. And then, in a golden flash, the Dragon Balls flew high up into the air...and then dropped back to the ground as mere stones.

Everyone seemed to come to the realization all at once as to what this meant. The members of the Four-Star Village all wept at the unfairness of it all...that bastard Frieza... _he went as far as to take the Grand Elder from them now_?!

Dende was crying his eyes out, his wrist still held firmly by Nail. And Nail...was left standing there with an empty, shell-shocked expression on his face.

The gang from Earth, alongside Vegeta, were panicking in the meanwhile. Vegeta was furious as he snatched his hand away from Raditz. " _YOU STUPID BASTARDS AND YOUR HESITATION MIGHT HAVE JUST DOOMED US ALL!_ "

Raditz snorted. "Yeah, right. Look, even without the wish, that Piccolo guy is still much stronger than Frieza. We have this won regardless of immortality."

Vegeta reared back and punched Raditz in the mouth. The elder brother fell to the ground and Vegeta snarled. "You dense, long-haired moron! You have no idea what we're in for! Frieza has the ability to-"

Vegeta began to tremble in place, a look of pure terror on his face. He was staring up, past Raditz, and towards a nearby mountain. Soon, the others joined him in trembling. Everyone present stared up to the top of that nearby mountain and saw a truly terrible sight.

Frieza, the Emperor of the Universe, was standing above them. And he looked utterly furious.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	31. Chapter 31: The Fury of Frieza

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: FRIEZA FIGHT! FRIEZA FIGHT! FRIEZA FIGHT!_

 **Chapter 31: The Fury of Frieza**

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Atop the highest mountain on this particular Namekian Island, a temper that burned hotter than a sun was raging and flaring above the shaken group on the ground below. The Emperor of the Universe, Lord Frieza, was scanning over the entire scene below and looking for one particular thing to focus on out of this entire shitshow display below him.

First, his leering gaze fell upon the now totally stone Dragon Balls. And then, he turned his attention to the shaky and terrified remains of the Namekian populace. And then, to the entire group of hated Saiyan filth that dared stand before him. Moving his eyes from Vegeta to Raditz to Gohan to Gine to Chi-Chi to Bulma to Krillin and then, finally, to Bardock. He genuinely couldn't decide who to kill first.

Meanwhile, off to the side and still gripping onto Dende's wrist, Nail glared at Frieza with hate and agony in his eyes. "I allowed this to happen..."

Dende broke from his fearful stupor to glance up at Nail. Nail had tears streaming down his face, looking totally enraged. "G-Grand Elder Guru...I... I let you _die_..."

Nail gritted his teeth. "I..."

Dende tugged on Nail's coat. "Nail?"

Nail snarled. " _I will not let you go unavenged!_ "

Everyone turned at the sudden shouting of Nail and saw the warrior flying off the handle. Bardock shouted. "Nail! Wait!"

Letting Dende go, Nail flew as fast as he could right towards Frieza. The warrior drew his hand back as he lunged at the Emperor, who had not even bothered to turn and face him, and shouted at the top of his lungs. " _YOU WILL FALL VILLAIN! YOU WILL FALL FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!_ _ **GRAND! MYSTIC! FLASHER!**_ "

A massive, yellow ki wave shot from Nail's hand and engulfed Frieza. The sheer force of the blast took off the entire top of the mountain and sliced through the ground that it collided with. Dirt and debris went flying as the blast skidded across the ground, eventually smashing into the Namekian sea and erupting into a column of utter destruction.

The smoke plumed up as displaced water rained down over the battlefield. Nail has a horrific scowl spread across his face, but his fellow kin cheered him on. The Namekians were ready to see one of their own take this monstrous invader down a peg.

But then a familiar pink tail emerged from the smoke, cracking like a whip, and smashing right into Nail's face. The strongest of the Namekians was sent flying like he was nothing and smashed into the ground hard with a sickening crunch. Every member of the remaining Namekians fell silent, their faces going blue. Dende went running as fast as he could, tears of fear pouring from his eyes. " _NAIL!_ "

Laying in the dirt, his eyes blank and white, Nail was out. Blood pouring from the massive gash that the strike had left across his face and his crumpled body barely able to muster a twitch.

The smoke cleared and Frieza was totally unaffected. And still totally silent. He continued to scan, uncaring of the babbling Namekian child in the distance, nor the bug he had just squashed. His anger was too intense, too seething.

Frieza glanced over towards his ship and saw yet another thing that made him angry. Lying face down in the dirt, Captain Ginyu's corpse was prostrate. The Captain's face was turned away from the situation as hand, and his broken body was totally still.

Frieza didn't react to this. But, mentally, he flashed a fair bit back.

 _A long time in the past..._

Nanny Berryblue stood to the side, her sarcastic and slightly evil smile spread across her face. She watched as her precocious ward stood in front of his much larger charge, a look of amusement on his face.

The toddler Lord Frieza was totally enthralled by the stories and feats that Captain Ginyu shared with him. Invasions and wars and battles and scraps and all forms of violence filled little Frieza's head full of genuinely glee and delight. And the Captain's flamboyant demeanor about the whole thing only made the future seem that much more appealing to the young tyrant. "These stories are amazing Captain! Do you swear this excitement to be the truth?!"

Captain Ginyu nodded and did a pose. "Of course, Young Lord! Working to expand the ever-growing reach of King Cold's influence is an always adventurous prospect! And I am always happy to do so because...?"

Frieza jumped up and down with joy. " _Because it will all be mine, one day!_ "

Ginyu jumped with him. "Exactly, Young Lord! Exactly! That is the reason I chose to remain in waiting rather than join my peer Salza alongside Lord Cooler! It is because I know a winner when I see one! It is because I know that, one day, this entire Universe will kneel to the name of...?"

Frieza shouted and pumped his fists into the air. " _FRIEZA!_ "

Ginyu smirk. "Yes, tha-"

Frieza smiled up at his favorite subordinate. " _AND HIS LOYAL SECOND-IN-COMMAND, CAPTAIN GINYU!_ "

Ginyu blushed. "Y-young Lord...I'm touched. I-"

Ginyu's wrist-mounted communicator began to ring and he checked it with a sigh. The Captain shook his head. "You must excuse me, Young Lord. I have been called away..."

Frieza pouted. "Hmmph. Why must Father always call you away like that?! I want you here!"

Ginyu smiled. "Worry not my Lord! My parting is indeed tragic, but I will come back with yet more tales of grand adventure and conquest! So, I hope you are ready to hear them when I get back!"

Frieza chuckled as the Captain ran off. Nanny Berryblue put her hand on the precocious little monsters' shoulder as he shouted. "They had better be even more entertaining next time, Captain!"

Ginyu turned and did a pose as he rounded the corner. "The Captain will always return to his Young Lord's side!"

 _Back in the present..._

Frieza turned his attention from Captain Ginyu's body and back to his hated enemies. And then, his frown turned into a smile and Frieza began to chuckle. "Well well well...ladies and gentlemen. I must say that you have succeeded in quite an impressive feat..."

Frieza leapt from his spot, on top of the small mountain, and spoke as he descended to the ground. "In my entire life, I do not think I have ever been quite so angry as I am right now. You have slaughtered all of my subordinates, _including my irreplaceable Captain Ginyu_ , and you have _robbed me of my bid for eternal life_..."

Vegeta, in spite of his previous terror, tried to adopt a cocky smirk. Raditz, Krillin, and Gohan were scared shitless and totally petrified. Chi-Chi and Bulma were both hidden behind the others, with Chi-Chi forcefully pushing her son back. And Bardock and Gine were both staring with trepidation at the monster that had already killed them both once. Bardock tightened his fists, ready to go at any moment.

Frieza glared at the remaining Namekians off to the side, with a hungry smile. "Tell me, can any of you remaining insects produce Dragon Balls?"

Elder Tsuno's mind immediately switched to Dende, but he dared not look back for fear of tipping Frieza off. So, the oldest remaining Namekian stepped forth. "You and your sick invasion force have slaughtered the entirety of the Dragon Clan in your disgusting rampage through our home! The Dragon Balls are gone! But...even if they weren't... _THE NAMEKIAN PEOPLE WOULD NEVER STOOP SO LOW AS TO HELP YOU!_ "

Frieza sighed. "I expected no less."

And then he jabbed his finger at Elder Tsuno and sent a Death Beam through the old man's heart. The last remaining Elder hit the ground with a thud and he was dead instantly.

As the Namekian's of the Four-Star Village gathered around their Elder to scream their sorrows, Frieza set his gaze on Bardock's group. "Allow me to be blunt: you maggots have made not only a dire mistake...but you have made your _last mistake_..."

Frieza leaned forward, his animalistic fury finally breaking through his previously calm demeanor. " _ **NONE OF YOU WILL BE LEAVING THIS PLANET ALIVE!**_ "

Frieza crossed his arms over his chest, and then he heaved them down and let all of his power loose. A wicked, smiling sneer spread across the Emperor's face and his power surged across the Namekian landscape.

Bardock was immediately unnerved. He looked around and saw a field of nothing but soft targets for Frieza's wrath. He turned to Gine and shouted at the top of his lungs. "GINE! Grab Chi-Chi and Bulma and all of the Namekians and retreat as quickly as possible!"

Gine opened her mouth to argue, but she was cut off by a sudden flash of pink right in her face. Before the Death Beam could strike, however, a hand flew in front of Gine's face and absorbed the blow. She looked up and saw her husband clenching his teeth in clear pain. "B-bardock..."

Bardock whipped around and glared down at Gine. " _ARE YOU DEAF?! RUN!_ "

Gine flinched, but she immediately complied. She turned and shouted at the Namekians and her much squishier human contemporaries. "Everyone flee! We have to clear the area right now!"

Bulma and the Namekians all started to run for the hills. One of the terrified farmers nearly knocked the poor human woman to the ground as he struggled to run and carry the Elder's body at the same time. Chi-Chi was also quick to follow this order, grabbing Gohan be the wrist and dragging the resisting boy with her as she turned tail and ran.

With everyone that Frieza could kill effortlessly gone, Bardock glared down at his numb and twitching hand. "Goddammit..."

But he had no time for rest as the raging form of Frieza came rocketing right at him. Bardock held up his hands and grabbed Frieza's fists as they came flying as him. Eventually, the two of them came to a stalemate and locked up right there.

And then Bardock smirked.

The older Saiyan's inhibitions were gone and while, yes, Frieza's power was overwhelming, Bardock didn't care. His own blood was boiling as he stared into the eyes of his hated mortal enemy. "Hey runt! Last time I saw you, you were the color of a raw shrimp. _Now you're just the size of one!_ "

Bardock roared at the top of his lungs and summoned all of his power to push against Frieza's. The force of the power was eating away at the ground beneath them, but Bardock wasn't done. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWO!_ "

Bardock's power exploded out and he and Frieza gouged a massive crater into the soil beneath them. As Bardock's power rose, the numbers continued to rack up on Frieza's Scouter until the red lens cracked and the device exploded from the side of his face. Frieza chuckled and sneered. "You would have been better off staying dead! Hell will feel like a vacation after all of the pain and agony I plan to provide you!"

Bardock shouted back in Frieza's face. "I don't care about pain or agony! I don't care if I die again..."

The older Saiyan smashed his forehead into Frieza's. " _ALL I CARE ABOUT IS THAT I GET TO DRAG YOU TO HELL WITH ME YOU BASTARD!_ "

Frieza and Bardock both reared back and smashed their heads into each other. Bardock's bandana snapped off and fluttered away in the harsh winds that this storm of power was creating, incinerating in the burning heat of the anger that was centralized in this one spot.

Frieza smiled as blood began to trickle out from between his and Bardock's foreheads, licking some of it from his face with his tongue. "You will have to try harder than that to take me to Hell, _Monkey Filth_."

Bardock's smile didn't fade. But, before he could retort, two shadows came flying into the fray. Vegeta and Raditz both landed next to Bardock, and then they simultaneously spun around and launched blasts at Frieza. Frieza leapt back in one direction and Bardock leapt back with Vegeta and Raditz in the other.

Skidding across the ground, Bardock wiped the blood from his forehead and growled. "Who asked either of you to-"

Vegeta ignored Bardock and charged at Frieza. The Prince's power flared and he and Frieza clashed their forearms. Vegeta spat in Frieza's face. "Damn that ghost from the past! You and I have business, _Frieza!_ "

Frieza chuckled at this new strength and backbone Vegeta was showing. "Poor Prince. Have you already forgotten your manners...or are you just too scared to remember the word 'Lord'?!"

Vegeta snarled and threw a punch which Frieza caught. Frieza chuckled. "I promised Bardock and now I will promise you, Vegeta...this will not end until tears of fear and misery are streaming down your cheeks!"

While Vegeta and Frieza brawled, Raditz turned to his Father. "D-dad...what are we going to do here?! He's...he's so-"

Bardock cut Raditz off. "No need to state the obvious, Raditz! Frieza's strong and you're terrified, right?!"

Raditz nodded. Bardock shook his head. "All we can really do here is fight our asses off and wait for more back-up to arrive. He's getting closer and Frieza can't sense him, so we have that to our advantage..."

Raditz's shoulders slumped. "But, what if-"

Bardock shook his head. "No time for what-ifs, Raditz! We just have to fight for as long as we can! _Nut up or shut up!_ Now either join in on this fight or step aside!"

Krillin went flying past Bardock and Raditz screaming at the top of his lungs and Bardock turned to Raditz. "See?! Be like him!"

Krillin knew he was outmatched. Watching as Vegeta and Frieza brawled, he knew that he wouldn't be the one to end this fight. But he had to do something to help out!

In his head, Krillin pictured all of the dead and broken Namekians that Frieza had left in his wake. It turned the little monk's stomach. He had to contribute to putting this monster down somehow! Krillin pulled his hands to his sides and summoned a massive ki blast in each hand. He dropped to the ground, skidding to a halt, and fired both of these attacks at once. " _SCATTER KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

Over with Frieza, Vegeta was keeping the Tyrant busy and distracted. The Prince saw the attack coming from that Earthling pest and knew that that could be used to his advantage. As the blast started to overtake them both, and Frieza turned to see what the commotion was, Vegeta seized his former boss by the hands and held him in place. And then the Scatter Kamehameha overtook both of them.

Krillin flinched as the attack hit Vegeta as well, but then he felt around for what was happening within and he nodded. Krillin whipped the blast into the air and split it into portions before raining it back down. On the ground, a slightly singed Frieza smiled at Krillin as the blasts rained down around him. "Did you really think a bug like you could damage me?"

Frieza aimed his finger at Krillin's forehead and the human flinched. He cried out. " _VEGETA NOW!_ "

A blast landed directly behind Frieza and, as Krillin's energy dispersed, a different kind of energy began to surge. Feeling the force on his back, Frieza turned to see Vegeta knelt down behind him. The Prince smirked and he thrusted his hands right at Frieza. " _SUPER! GALICK! GUN!_ "

The massive, pink energy wave overtook Frieza's body and the Emperor's jaw dropped. The force that Vegeta was putting out had managed to take the Emperor off of his feet and was actually making him feel a sting. Frieza went flying back a few feet, but managed to plant his feet firmly into the ground.

Vegeta's attack finished and the smoke cleared and Frieza was left standing there and looking pissed. He glared at Vegeta, but then Bardock and Raditz both came in for a strike. Frieza caught Bardock's fist and Raditz's foot and snarled. "You maggots are forgetting your place!"

Frieza slammed Raditz into the ground before leaping into the air and latching onto the eldest brother's face with his foot. The Tyrant whipped Raditz into the air and used his leg to propel him into Bardock, sending them both tumbling back. And then, grabbing Raditz around the neck with his tail, Frieza slung him directly into Krillin.

Frieza landed and summoned energy into his hand. " _DEATH WAVE!_ "

He fired his massive blast across the field at Vegeta and the Prince could only gasp in fear and block.

Not caring to see what had become of Vegeta, Frieza turned his attention to Bardock. Bardock charged at him and punched the Emperor in the side of the head. Frieza cringed a bit, but that did not stop him from rearing his fist back and putting it right through the side of Bardock's armor.

The older Saiyan groaned at he felt his ribs snap, coughing up a bit of blood into his cupped hand below. Frieza smirked and opened his mouth to say something sarcastic, but Bardock cut him off by whipping that hand full of blood directly into the Emperor's eyes. Frieza hissed in pain and then Bardock struck again, smashing his fist into Frieza's mouth and busting the monster's lip. Bardock looked down at his fist and smiled wide as Frieza stumbled back. "First blood..."

Frieza reached up and wiped his eyes, and then he wiped his hand across his mouth. Looking down and see blood, Frieza was livid. He glared at Bardock and Bardock chuckled. "I thought you were supposed to be the Invincible Evil Emperor, eh?!"

Frieza was wordless. He shot forward at blinding speed and smashed Bardock to the ground with his tail before the Saiyan could react. Bardock groaned in pain and Frieza stomped on his chest. And then, the Emperor summoned a giant blast above his head.

 _Over by Frieza's Ship..._

Gine and Bulma were both frantically directing traffic as the herded the remaining Namekians into the relative safety. As Bulma shouted for their Namekian friends to hurry, Gine glanced back over at the raging battle and watched as Bardock, Vegeta, Raditz, and Krillin all fought against the monster. She was just before despair at how risky this entire situation was.

As she watched on, another fight was happening much closer by. Chi-Chi was struggling, with all of the strength she could muster, to pull her young son into the ship for safety. Gohan was resisting as hard as he could, he blood-boiling as he watched Frieza pound all of his friends. But Chi-Chi didn't seem to notice. "Gohan! Please! Stop struggling and just come inside where you're safe!"

Chi-Chi tugged again. "You're just a boy, Gohan! You don't need to fight monsters like that! Just come inside and-"

Just a little bit, Gohan snapped. "YOU'RE WRONG!"

Chi-Chi flinched and Gohan finally pulled himself from her grip. "Mom! I love you, but you're so wrong about all of this!"

Chi-Chi was stunned. "Wh-what do you-"

Gohan shouted at her. "You're wrong about why I came here! I'm not trying to impress anyone; I just want everyone I care about to come back to life and be able to live in peace! You're wrong about me being some defenseless little kid! I'm strong enough that, even if I don't like to fight, I should pitch in and help whenever I can!"

Chi-Chi fell to her butt. "G-Gohan, I-"

Gohan gave one final shout. "And you're wrong about this place being safe! Nowhere on this Planet is safe as long as that Frieza guy is here! I've seen it firsthand! He doesn't stop! He doesn't quit! He doesn't show mercy!"

Chi-Chi was silent. Gohan turned away from her. "So, to save you and Grandpa and Uncle Raditz and Mr. Krillin and everyone... _I HAVE TO GO AND HELP OUT!_ "

Gohan's rage broke and his power flooded out. He went flying off at top speed while Chi-Chi helplessly called out to him. "GOHAN! WAIT!"

Chi-Chi stood up and took to the air. But, before she could fly off, both of her ankles were grabbed tight. She looked back down and saw Gine and Bulma both holding onto her tight. Chi-Chi stared at them, speechless and full of terror. Gine let loose a deep sigh and spoke in a clear, but obviously worried voice. "Get into the ship Chi-Chi. _Now_."

Chi-Chi took one final tearful look towards her son, but then she was somewhat forcefully escorted into the ship by Gine and Bulma.

 _Back over with Frieza..._

Bardock summoned a Riot Javelin to try and get Frieza off of him, but the tyrant was quick to lift his foot and stomp it onto Bardock's wrist. With that attack stomped out, a smile spread on Frieza's face and he began to mock his captive prey. "Is this the part where I am dragged to Hell?"

Bardock sneered. "I won't die, bastard! I won't die until I see whatever is left of you dead at my feet!"

Frieza smirked. "Ohohohoho...I wonder... did _you_ wish for immortality by chance?"

Bardock was silent. Frieza's smile chuckled again. "Well, as Captain Ginyu once said..."

The Emperor's smile faded into a cold stare of pure hate. " _Perhaps a stress test is in order._ "

Frieza pulled his arm down, ready to sling his kill shot right into Bardock's face, a screaming comet came shooting forth. It was moving so fast that the force of its speed was practically making it whistle. Frieza turned to glare at this new intruder just in time for it to slam into his stomach.

Frieza coughed and gagged and was sent sprawling back. He glared at this new intruder, ready to fight it, but the Emperor's attention was immediately taken up by the returning Vegeta and Raditz rushing him and starting a brawl.

As the fight moved away from him, Bardock was offered help getting up from an unexpected source. He grabbed the hand to get help sitting up, but Bardock was not thrilled to see his Grandson standing in front of him. As Bardock stood up, Krillin came running up to join the two of them. "Hey Bardock! You all right?!"

Bardock ignored Krillin and snapped at Gohan. "Why the Hell are you stepping into this shit?! Your Mother just got done riding my ass over this crap less than two hours ago!"

Gohan stood firm and silent, glaring at his grandfather. Krillin read the situation, but then he smirked. He stepped over to Gohan and clapped his hand down on the boy's shoulder armor. And then, the human monk turned to Bardock and nodded. "The three of us made this trip together! We trained together and we struggled together! It wouldn't be right not to end it together, right Bardock?"

Gohan remained silent, still staring right at his Grandfather. Bardock tried to remain stoic, but then a small, prideful grin spread across his face. Reaching down, the older Saiyan ruffled Gohan's hair and chuckled. "Fine fine. Guess I can't stop ya, can I? Just...make sure that I'm as cold and dead and possible before you even think about dying yourself, kay? I don't wanna have to deal with your Mother and Grandmother bitching me out if you skin your knee..."

Gohan finally smiled back, showing the same amount of confidence his Granddad was showing. "Skinned knees happen. But none of us are going to die here! Frieza is alone, we have each other!"

Gohan turned and faced where Frieza was fighting Raditz and Vegeta. He and Krillin both braced themselves and Bardock sighed. "That's the spirit!"

And then the three of them charged!

Vegeta and Raditz, meanwhile, were working together to tag-team their former employer. In spite of their antipathy for each other, Raditz and Vegeta had known each other for the majority of their lives. Their teamwork wasn't an enjoyable experience, but it was quite effective.

Frieza was on his toes the entire time. For every hit that he blocked, another came rushing in to demand his attention. He swung his fist out for a sweeping haymaker and Vegeta and Raditz both hit the dirt. They glared at each other and then Vegeta shouted. "Maneuver 7, idiot!"

Vegeta and Raditz both rolled out of the way as Frieza smashed his tail down. Raditz hopped up and then began to charge again. "How do we do Manuever 7 without Nappa?!"

Vegeta summoned a blast in his hand. "The mountain behind Frieza can be Nappa!"

Frieza smirked. He was having an annoying kind of fun playing with these Saiyan cretins. The Emperor turned and, to be petty, he blew up the mountain with his Eye Beams. He turned and smirked at Raditz and Vegeta. "So, with your 'Nappa' gone, I suppose Manuever 7 is cancelled?"

Frieza was stunned by how close Vegeta and Raditz had gotten in such a short time. Both of them glared up at him, their fists wreathed in the same energy that Vegeta had summoned prior. Raditz sneered. "There is no Nappa in Manuever 7!"

And then, they both smashed their energy coated fists into the cracked armor on Frieza's stomach. Frieza wheezed as the wind was forced out of him and Raditz took advantage. His armor was busted. He was vulnerable!

Raditz flipped around Frieza, getting behind the Emperor, before pressing his back to Frieza's back and reverse-hooking his arms under Frieza's arms. He pulled Frieza's arms back and left the Emperor wide open. "Vegeta! I'm safe! Blast him!"

Vegeta charged forward and summoned a much larger attack. He came right up to Frieza's face and let the blast loose while Raditz used the Tyrant as a makeshift shield. Vegeta smirked at their success, but then Frieza's unfazed and quite angry face came shooting from the smoke and bashed right into Vegeta's nose. Vegeta fell back, clenching his face, and then Frieza turned his attention to Raditz. He wrapped his tail around the older brother's neck and snatched him forward.

Frieza lifted the panicking low-class into the air and then slammed him, head first, onto his knee. Raditz sagged in Frieza's grip and then was tossed aside next to Vegeta. The Emperor was angry but, before he could even think of a death threat, two blasts came rocketing towards him from the periphery.

" _MASENKO!_ " " _KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

Frieza turned on a dime and grabbed both blasts, effortlessly throwing them up into the air. He charged at Gohan and Krillin, both fists raised and ready to axe-handle the two of them into the ground, but his attack with intercepted by Bardock's feet. Bardock struggled against Frieza's strength, but he was able to shove the Emperor back.

Frieza landed a few feet away and Bardock stood back up. He, Gohan, and Krillin all took fighting stances. Wordlessly, Frieza held up a finger and prepared to end this all by summoning an attack that Bardock was all too familiar with: the Supernova!

Frieza snarled. " _Burn Saiyan!_ "

And then he tossed it. Bardock cursed to himself and leapt into the air as Krillin and Gohan dove to the opposite sides. "Shit!"

As he went into the air, however, Bardock noticed that the attack was following him. He growled in frustration. "Double shit!"

He raced higher and faster, but the Supernova was right on his ass. Bardock shuddered as he got higher, the ill effects from the Kaioken still weighing on him. He hated to admit it, but he was going to have to get King Kai to actually teach him how that move was supposed to work if he ever died again. But, for now, he had to push the envelope just a bit more. Bardock was currently at 200,000 at base...so if he was doing the math correctly...

Bardock summoned a Riot Javelin and turned to face the Supernova. The last time he did this, his attack meant nothing. Just absorbed and then he was dead. But this time was different! Bardock shouted. " _KAIOKEN TIMES THREE!_ "

 **530,000 vs 600,000!**

Bardock's Riot Javelin crashed into Frieza's Supernova and, to Frieza's shock and horror, the attack pierced his. The Emperor stared up at the blast got closer and closer to him, ready to dodge and counter attack. Bardock shouted from up in the air. " _ **DON'T FUCKING LET HIM MOVE!**_ "

Frieza was illuminated from all sides. He looked to his front and saw Raditz. To his left, he saw Gohan. To his right, he saw Krillin. And to his back, he saw Vegeta. Frieza snarled in a rage at all of them.

" _DOUBLE SUNDAY!_ " " _MASENKO!_ " " _KAMEHAMEHA!_ " " _GALICK GUN!_ "

All four attacks hit Frieza from all four sides, and then the final attack rained down onto him from above. " _RIOT JAVELIN!_ "

The attacks all fused together, and then they formed a massive explosion. The force of the attack rocketed across the battlefield and kicked up dust and debris. One of the Ginyu's Battle Pods was kicked up and tossed into the ocean. And even Frieza's massive ship rocked from the sheer force.

Bardock descended from the sky, landing back down next to Gohan. Soon, they were joined by Vegeta, Raditz, and Krillin. The smoke cleared and, after a moment, Frieza popped up from the sand. The Emperor was scuffed and mildly injured, his armor being nothing more than a memory.

Frieza glanced up from his crater at his five enemies and was met with Vegeta's loud, smarmy tone. "So, Frieza, are you afraid yet?!"

Frieza took a deep breath...and then he began to chuckle. He glared up at Vegeta with a smile. "Oh, my dear Prince, how overconfident you have grown in such a little time..."

The Emperor turned his attention to Bardock. "And you...I must say that I am quite impressed. You managed to overpower my Supernova. And somehow, for a brief moment, you managed to exceed this form's strength...if only by a small margin."

Bardock, Gohan, Raditz, and Vegeta all took fighting stances. Bardock refused to back down, but it was becoming much harder for him to hide how badly the use of the Kaioken was rattling him. Frieza closed his eyes and chuckled. "The other three are vermin...no offense meant Raditz. But you, Vegeta and Bardock, you will both be begging for the mercy of Hell when I next get my hands on you..."

Frieza glanced up at the shivering Krillin and smirked. "He seems to get it."

Raditz turned to see Krillin's face was bone-white. "G-get what...?!"

Krillin's mouth was dry. "Wh-what did he mean by ' _this form_ '?!"

Frieza let loose one last evil chuckle at the sight of everyone flinching. And then...he screamed at the top of his lungs! Frieza's body began to twist and crackle and expand, his muscles and skin and body parts all ballooning to unnatural proportions. His voice grew to a deeper, more sinister register and his horns curved up like the devil himself. Frieza's form grew taller and taller, his size change made all the more apparent by the deep crater he was standing in.

Bardock, Raditz, Vegeta, Gohan, and Krillin went white at the sheer, disturbing power than they felt. And then, in a brutal flash and with a quick snap, he was right there. Bardock, Vegeta, Gohan, and Raditz stumbled back, and then Bardock gasped in horror. Vegeta and Raditz were speechless and Gohan screamed in horror.

Twitching and coughing up blood, sagged over Frieza's head with a massive black horn sticking through him, was Krillin. Frieza chuckled and walked, smirking as Krillin bounced and blood raining down in front of his face like a spring drizzle. "You see, maggots, in my previous form...my power level was but a paltry 530,000. But now...I have reached the lofty power level of 1,000,000. And this, my friends, is where your Hell truly begins..."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	32. Chapter 32: Fighting Power One Million

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Okay, so...should go without saying for anyone who is really a fan of the series. But, for those of you unaware, Frieza is a violent son of a bitch. So, these next few chapters might be a bit more brutal compared to my normal faire. So, just a small viewer discretion warning. Frieza gets a bit graphic in this one. Happy Easter everybody~_

 _Also...HOLY SHIT! WE'VE REACHED 100,000 VIEWS! THANK YOU ALL SO VERY VERY MUCH! T_T_

 **Chapter 32: Fighting Power One Million**

 _Outside of Frieza's Ship..._

Frieza stepped forward from the crater with a massive smile on his face. With each heavy step that he took, Krillin slid down his massive horn a little bit more. He continued to march forward until he was right on top of the four of them, and then Frieza glared down at his Saiyan foes. Instantly, Bardock and Vegeta took a fighting stance. Raditz flinched back a bit, be he soon squared up at well. All three Saiyans remained quiet and focused, waiting for Frieza to make his move. Gohan, however, was less concerned with fighting and more concerned with his friend. "Hey! Put Krillin down, you bastard!"

Frieza seemed confused as to just what Gohan was talking about. But this confusion was quickly dispelled by Krillin gagging and crying out in pain. Krillin coughed and blood poured from his mouth. Frieza looked up and held out his cupped hand, catching some of Krillin's blood in it. "Oh...I see..."

Frieza drank the blood and then gave a wicked smile. "Forgive me. I forgot he was up there."

And then, with a single jerk of his neck, Frieza bucked Krillin from atop his head and watched as the gored human splatted against the ground. Krillin laid there, twitching as a pool of blood formed under him. Gohan immediately didn't care about Frieza, he just wanted to go and check on his friend. "Mr. Krillin!"

As Gohan began to run, Frieza chuckled. And then, the monster raised his hand into the air. Bardock's pupils shrank and he immediately sprang into action. "Shit!"

The older Saiyan leapt forward and grabbed Gohan by the wrist. And this, in spite of the struggling boy's protests, Bardock flew off as fast as he could. Vegeta was also pretty well aware of what was about to happen, so he turned tail and chased off in the same direction Bardock did. Raditz would have followed suit, but then he caught sight of Krillin and his conscience got the better of him. "D-dammit!"

Raditz dived towards the injured Krillin...and then Frieza allowed his power to unfurl. The explosion went off like a nuclear bomb. One second, everything was peaceful. And then the next second, all Hell had broken loose. The dome of Frieza's power went shredding across the landscape, instantly closing the distance between himself and Bardock and Vegeta. The two Saiyans, along with their unwilling child tagalong, were literally racing for their lives. The energy dome briefly smashed into the bottom of Vegeta's boot and the Saiyan Prince yelped in pain.

Luckily, before the blast wave could engulf them, all three of the fleeing warriors dove into the Namekian sea and swam down as fast as they could.

Meanwhile, the blast continued to expand, ultimately stopping its pathway of destruction just as it reached Frieza's ship.

 _Within Frieza's Ship..._

The ship rocked as Frieza's attack got ever closer to it. A blinding, pink light shone through every window and the force of the attack busted several of them out. The remaining Namekians were panicking in terror at the feeling of this power. Bulma and Chi-Chi tried to calm them all down, but they could only manage this much calm because neither of them could sense power levels very well.

Meanwhile, Gine was huddled in the corner with her head between her knees. She had to try and remain calm for the sake of everyone else, but the Saiyan Mother's face was bright green. She swallowed the sickening lump in her throat and squeezed her eyes shut, praying that this might be the limit of Frieza's power.

 _Back outside..._

Bardock and Vegeta both hauled themselves out of the sea and onto the land of a nearby island. Neither of them said anything as they got to shore, but both of them silently knew that they had just barely avoided dying right then and there. Bardock pulled Gohan out of the water and slung the boy onto land. Gohan stood up and coughed up a mouthful of water, and then he ran over to the shore to see if Krillin had managed to evade the attack.

Gohan reached the shore and he went blue in the face. "It... it's...it's gone. _It's all gone_!"

Bardock and Vegeta both joined Gohan to stare in shock. Not only was the massive patch of land they were fighting on totally gone, but apparently all of the land beneath the water had gone with it. Torrential currents rushed into the now massive hole under the water and created a gigantic whirlpool. Vegeta darted his gaze to and fro. "Dammit! Where the Hell did Frieza go?!"

And then, answering Vegeta's question immediately, Frieza's massive tail burst through the ground and shot right at the Prince. Bardock reacted quick, booting Gohan away from the fight and then joining Vegeta in dodging the various strikes that the tail took at them.

The rapidly moving tendril shred through the soil like a drill, winding around and zooming towards its two targets. The end of the tail grazed Vegeta's cheek and left a small gash going across the Prince's cheek. Vegeta and Bardock both continued to leap away and dodge until, finally, the length of the tail reached its limit and Frieza came popping out of the ground. The tail retracted and joined Frieza high up in the air.

Vegeta and Bardock both landed, out of breath. Vegeta used his thumb to wipe away the blood from his cut. Meanwhile, Frieza survey over the damage he had caused. Between tearing up the Namekian landscape beneath him and blowing away the majority of the previous island, Frieza couldn't help but enjoy a small chuckle. "My my...perhaps Father is right. Maybe, just maybe, I need to learn to exercise a bit of control. I just have...so much trouble controlling my unyielding levels of power in this form..."

Frieza landed on the ground in front of Bardock and Vegeta. "Forgive me for showing off, monkeys."

Bardock and Vegeta glared up at their much stronger foe. The odds weren't great. Bardock shot his glance aside to feel for their back-up and, to his dismay, Piccolo was still at least four minutes away. Four minutes was enough time for Frieza to kill them all one-hundred times over in this state.

Vegeta, meanwhile, gave no regard to Piccolo. Instead, the Prince chose to boast in order to inflate his steadily waning sense of confidence and control. Vegeta let loose a laugh, a slow rumbling laugh. Frieza, not aware of the joke, began to laugh as well.

Soon, Bardock was left standing there as both the asshole and Frieza laughed their heads off.

But, eventually, the mirth faded and Frieza's belly laugh became a low chuckle. "Oh Vegeta...do be kind enough to at least let me in on the joke~"

Vegeta stopped laughing as well and smirked at Frieza. "I was just laughing at how stupid you must feel. You allowed members of the very race you chose to execute to live on! You must feel such a fool right now!"

Frieza sighed, but he earnestly nodded. "I will admit to that. The overall ignorance of today's proceedings has, indeed, left my face feeling a bit eggy. But my problems shall soon be lying dead on the ground...so does it really matter Vegeta?"

Vegeta continued to boast. "Oh yes! Someone will be left lying dead alright! And it will be you, Frieza! Today is the day that you pay for the injustices you have committed against the Saiyan race! Myself and Bardock are both here to make sure of that!"

Bardock flinched at Vegeta suddenly speaking of him as an equal. It seemed out of character to the older Saiyan, but he wasn't going to complain that Vegeta was becoming more of a team player. Frieza, meanwhile, was a strange combination of amused and bemused. He glared at Vegeta. "Oh really? You two are going to kill me?"

Vegeta gripped his fist. "Of course, we are! Because we are something you fear, Frieza!"

Frieza cocked his head. "And that would be?"

Vegeta sneered. "We are stronger than any generation of Saiyan before us! We are the golden standard of our race! We are your worst nightmare! We! Are! _SUPER SAIYANS!_ "

Bardock and Frieza both stared, incredulous. Bardock mumbled to Vegeta. "H-hey...I get what you're trying to do here...but is this really the best time in the world to start shouting about _bedtime stories_...?"

Frieza was silent for a moment, but then he began to laugh again. This laugh was deeper, darker, and much more twisted than any before. Vegeta and Bardock both glared at Frieza. Bardock remained silent, but Vegeta was quick to anger. "What in the Hell are you laughing at?!"

Frieza wiped a tear from his eye. "Just a really funny memory. What is the old saying, Vegeta? Like Father, Like Son?"

Vegeta's pupils shrank as Frieza continued to laugh. "Wh-what?"

Frieza smiled a wicked smile at Vegeta. " _Would you believe me if I said that those were King Vegeta's deluded last words too?_ "

Vegeta flinched, his jaw dropping, and Frieza charged at an almost incomprehensible speed. Before Vegeta could react, Frieza had already gripped the Prince by the face with the bottom of his foot. He lifted his leg and the struggling Prince into the air, and then Frieza stomped down at hard as he could. Vegeta instantly went limp and Frieza smirked. With a roar, the Emperor lifted Vegeta from the ground and stomped him again and again and again.

Vegeta was screaming in pain and agony, but Frieza's foot muffled his cries. The Prince could do nothing at his body was jammed further and further into the ground with each successive stomp. Bardock was quick to react. He jumped at Frieza and considered a Riot Javelin. But, the older Saiyan knew that that move most likely would not be very effective. So, instead, Bardock coated his body in energy and used another move from his arsenal. "Tyrant Lancer!"

Bardock shot forward like a missile, slamming shoulder first into Frieza's arm. The Emperor didn't move, but Bardock didn't care. He pulled his arm back for a punch and aimed it square at Frieza's face. But, before it could connect, the Tyrant caught hold of it. Frieza turned to Bardock and smirked, and then he squeezed the Saiyan's hand hard enough that all of the bones in it broke.

As he heard each and every individual snap and splinter, Bardock screamed in pain. But this pain was nothing compared to what would come next. Frieza gave one final stomp to Vegeta and then turned all of his attention to Bardock. He held the older Saiyan to where he was hanging by his broken hand, and then Frieza delivered a heavy chop right to Bardock's side.

Bardock retched as he felt his ribs all break and then stab into his precious innards. But the torment wasn't over there. Frieza tossed Bardock's captivity from one hand to the other, and then he chopped into Bardock's other side. The pain from this, feeling his ribs dig into him from both sides, nearly caused Bardock to black out. But he managed to hold on to consciousness by a thread.

Frieza saw this and decided to continue the torture. He heaved Bardock into the air and then began to whip the Saiyan around like a bull-rope. He twirled Bardock around for a few second before releasing him. Bardock free flew for just a second before Frieza smashed him in the face with his elbow. Bardock was left free-spinning in the air and Frieza finished his punishment session with a crack of the tail.

Bardock went flying like a torpedo and smashed into the ground. The older Saiyan's body parted the soil like a biblical sea, leaving two massive fens of dirt as he skidded along before eventually coming to a stop.

Frieza smiled as Bardock laid there and then turned his attention back to Vegeta. He lifted the Prince's limp body from the ground with his foot and allowed it to hang there for a moment. And then, he let it go and slammed his fist into Vegeta's stomach with all of the strength he could muster.

The air left Vegeta's body like a pressurized bullet and then Prince went flying back. He crashed into Bardock with a harsh crack and both of them went bouncing away like pool balls. They both crashed back down and groaned in a miserable way that displayed some as of yet measured form of agony.

Shakily, the two of them sat up and glared at Frieza. The Emperor met these glares with a satisfied smirk, and then he launched a massive ki blast at the two of them. Bardock and Vegeta were both fading, but they each summoned a ki blast of their own to fire back. The two blasts went soaring towards Frieza's and briefly clashed with it...but they were both quickly swallowed by the more massive attack. Bardock and Vegeta stared in horror. This looked like it was going to be it. The two of them braced for impact, but then a new savior descended from the sky above.

With an almighty, primal shout, Gohan stomped his foot down onto Frieza's blast and used all of the energy he could to quash it. The boy stood there, heaving in and out angry breaths as Frieza stared at him. The Emperor was mildly impressed. Perhaps that wasn't the most powerful attack he could have launched, but this monkey child was still showing quite a bit of backbone. "Who fathered you, child? Was it Bardock? Raditz? Vegeta? The... _other_ one?

Frieza tapped his chin. " _What was that bald one's name...?_ "

Gohan ignored Frieza's questions and snarled at him. "Y-you might have killed Mr. Krillin, but I won't let you kill my Grandpa Bardock!"

Frieza chuckled. "Oh, Grandpa Bardock eh? Well, that's one down. Possibly two, maybe? I mean, you mentioned Bardock, but where is the love for Vegeta?"

Gohan ignored this once again and roared at the top of his lungs. He shot at Frieza like a missile made of pure rage. Frieza smirked and took a wide-open stance. "Heh! Come then, brat!"

Vegeta watched as Gohan charged at Frieza, silently hoping that the brat could buy him just a few second to recover. Bardock, meanwhile, did not want his Grandson to rush so readily into death like that. "Gohan! Stand dow-"

As he shouted, Bardock doubled over in pain. The older Saiyan shuddered. He wanted to stop Gohan, but he couldn't at the moment. Bardock tried to get his tremors under control at Gohan sped forward to attack!

But then, to everyone's surprise, not only did Gohan's first attack land, but it seemed to hurt. The Saiyan boy delivered a massive headbutt to Frieza's stomach and visibly winded the Tyrant. And then, he began to unload all of his negative feelings right into Frieza's core. Punch after punch after punch collided into Frieza's mid-section and seemed to keep the Emperor stunned. Soon, Gohan graduated from punches to uppercuts, slamming a hefty one right into Frieza's jaw and sending the monster flying high into the sky.

Vegeta couldn't believe his eyes at what he was seeing. Perhaps the power of Saiyan/Human hybrids was even greater than he and Nappa originally speculated?! Bardock, meanwhile, simply couldn't believe what he was seeing in general. He knew that something was up. And, slowly, the older Saiyan struggled to his feet.

Gohan backflipped into the air, racing to get ahead of Frieza as they both ascended up. As soon as he outpaced the Tyrant, Gohan waited for him and then delivered a massive axe kick to the back of the head once he got close enough. Frieza fell back to the ground like a stone, smashing hard into the land below. And then, Gohan began to charge energy blasts. He tossed them, rapid fire, at the supine Frieza's body. Each individual blast smashed into Frieza's back and drove the Emperor farther and farther into the ground.

Gohan was hitting his stride. He was doing it! He was actually fighting back against Frieza! Gohan prepared his final attack. He raised his hands into the air and glared down at Frieza's unmoving form. And then, he shouted. " _DAI MASENKO!_ "

The massive blast shot down and smashed onto the already smoking form of Frieza. It drilled into the ground below, rupturing soil and making sure that Frieza was completely enveloped. Once the blast drilled down far enough, it erupted into a massive explosion, sending a column of pure energy up into the atmosphere and dispersing the clouds above-head.

Gohan was breathing heavy as he descended back to the ground below. A column of black smoke was rising into the sky from the crater where Frieza was. Gohan was no fool, he knew that he didn't kill Frieza. But he was certain that he had at least wounded him.

The 5-year old walked up to the crater to peak in an inspect what he had done. He could see nothing through the dense, black smoke. That made it all the more surprising when a hand came shooting through the ebony smog and seized the unsuspecting Gohan by the hair.

To the boy's horror, Frieza emerged from the smoke looking no worse for wear. His outer shell was a bit dirty, but Frieza seemed totally uninjured by Gohan's Unrelenting Barrage. He lifted Gohan high, until they were face-to-face, and then he sneered at the boy. "I will say, that was quite impressive for a child. You would make a fine soldier in my army, monkey boy!"

Gohan snarled. "I would never join you!"

Frieza smiled. "Not yet you wouldn't. You need... _conditioning_ first~!"

And then, beginning with a massive punch that knocked out one of the boy's teeth, Frieza began to beat the defenseless Gohan utterly senseless. The half Saiyan child tried to block, but that meant nothing as Frieza landed punch after punch onto Gohan's face and chest and stomach.

Gohan tried to keep up the bravery act at first, but soon the pain began to be too much and he began to scream in fear and pain. Frieza relished this. He began to hit harder and harder, feeling the boy melting in his hand as he did. Frieza continued to use Gohan as a makeshift speed bag until he personally felt that the boy had been tenderized enough. And then, he tossed Gohan aside like trash.

Frieza whipped around and tossed Gohan like a sports ball right at Vegeta. The Prince, perhaps taking just a bit of pity, caught Gohan mid-flight. He dropped the boy to the ground as gently as he could, and then he prepared for another Frieza assault. Frieza raised his hand into the air and summoned a blast. "You have potential boy! If you survive this, then you may consider yourself indoctrinated into the Frieza Force!"

Frieza prepared to fire. But then, he noticed something was off. "What a moment...where is Bardock?"

This question was answered by a massive, emphatic ki blast smashing right into Frieza's unguarded back. The Tyrant snarled at this sudden attack. That one actually stung just a little bit! But, before he could react to this, Bardock ran up behind Frieza. He wrapped his arms around the Tyrant's torso and then heaved with all of his might. Bardock fell to his back, but he managed to German Suplex Frieza away at the same time.

Bardock leapt to his feet, ignoring the stabbing pain on his insides, and summoned a Riot Javelin. And then, he spun on his toes and whipped the attack right into Frieza's face. The bastard gripped his face with a growl and Bardock prepared for a fight.

As Frieza stood up, regaining himself, Bardock turned to Vegeta and give a quick, but clear hand motion. Bardock's voice was silent, but his message was loud and clear. " _ **TAKE GOHAN AND GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!**_ "

Vegeta wasn't exactly keen on running off, but he got the point. He needed time to recover and so did the boy, so a tactical retreat was probably the best option at the moment. Vegeta reached down and grabbed Gohan by the ankle, and then he started to fly away with the boy as fast as he could.

Bardock nodded and sighed in relief. He turned to face Frieza, but was quickly surprised by the Emperor's tail snaking around him. Bardock couldn't struggle or fight back as the length of Frieza's tail snapped tight around his body, pinning his arms to his sides. Frieza smirked at Bardock and then, to Bardock's dismay, turned his attention to the two fleeing rats up in the air. Frieza squatted down, and then he launched up into the air at top speed.

Hearing the sonic boom, Vegeta looked back down to the ground and was horrified to see nothing. But, before he could get back to paying attention to where he was flying, Vegeta collided with something solid. Slowly and fearfully, the Prince turned his attention to what he slammed into and was greeted with the sight of Frieza looming over him.

Frieza chuckled as Vegeta trembled in fear. "Dear Prince. If I ever taught you anything as you grew up, I would've hoped the phrase 'you can't outrun the inevitable' would have stuck..."

Before Vegeta even had time to speak, Frieza backhanded him across the face and sent him and Gohan both crashing back to the ground. The two of them smashed into a nearby mountain, impacting into the hardened rock and then lying there, motionless.

Satisfied with what he had done, Frieza landed back onto solid ground. Bardock struggled and jerked, but was unable to escape the grip of Frieza's tail. The Emperor took his time, slowly bring Bardock to eye level and enjoying the feeling of him squirming in his grip like some kind of miserable cockroach.

Once Frieza and Bardock were eye level, they exchanged yet another look of unyielding hate. And then Frieza began to tighten his grip. The pressure did not cause much more pain at first, but soon Bardock began to really feel it. The tail got tighter and tighter and soon more and more things began to rip and tear and snap. Bardock was in so much pain that he could barely make a noise, reacting with gargling agony as blood began to erupt from his throat and ooze from between the layers of Frieza's tail.

Frieza chuckled and, much in-character for his sadistic self, sparked up a polite, if extremely sinister conversation. "Tell me, Bardock...do you regret yet that my Supernova did not kill you permanently?"

Bardock gasped in pain as the grip tightened even more. Frieza smiled. "Don't you just wish you were in Hell right now?"

Bardock managed to lift his head, glaring at Frieza even though his pupils were going white. Bardock's temper exploded and he managed to shout at his torturer. " _FUCK OFF AND DIE YOU SHRIMPY SHIT!_ "

Blood flew from Bardock's mouth and splattered against Frieza's cheek. The Emperor was a tad taken aback at first, but then he chuckled. "Ah yes...that's the Bardock spirit that I remember..."

Frieza wiped the blood splatter from his cheek with his thumb. "But...the aesthetic is off."

Frieza glared with disdain at Bardock's bare forehead. "Your rebellious nature...your ' _Here! Have it!_ '...both were enhanced by that Bandana you always wore. That Bandana that was burnt away in one of our earlier clashes..."

Frieza wiped the blood on his thumb across Bardock's forehead, leaving a straight line of red from temple to temple. "Not to worry though...if I am anything, it's a problem solver."

Frieza used his left hand to grab Bardock by the hair, pulling the fringe from in front of Bardock's forehead and holding his head still. And then, he reared back his right fist and slammed it with all of his might into Bardock's exposed forehead. A light gasp was all that escaped Bardock's forehead before his eyes rolled back. Frieza stared, satisfied as blood began to cascade from the massive split he had just made in Bardock's skin. The ruby red claret oozed down from Bardock's hairline, staining his entire forehead red as he laid limp in Frieza's grip.

Frieza smirked. "Perfect. This is how I will always remember you, Bardock. With that same disdained look on your face...and that same blood-red stain across your brow. Now...now you have my permission to die~"

Frieza walloped Bardock across the face to wake him back up, and then he threw the older Saiyan into that air. Frieza looked up to see Bardock start to freefall, and then he stepped directly under him. Frieza closed his eyes and waited for the marvelous sensation of his horn going through Bardock's heart.

Up in the air, Bardock was barely aware that he was tumbling. As he fell down through the air, he looked down to see the sparkling, sharp points of Frieza's horns waiting for him below. He was just conscious enough to know that he had to dodge. He had to dodge or he was definitely going to die...

Bardock held his hand out, charging the last energy he could muster into a wave that would blow him out of the path of the horns. But, as he was about to fire, a surprise vision of the future assaulted his mind.

 _Within Bardock's mental plane..._

Bardock was panicking as this new vision of the future played out. He was well aware that these visions separated him from conscious control of his body and that, at this rate, he wouldn't be able to prevent himself from being impaled.

However, he couldn't help but notice how this vision seemed different from the others. We stared into the infinite black void and soon, he saw a familiar sight. That golden glow. Except...this time there was only two golden warriors rather than three. As Bardock stared, another figure lit up. It stood over the two golden warriors; a silver frame wreathed in a blood red rather than the more formidable pure silver he had seen before. The three figures glared at one another...until the silver figure turned its attention to Bardock with a wicked smile.

As Bardock pondered what this new, altered vision meant, blood suddenly exploded from the center of his chest. Bardock felt down and ran his hand over what felt to be a massive hole.

Bardock cursed. "Dammit! Stupid future sight! Are you really interrupting me to tell me something _ten seconds_ into the future?! What the He-"

 _Back in reality..._

Bardock was roused from his stupor by a sudden, blunt force blow to the stomach. He regained his wits and looked around, totally confused.

Below Bardock, Frieza didn't seem to care about his beaten and bruised new hat, he was more concerned with what was at his feet on the ground. A yellow energy disc was flying away from Frieza. It eventually collided into a mountain and dispersed after slicing the rock formation in two. Frieza stared down in rage and frustration as the sight of his precious, ebony horns lying on the ground, totally separated from his head. The Emperor began to turn, planning to gut whoever had just disfigured him in such an unsightly manner.

Before he could catch sight of the interloper, however, Frieza heard a familiar and thought to be dead voice. "FATHER! GET AWAY FROM FRIEZA NOW!"

A pink blast slammed into Frieza's torso. And, while the attack did only superficial damage, Frieza shuddered as a massive electro-shockwave went through his entire body. As the Tyrant stood there, jittering, Bardock turned his attention to the source of the blast and saw, to his relief, Raditz and Krillin both standing there.

Neither man had a scratch on them and they looked ready to fight once more. Bardock smiled a tired smile and glanced over to the energy ball in his hand. Shrugging, and not needing it to propel himself away anymore, Bardock instead slammed the energy ball right into Frieza's rage-contorted face.

Frieza went tumbling back, but did not fall. Bardock slammed into the ground with an agonized groan. Frieza immediately regained himself and glared down at Bardock. He raised his prehensile tail into the air to run the older Saiyan through. Frieza's rage was so intense that he did not see the second Destructo-Disc coming right at him. The disc sliced through Frieza's tail like butter and severed the majority of it. The appendage hit the ground and began to wriggle and writhe. Shocked, Frieza glanced back and saw nothing more than a stub wriggling back and forth.

Angrily turning to aim an attack at Krillin, Frieza was met by another surprise. Gohan was right there! The boy got into a crouching position midair and thrusted both of his legs right into Frieza's chest. This took Frieza off of his feet and, as the Tyrant fell, Vegeta came rushing in and dropped a massive energy bomb onto him.

Frieza smashed into the ground and Vegeta took advantage of the lull. He turned on a dime, reared back his entire leg, and then punted Bardock in the side. Bardock coughed up blood as his ribs dug even deeper into his innards. The older Saiyan went flying over a nearby ridge and landed with a hard thud, out of sight of Frieza.

Vegeta turned and smirked at the recovering Frieza. The Emperor glared at the smarmy Prince. And then at the child. And then at Raditz. And then at that human filth that had disfigured him. Frieza was terrifyingly enraged. Wordlessly he pumped up his power to maximum output and then charged.

But, the four warriors were prepared for this. They had a strategy planned out. Each of Frieza's remaining limbs had a combatant ready to counter it. The left arm threw a punch, Vegeta was there to block and return an attack. The right arm summoned a ki blast, Raditz fired a ki blast right back. The legs kicked or stomped or grabbed, Gohan and Krillin were there to give an appropriate counter.

Frieza wasn't losing, but his high advantage his was maintaining was gone. His horns were reduced to stubs and his murderous tail removed from play. The Emperor was furious that these maggots were fighting back so hard. This rage was only made worse by the pragmatic Vegeta. The Prince dropped to the ground, scooping up Frieza's severed horns. And then, while the Emperor was distracted by a team attack from Raditz and Krillin, Vegeta pounced. He stabbed both of the diamond hard, ebony spears into Frieza's neck and the Emperor howled in pain and rage.

He turned and slammed his elbow into Vegeta's stomach. But, after a quick shudder, the Prince smirked and flung a ki blast into Frieza's face. The Emperor stumbled back and glared at Vegeta, but then Krillin dropped in front of him and shouted. " _SOLAR FLARE!_ "

Frieza roared in frustration and all four of his opponents flung a powerful ki blast at him. This still barely staggered the Titanic Tyrant, however. The four warriors regroup and stared at their opponent. In spite of all of their attacks, the only real damage they had done to Frieza was jamming those severed horns into his neck. The hadn't really hurt the Emperor, they had just _royally pissed him off_.

This frustrated Vegeta and Raditz. The two of them, as well as Gohan, had each benefitted from a zenkai boost ( _a major one for Raditz given how badly Frieza had crippled him_ ) and yet they still weren't strong enough to do any sort of lasting damage to this bastard!

Frieza walked forward, his eyes glued on each of these pests. Originally, Vegeta and Bardock were his targets. But now, each of these interlopers had done something egregious enough to be placed on the "torture until death" list. Frieza reached up to his neck and ripped the horns from it like a pair of irritating thorns. He cast them aside and snarled at his foes. " _You will pay in blood for this humiliation._ "

Not knowing what else to do, Vegeta raised his hands and shouted. "SHOOT HIM DEAD!"

All four of them proceeded to attempt just that. They each unloaded a veritable battery of ki attacks onto Frieza. The combined force of these attacks, however, merely slowed Frieza's movements. The Monstrous Emperor still marched forward, every step bringing the Saiyans and Krillin one step closer to an agonizing experience.

Tiring of this display, Frieza raised his foot into the air and stomped it down. The sheer force of his stomp caused the ground beneath it to shiver, and then crack, and then fissure widely. The four warriors had no choice but to leap back, but Frieza's hand shot forward like a bullet. To the terror of Krillin, Frieza seized Gohan by the throat.

The monk screamed in fear. " _GOHAN!_ "

He tried to rush forward, by a hand shot in front of him to halt him. Krillin turned to look at Raditz and Raditz shot him a knowing look. Their part in this fight was over for the moment.

Frieza began to squeeze Gohan's windpipe, compressing it to the point that Gohan couldn't breathe. This would normally be the point where his prey would die, but Gohan began to resist to Frieza's surprise and annoyance. The boy reached up and wrapped his hands around Frieza's index finger and thumb. He began to pull and, to Frieza's consternation, he was actually managing to make the Tyrant's fingers budge.

Frieza chuckled in a sinister, hate-filled tone. "You really are quite strong. But, tell me boy... _what exactly do you plan to do if you break my grip?!_ "

Gohan gasped, spitting venom right in Frieza's face. "I'm...going...to watch..."

Frieza cocked his head. " _Watch what?!_ "

Gohan shouted. " _I'm going to watch you get your ass kicked!_ "

Frieza flinched and chuckled. "And which one of these interlopers is going to-"

Frieza glanced past Gohan and was immediately stricken with confusion. For watching their ally get throttled, the other three seemed strangely calm. Raditz and that human both stood there and Vegeta, the bastard, was just leering out into the distance. "What in the Hell are you pests do-"

In a blinding flash of light, Frieza was cut off. A foot slammed into the Emperor's cheek and sent him reeling back. Frieza crashed back first into the ground and slid a good kilometer away. Furious, the Emperor stood up and wiped the side of his face that had been kicked, furious to see that he had a massive, busted lip. He snarled and glared over at this new intruder that had not only dared to strike him, but had taken away his prey.

Gohan, meanwhile, coughed and choked for a good minute. The boy rubbed his aching throat, but looked up to see and familiar and welcome sight. In spite of everything he had gone through in waiting, nothing could have wiped the smile off of Gohan's face in this moment. " _Mr. Piccolo!_ "

Gently lowering the boy to the ground and helping him to stand, Piccolo smiled as well. He was happy that he had made it in time to save his little friend's life. "Glad to see you've become so strong, Gohan. You do my banner proud!"

Piccolo pressed his hand to the breastplate of Gohan's armor and placed a Demon School sigil right over the boy's heart. And then, the Namekian Warrior turned his attention to the looming Frieza. "We'll make you much stronger later."

Piccolo stepped forward, throwing out his arm and causing his cape to flourish. "But for now, the four of you need to step back! I'll be handling this from here!"

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	33. Chapter 33: The Demon Namekian's Wrath

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 33: The Demon Namekian's Wrath**

 _On the other side of the ridge..._

Bardock groaned as he sat up. He felt like shit. But, to his relief, that shit feeling was slowly fading away. The older Saiyan cracked his eyes open and looked down to see his various wounds closing up and repairing as he was engulfed in a familiar, warm light.

Bardock looked over and saw Dende standing next to him. The little Namekian looked determined as he used his gift from the Grand Elder to heal up one of Namek's last defenders. Bardock smirked. "Keeping busy like always, eh kid?"

Dende silently nodded.

Bardock glanced over at Dende and saw the sadness in the boy's eyes. He sighed. "I'm a pretty shitty savior, huh? The old guy put a lot of faith in me, and yet there less than twenty of you left now. The old man is dead, Tsuno is dead, Nail is dead..."

Dende spoke. "You're doing your best."

Bardock glanced over at Dende. Dende nodded. "That thing that you and your friends are fighting is a monster. He's so strong, but you keep fighting. I do not think you are a bad savior. I think you are trying your best..."

Bardock chuckled. "Well...thanks for stroking my ego, kid."

Dende spoke again. "And, also, Nail is not dead."

Bardock flinched. "Really?!"

Dende nodded and pointed to a far-off island. "While you all were fighting Frieza, I picked up Nail and took him away from the battle. I healed him, but he has yet to wake up. I... honestly think that might be for the better..."

Bardock took a deep breath and sighed in relief. Good. Nail didn't get himself killed. That was a victory. Bardock flinched and then thought about what he just felt. Was he...really letting sentimentality just happen like that?

The older Saiyan shook his head and stood up, his healing finished. Dende nodded and his eyes hit the ground. Bardock started to walk away, but then he looked back at the kid again. He really was letting it get to him wasn't he? It looked like...yeah.

Bardock walked over to Dende and place his hand on top of the kid's head. "Attaboy."

Dende looked up and Bardock shot him a confident smirk. "I'm proud of ya, green-bean. You've been a really great help throughout all of this. Shouldn't have your eyes stuck to the ground like that. Hold your head high! Be proud, dammit!"

A small smile spread on Dende's face. Bardock sighed. "Now, get outta here. Leave the rest of it to us, okay?"

Dende paused. But then, he shook his head. "No! Absolutely not!"

Bardock flinched. Dende gripped his fists tight. "I'm contributing! I don't plan to stop now! If I run away, I might not make it in time if you get hurt again! So, I'll stay here and watch over all of you until Frieza is defeated!"

Bardock chuckled. He was impressed by this boy's gusto. "Ballsy attitude. I like-"

A sudden rush ran up Dende and Bardock's spines and Bardock whipped around in the direction of the fight. " _Holy friggin' Hell..._ "

 _Over with the fight, moments earlier..._

Frieza and Piccolo stood mere feet from one another. The winds swept across the Namekian plains. Piccolo's cape whipped around in the wind as he stared daggers at the Emperor. Frieza chuckled. "I must say, your kind are resilient. I thought that I had slaughtered all of the best warriors this wretched planet had to offer, and yet another burrows his way from beneath the muck. Here to 'avenge your race and make me pay', I suppose?"

He pointed his finger at Piccolo. "No matter. One more kill shant take long."

Frieza fired a Death Beam right at Piccolo's chest, but the Namekian slapped it away. Frieza flinched and Piccolo smirked. "Can't really say I care to be an avenger. I've never been on this Planet before and can't honestly say I ever plan to come back once I leave. And...in the past...mass slaughter's have never been that much of a bother to me..."

Piccolo smiled wide, baring his fangs. "But, if annihilating you would provide the people of this Planet some kind of relief, I can't say that I would mind that much either!"

In the background, Gohan was practically dancing in place. He watched as Mr. Piccolo fearlessly faced down Frieza and he knew that, at the moment, that monster had no idea what he was in for! Raditz and Krillin both stood to the side. Raditz swallowed a massive lump in his throat as he thought back to how tenacious Piccolo could be. Krillin shivered as he remembered Piccolo's fighting prowess from his own, firsthand experience.

Vegeta, meanwhile, was incredibly underwhelmed by this face-off in front of him. "Quit that foolish toddling, boy! Wishing back this green fool was as pointless as I thought it would be! His power is only equal to that of Frieza's as it currently stands! _Useless!_ "

Raditz shot Vegeta the side eye. " _He's still stronger than you are._ "

Vegeta snarled. "My strength doesn't matter! _Frieza's_ does! We would have been better off giving me immortality than bringing this dreg back!"

Frieza opened his mouth to make a sarcastic quip, but Piccolo suddenly cut him off. The Namekian's temper seemed thoroughly riled and he snapped at Vegeta. "Don't stand back there and run your mouth as if I've forgotten Earth! The moment all of this is over and I have a free minute, I'm going to pay you back in blood for you sins, runt!"

Frieza smiled as Piccolo turned to face him again. The Namekian began to step forward and Frieza chuckled. "I am pleased to see that I am not the only one who tires of Vegeta's voice."

Piccolo spoke bluntly. "He talks out of his ass without a keen understanding of the facts."

Frieza nodded. "We definitely agree on that. Quite the shame we don't agree in other areas."

The Emperor held up his hand. "I would be willing to believe you outrank Vegeta in terms of strength. You look strong. However, I stand firm in my opinion that a Namekian like you could never match my power."

Piccolo corrected the Tyrant. " _Demon._ "

Frieza cocked his head. "Pardon me?"

Piccolo spoke again. "Physically, I might be a Namekian. But I am not one. I am a demon. The Demon King, to be specific. And while yes, I have settled down just a bit in bonding with Gohan...that does not at all mean that I am a mere pacifistic member of this race. I told Vegeta and I will tell you now, underestimating the power I have attained will be your _death_."

Frieza sneered. "You expect me to cower in front of a being so small?! You cannot be serious!"

Piccolo smirked. "Wait a minute...you can't sense power, can you?"

Frieza didn't respond. Piccolo chuckled. "Fine then. How about this? You watch Vegeta's face when I unless my full power. And then, you use that to decide how seriously you should take this. Ready?!"

Frieza snarled at Piccolo and, with a massive shout, Piccolo began to power up. The sheer power that erupted from Piccolo's body was baffling. Krillin and Raditz both flinched back in shock and awe. And Gohan merely smiled. He called out. "You can do it Mr. Piccolo! You can win!"

Frieza narrowed his eyes. "So, you are bursting with power? So, what? Anyone can puff themselves up..."

Piccolo shouted again and even more power exploded from him. A vein popped from Piccolo's forehead and he growled to himself. That... _was a problem_. But he couldn't worry about that for now. Piccolo's snarl quickly turned into a devilish smile and he ceased shouting. The Namekian Warrior stood in front of Frieza, visibly glowing.

Frieza rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You're nothing more than a-"

Frieza's glance went past Piccolo for just a moment and fell on Vegeta and the Emperor was taken aback. Vegeta's face was white and his pupils were the size of pinpricks. Frieza still wasn't convinced, he glared back at Piccolo. "Why should I be scared that you-"

Piccolo didn't let him finish. In a flash, the Namekian demon pulled his fist back and slammed it right into the purple center of Frieza's torso. This hit was unlike any that the Emperor had felt since he had struck out on his own. It rocked Frieza to his very core and made him double over in pain. Frieza's eyes bulged from his skull as he slumped over onto Piccolo's fist, a small trail of drool leaking from his mouth. Piccolo smirked. "Now do you see why, _bastard_?"

Frieza regained himself. His eyes were bloodshot and he quickly bolted back into a standing position. Frieza pulled his tree-trunk sized arm high into the air and screamed. " _Don't get cocky, insect!_ "

Frieza chopped down at Piccolo, but was stunned when his blow was caught. For a split second, Frieza's shocked expression locked with Piccolo's look of wicked glee.

And then Piccolo shot his foot into the air and knocked Frieza sky high.

Frieza tumbled through the air, knocked for a loop, and Piccolo didn't let up. He raced high above Frieza and cracked his fist against the Emperor's face. Frieza was stopped mid-flight and then immediately swarmed from what seemed like multiple directions at once. Punches and kicks and claw swipes came from every angle, bruising Frieza's skin and cracking his carapace and gashing him like a defenseless child.

The Emperor let loose a furious shout and drove Piccolo away for a moment, but no advantage was able to be gained as Piccolo came in with a quickly slung a ki blast to the face. Frieza clenched his lightly burnt-over eye and, in an instantaneous flash, Piccolo appeared over him.

Frieza gasped and Piccolo delivered a massive overhead smash to the Tyrant. Frieza began to tumble back to the ground, but Piccolo refused to let him have such an easy journey. The Namekian fell from the air like a missile, jamming his feet both into the center of Frieza's back and grinding the monster deep into the ground.

Piccolo leapt back up with a satisfied smile as Frieza shakily began to push himself up. The Emperor flipped himself over and fired a Death Beam, but Piccolo slapped the attack away once more. And then, he shot down from the sky again and landed feet first right onto Frieza's face.

Standing to the sidelines, Gohan couldn't help but cheer and praise his friend and mentor. Meanwhile, behind him, Raditz and Krillin and Vegeta were all stunned silent.

 _Within Frieza's ship..._

Gine stood in front of Goku's healing chamber, totally shocked by what she was feeling. She genuinely could not believe how strong Piccolo had gotten in such a short amount of time. Just...just what in the world had he done in that interval to become so overwhelmingly strong like this?! Gine squeezed her eyes shut and began to mentally shout. " _King Kai! Hey! King Kai!_ "

As Gine tried to contact the sagely diety, the remaining populace of Namek cheered as they felt what was going on. This new person was an unfamiliar ki, but it was a clearly Namekian ki! A Namekian was finally showing that monster what for!

Bulma and Chi-Chi both seemed quite relieved as well. Chi-Chi was still trying to grasp the basics of ki sense, but she got the just of what was happening. Piccolo had arrived and, in spite of Chi-Chi's feelings about him, she had to admit he was getting the job done! Chi-Chi was kind enough to relay her barebones sensing of events to Bulma and Bulma let loose a massive sigh of relief. Maybe that thing wouldn't kill them after all...

But, while all of the others murmured and discussed to themselves, Gine's eyes cracked open a tad. Even with this current advantage, the Saiyan Mother still felt pretty darn uneasy.

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Piccolo smirked as he literally held Frieza under his foot. "So, how's it feel to be under the foot of a _real Lord?_ "

Frieza's eye twitched and he ripped his arm from the ground. He shoved his open palm into Piccolo's face, but Piccolo was quick to react. He sped into the air faster than Frieza's ki attack could follow. Piccolo chuckled and then held out his own, wide-open palm. He gripped his wrist and then shouted. "GOHAN! RETREAT!"

Raditz, Krillin, and Vegeta flinched, but Gohan was quick to comply. He turned and quickly pushed all three of his allies back. The four of them retreated over to the nearby ridge just as Bardock was coming over it. The four of them ran into the older Saiyan and Bardock reacted with shock. "What the Hell is going on?!"

Bardock was answered by a shout. " _ **DESTRUCTIVE WAVE!**_ "

A truly massive ki blast erupted from Piccolo's hand and completely swallowed up Frieza's attack. The Emperor's eyes widened and he quickly realized he could not evade. Instead, Frieza threw his arms in front of his face, trying to form some kind of defense.

The Destructive Wave crashed into the ground and shredded the terrain. The force of the attack blew Bardock and the rest away and made the very planet itself quake.

Once the dust had settled, the five of them sat up. Bardock flinched back. "D-damn..."

The entirety of the battlefield was wasted. Sheer rubble and scorched soil were all that remained of the once lush environment of this island. Piccolo quickly landed and glared towards one rather large pile of rocks. "Hey! Cut the act! I know you're still alive!"

The rubble shifted and the top of Frieza's head emerged. The stubs where his horns used to be were visibly chipped. Piccolo chuckled to himself and then sighed. "Let me guess..."

The Namekian pulled off his cape and turban and cast them away. "... _I missed all of your vital organs_ , right?"

Frieza stood from his burial plot. The Emperor was fuming, visibly trembling with rage. Piccolo rolled his eyes and took a fighting stance. "Well...come on! I don't have all day! It has to turn nighttime at some point on this dull little planet, right?"

Frieza wiped a trickle of blood from his mouth and chuckled. "Joke and rollick about while you can, fool. You seem to be unaware of how this all ends..."

Piccolo cocked his head, his antennae bobbing up and down. "Really now...?"

Frieza cackled and held up two fingers. "You might think that this is all fun and games, but I assure you that you have seen nothing so far. You see, this is only my first transformation! I still have one more form, as well as my Final Form!"

Piccolo growled. "Well then, why don't you quit wasting my damned time and summon up your Final Form already? I want this pathetic farce to be over with!"

Frieza nodded. "I completely agree! But I refuse to waste my Final Form on you, you bug! _My Third Form shall be where you meet your demise!_ "

Frieza shouted in rage and he began to transform once more. A foul-smelling, blood red mist began to erupt from Frieza's body as his energy surged. The Emperor's muscles began to expand and contort, bulging to unnatural levels and forcing Frieza's body to squat as a result. The Emperor's out carapace began to strain and expand until parts of it began to warp outward. Spikes emerged from Frieza's back and grew to unnatural lengths, protruding from behind him like hideous spires. And then, most disturbingly of all, Frieza's head began to expand and warp. The Emperor's skull stretched to an abnormally massive length, hanging over his back like some twisted piece of headwear. His broken horns retreated into his head and he covered by yet more white shell. And finally, Frieza's face warped. Gone were the almost-charming, devilish features. Instead, these were replaced by a protruding, fleshy beak.

Frieza's power settled and he let loose a low, demonic chuckle. "Now, take a good look at this form, Namekian. I wish for you to describe it to people when you descend to the Pits of Hell!"

Piccolo shot forward without a word and slammed his fist into Frieza's undefended cheek. The loose skin of this new, monstrous face rippled under the might of Piccolo's blow. Frieza glared down at Piccolo and Piccolo scoffed. "Is this meant to make you seem more intimidating?!"

Piccolo pulled his fist back and then jumped into the air. He spun around as fast as he could and slammed the heel of his boot into Frieza's side. Frieza slid, but he managed to stop himself. He gripped his side and glared at Piccolo. Piccolo glared right back. And then the two charged at each other!

Piccolo and Frieza locked up tight. They gripped their hands onto each other's and began to try shoving one another back. Piccolo was the first to gain ground, he put his back into pushing and made Frieza slide. But, Frieza caught himself and returned the favor, shoving Piccolo right back. The two of them roared in each other's faces and then they began to brawl.

Punches and kicks were thrown back and forth at high speeds, creating sonic booms as they landed that made the very ground beneath Piccolo and Frieza quake. Piccolo smashed Frieza in the face with his fist, but Frieza responded with a punch of his own. The attack slammed into Piccolo's chest and sent him sailing backwards.

Frieza snarled and jabbed both of his index fingers at Piccolo. Thrusting his arms back and forth like pistons, Frieza shots multiple, extremely fast beams at his foe. Piccolo sneered and blocked the attacks, grunting in pain at the stinging energy smashed into him and caused his skin to break.

Piccolo turned and began to speed off as Frieza continued to fire. The Emperor landed several hits, blasting holes in Piccolo and ripping his clothes. But Piccolo didn't mind. He had a plan. The Demon Namekian flew high into the air and tented his fingers. After a quick charging of energy, he turned and shouted. "Light Grenade!"

The high-speed energy ball launched forward and zoomed through the air. Frieza's Death Shooting was doing nothing. The attack knocked Frieza's blasts out of the way like mere annoyances and crashed into the Tyrant. Frieza was struggling as he held on to the blast. He kept it squeezed between his hands and dug his toes into the ground to keep from sliding back. He refused to give this pest of a Namekian any more ground. Frieza roared out loud and gave the attack a massive squeeze, crushing it between his hands. But, to the Emperor's surprise, crushing the attack didn't dissipate it. It made it explode!

The smoke cleared and Frieza was trembling with rage. One of his shoulder protectors had been shattered away and he was covered with burns. Piccolo landed and he tossed a punch, nailing Frieza in the face. Frieza punched him in the face right back. And thus, the brawl continued.

 _Meanwhile, on the sidelines..._

Gohan and Krillin were both cheering. The two of them were excited to see Piccolo fighting so effectively. For the first time, it seemed as if Frieza might actually be beatable. Behind those two, Raditz watched on as well. He was grateful that Piccolo had shown up when he did. Raditz was trying to maintain some level of confidence, but he knew that they would have been no match for Frieza if the fight had worn on. Even if he had busted out the Kaioken, all he would have done was cripple himself and reduce his survival chances even lower.

As those three all watched Piccolo fight, however, Bardock and Vegeta were both becoming painfully aware of something: this battle was plateauing again. Piccolo was managing to match Frieza, but he was only matching. They wouldn't win at this rate.

Vegeta turned to Bardock. "What are we going to do? That Namekian can't keep this up forever."

Bardock narrowed his eyes as he watched. He remembered what Frieza had said to Piccolo, there was still one more form beyond this. Bardock closed his eyes to think. This transformation had added about 100,000 to Frieza's power. Such a small increase compared to the first time around. Perhaps...the next power increase would be even lower? If Bardock and Vegeta could make their power grow even higher, they could join forces with Piccolo and overwhelm that little bastard...

Bardock opened his eyes. "We have to get stronger, Vegeta. And fast. We can win this, we just need a little more."

Vegeta scoffed. "And how do we do that? Do you really think we have any time to train?"

Bardock shook his head. "No. But we have time to abuse the Zenkai boost."

Vegeta flinched. "Wh-what are you suggesting?!"

Bardock was blunt, pointing to Krillin and Raditz. "I'm suggesting that we have those two mortally wound us. And, while they do that, Gohan fetches Dende over here to heal us up. That'll give us a massive boost and we can join up with Piccolo. And then, we can work together and finally kill Frieza!"

Bardock clenched his fist. Vegeta looked annoyed. He stared at Bardock, truly incredulous of this plan. But then, he began to weigh the situation. Bardock was right, they did need this. But, Vegeta wasn't sure he really wanted to allow himself to be damaged like that.

Bardock could see those doubt, and he quickly thought of a solution. With a smile, he played to Vegeta's ego. "Earlier, you told Frieza you were a Super Saiyan, right?"

Vegeta gasped and glanced up at Bardock. Bardock smirked. "That was a pretty clear lie back then. But who knows, Vegeta...maybe you're almost there! You feel like a Super Saiyan, right? So, maybe you just need a bit more power to fully realize it..."

In his head, Bardock was cringing. He was really trying to win over a grown-ass man with a fairy tale. And yet, the older Saiyan could instantly see that it had worked. The inhibition melted away from Vegeta like ice under a boiling hot sun. The Saiyan Prince smiled wide. "Yesssss...a Super Saiyan! I... I can become a Super Saiyan! And then..."

As Vegeta began to murmur to himself, Bardock turned to the rest of his confused allies. He glared down to Gohan first and the boy immediately nodded in understanding. Bardock motioned with his thumb. "Go get Dende."

Gohan nodded. "Right!"

And then he ran off. Bardock looked up at Raditz and Krillin. "Well, come on! We don't have all day here! Destructo-Disc! Double Sunday or whatever! _Hurry up!_ "

Both of them seemed very uncomfortable with this idea. Krillin was quick to protest. "Y-you want us to just try and kill you like that?! After everything we've been through and all of the struggles?!"

Raditz nodded in agreement. "I... I can't just hurt you like that, Dad!"

Krillin gripped his fists. "Even Vegeta...I mean...he's a bastard! But we've fought so many enemies together! I still hate him, but..."

Bardock sighed. He knew this was going to be the hard part. He looked at his eldest son, and then to the fire-forged friend that he had made while stuck here on Namek. He shook his head. "I know it's hard! And I know you wouldn't want to hurt an ally like that! But it's for the greater good! Just like what Talus did! And how Gohan fought back against Kakarot's body! I understand you have some sentiment trying to block you from doing it...but Frieza isn't going to sit around while you wrestle with your conscience! _We need this power boost now, guys!_ "

Krillin flinched. The little monk glanced behind him at the ever-waging war between Frieza and Piccolo. He saw Piccolo take a shattering blow to the face. Their Namekian comrade was fighting to his fullest, but Frieza was slowly taking the upper hand.

Krillin clenched his teeth tight and squeezed his eyes shut. Bardock called out again. "I need you to do this, Krillin! Right n-"

A Destructo-Disc slammed into Bardock's front, diagonally, and quickly ripped through the older Saiyan's entire upper body. Bardock fell to the ground, not quite cleaved in two, but already coasting in front of death's door. Krillin looked down at what he had done and immediately felt miserable.

He looked up from Bardock's quivering form and saw Gohan and Dende sprinting from the distance. He called out. "Faster! Come on! _Fly damn it!_ We don't have time to waste!"

Krillin glanced over to Raditz and saw the chilled, sickened look on the Saiyan's face. Krillin felt bad for Raditz and shook his head. "D-do you think that you can do that for Vegeta...or do you need me to?"

Raditz trembled. "I...I..."

Vegeta ran up to Raditz like a bolt. He shoved Krillin out of his way and grabbed Raditz by his armor chestplate. The two of them glared into each other's eyes and all fell silent for a moment. Raditz didn't speak. Eventually, Vegeta did. "Will you man up and act like a Saiyan already? You've always been like this! Always! It's why I told Nappa that we shouldn't bother with wishing you back!"

Raditz clenched his fist. Vegeta continued. "You act like you're a warrior! Like you're strong! But when push comes you shove, you run and cower! You claim that Nappa and I were just bullies towards you and that we didn't accept you into the fold, but this is all you ever do Raditz! You didn't earn your way into being Number Three in our group, you just waited for Quassh and Cucuo to d-"

Raditz shouted. "Vacation Delete!"

A massive, purple blast ripped through Vegeta's chest and sent him to the ground, twitching in pain. Raditz stood over Vegeta as Dende healed Bardock in the background. He thought that managing this would make him happy, maybe bring him some closure over his years of abuse as the hands of his "friends" ...but as Raditz stared down at the slowly dying Vegeta, all he felt was guilt over what he had just done.

 _Over with Piccolo and Frieza..._

The battle raged on between Piccolo and Frieza, with both becoming more and more worse for wear as they continued to trade blows. Frieza looked over just in time to see the Destructo-Disc slicing through Bardock and he snarled to himself. "What the Hell...?"

Piccolo didn't seem to notice or care what his allies were doing. He punched Frieza in the throat and then backflipped kicked the Tyrant under the chin. Frieza flipped back and did a handstand before getting back to his feet. He slung a ki blast at Piccolo, but the Namekian slapped it away.

Frieza charged at him with purpose, but then another event from the sidelines caught his attention. An explosion rang out and Frieza turned to see Raditz standing over Vegeta's mangled body. Frieza growled. "What are those stupid monkeys doing?!"

Frieza was answered by a harsh elbow to the face. Piccolo roared and kicked Frieza again, slamming his foot into the Emperor's chest and sending him flying high. Frieza sailed into the air, but he eventually stopped his ascent. He glared back towards the ground to look for Piccolo, but saw no sign of his foe. Instead, he saw something much more interesting.

Frieza's glare fell onto Dende and he watched, to his surprise and amusement, as the Namekian brat used his healing powers. When Bardock sat up, no worse for wear, and the boy ran over to Vegeta, Frieza knew that he had finally figured out their secret. He smiled and wickedly chuckled. "The game is up..."

Frieza turned and grabbed Piccolo's ankle, mid-kick. "So sorry, my friend. But I am afraid that I tire of this brawl between the two of us! _I will need you to disappear for a moment while I prepare for the finale_!"

Frieza raised a finger and summoned another Supernova. But rather than just chuck it, the Emperor compressed the blast. Rather than a massive, orange star, it was a dense, red ball of Frieza's power. The Emperor shouted the attack's name and slammed it into Piccolo's chest. " _HYPERNOVA!_ "

The force of the attack slammed into Piccolo's stomach and the Demon Namekian roared in pain. The attack expanded around him and carried him high into the air. As the blast got smaller and smaller. The attack blew up high in the air, filling the Namekian sky with burning red light. Frieza smirked and then sped his way towards the ground. The Emperor's power surged again, and he began to screamed as his final transformation commenced!

 _Over with Bardock and the others..._

Bardock and Vegeta were both fully healed. But, as the two of them got their bearings and adjusted to their newly acquired power, a massive explosion of red light filled the Namekian sky. Bardock and the others flinched. Vegeta snarled. "What the Hell was that?!"

And then, the five of them felt a sudden power spike. They all looked over and saw Frieza standing in the distance. The third form of the Tyrant Emperor was pulsating with even more power. Bardock narrowed his eyes and prepared himself. "Looks like shit is ramping up again..."

It didn't take long after that for a familiar face to rejoin with the group. Piccolo landed next to the others with an infuriated look on his face. He was moderately damaged, he was missing a hand, and his clothes were in tatters. Gohan ran up to him. "Mr. Piccolo! Are you okay?!"

Piccolo growled. "I can't believe I allowed myself to be baited in like that! _Stupid!_ "

The Namekian glanced over towards Bardock, and then to Vegeta. It quickly dawned on him that both of them had managed to overtake him in power and that made Piccolo even more upset. " _Cheating Saiyan bastards!_ "

Piccolo regrew his arm and Vegeta scoffed at him. "Don't be upset. You can't help that you were born to an inferior race!"

Bardock snapped at them both. "That's enough! Quit bickering and focus up! We all need to be together on this!"

Vegeta and Piccolo both glanced over to Bardock, and then saw what the older Saiyan was staring at. In spite of how much the two detested one another, they both silently agreed. And then they joined Bardock's sides as Frieza continued to transform.

The three of them each took a fighting stance. Behind them, Raditz, Gohan, and Krillin did the same. And behind them, Dende sat on the ground in shock. The little Namekian was too frozen with fear to move.

Frieza's body was swelling. His skin and the hardened outer shell of his body were blowing up like sickening balloons. And yet, they were cracking as well. Under the sheer force of Frieza's power, his body began to crack like a shell, as if the true being within the Emperor had finally awakened and was ready to hatch.

Frieza let loose a ghastly wail, and then his body exploded with pure power!

 _Within Frieza's ship..._

The remaining Namekian's were panicking and shifting around in terror. Somehow, that devil was emanating even more power than before! They truly didn't know what to do, a lack of hope was beginning to set in. The Namekian people were quickly coming to the realization that their race might just be doomed.

As their green-skinned allies panicked, the ladies all reacted to this new development as well. Bulma caught Chi-Chi as the poor housewife tumbled over to the ground. Her newly developed ki sense was going wild and Chi-Chi, totally overwhelmed by the sensation, began to vomit.

Next to her, Gine felt as if she wanted to do the same. Her hands trembled in fear as Frieza's wicked power swelled more and more. As she sat there, wondering what she should do, a familiar voice sounded out in her head. "Gine! What in the world is going on?!"

Gine's gaze shot up into the air. "King Kai!"

Gine was trembling. "I... _I can't even_..."

Meanwhile, as his mother spoke to King Kai, and his oldest friend cared for his wife, within the healing chamber, Goku was beginning to stir once more.

 _Back on the battlefield..._

The storm of Frieza's power finally passed. All of that exploding energy slowly settled, focusing into one point. The dust was still hiding whatever Frieza had become in there. His power had gone up significantly, but it was nothing that Bardock thought couldn't be handled as a team. Bardock turned to see Piccolo and Vegeta, grim looks on their faces as they prepared to fight. He saw Gohan and Krillin, both trembling in terror, and Raditz, maintaining his fighting stance but visibly quivering in his boots.

Bardock let loose a sigh. This was bad, but not impossible. Frieza was stronger, but not nearly as drastically as Bardock thought. And they, still had all six of themselves ready to fight. Maybe, if they worked together flawlessly, they could pull this off. Or, at the very least, hold on until Kakarot arrived to provide back-up.

Bardock seemed content, or at least resigned, to this situation. And then, his gaze went from Raditz to Dende. Bardock gasped and quickly shouted. "Dende! Get the Hell out-"

An explosion rocked the ground beneath everyone's feet. While the others were confused, Bardock stared back past them in shock and horror. The other five warriors turned to see what had happened, and Krillin and Gohan both screamed. Laying on the ground, in a burnt and blasted heap, was an easily recognizable sight. Krillin cried out. " _Dende!_ "

No response. In a fraction of an instant, Dende was dead.

With a mixture of rage, sadness, and a dash of indifference to this loss, the six warriors turned to face the source of the attack. The dust had cleared and their foe was visible once more. And Bardock reacted with immediate, silent horror. The sleek, silvery-white form that Bardock had seen in his most recent vision was in front of them all, it was Frieza in his Final Form.

Frieza lowered his arm to his side, it's purpose having been fulfilled for the time being. Frieza was in his true form, facing his hated enemies, and having killed their only way to quickly recover from damage. Frieza stared at the lot of them, completely silent.

And then a small smile spread across his lips.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	34. Chapter 34: True Terror

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 34: True Terror**

 _On the battlefield..._

With all of the confidence in the world, Vegeta charged towards Frieza. Within the Prince's own mind, he was an invincible Super Saiyan. And he was ready to take this Super Saiyan power of his and burn through Frieza. Vegeta took a swipe at his former Master and growled in frustration as Frieza simply leapt back and away from the blow. " _GET BACK HERE, COWARD!_ "

Bardock growled in frustration as he watched Vegeta chase after Frieza. Mentally, Bardock kicked himself hard for stoking Vegeta's ego like he did. But that would have to be addressed later. Bardock turned to Piccolo and nodded and the two of them joined in the assault on Frieza.

As they flew off, Bardock turned and shouted to his other three supporters. "Gohan! Krillin! Raditz! Provide long distance support!"

 _Up in the air..._

Vegeta finally managed to catch up to Frieza again. Silently, the Emperor smirked at his former subordinate and Vegeta snarled. "Wipe that damned smile off of your face!"

Vegeta began to throw a flurry of punches and kicks at Frieza. Every strike was aimed with purpose, and yet every strike seemed to miss. To the surprise of the three on the ground, Frieza was fleeing from Vegeta's fierce assault. None of Vegeta's attacks were hitting, but he had Frieza on the defensive. That was a start, at least.

The three of them on the ground continued to fire off ki blasts towards Frieza. Each of them had nothing but loathing for the Emperor. Raditz had chafed under Frieza for years, languishing alongside Nappa and Vegeta. Gohan and Krillin, meanwhile, were furious about all of the Namekians that had been killed in Frieza's campaign of terror. Krillin briefly glanced over his shoulder and caught sight of Dende's fried body, and then he shouted as loud as he could. "WE'LL GET REVENGE FOR DENDE, YOU BASTARD!"

As Vegeta continued to attack Frieza up in the air, Bardock and Piccolo both leapt into the fray. The older Saiyan and demon Namekian both tried to strike Frieza, landing a punch and a kick respectively. Frieza caught each strike on his forearms and repelled them, sending Bardock and Piccolo spiraling backwards.

And then, the Emperor chuckled and leapt away.

Bardock, Piccolo, and Vegeta all flinched in shock, and then they quickly gave chase. Vegeta shouted, his voice becoming hoarser and angrier as he gave chase. "Quit running and fight me! Face your fear and be destroyed by _the living legend_!"

Ignoring Vegeta, Bardock and Piccolo both began to fire on the fleeing Emperor. However, every last attack failed to hit the mark. Frieza seemed to be evading their attacks without moving. Bardock clenched his teeth. He glanced back at Piccolo and saw a similar feeling spread across the demon Namekian's face. Something was _**VERY**_ off here...

" _ **YES! KEEP RUNNING! FEAR THE POWER OF THE SUPER SAIYAN!**_ "

Bardock grunted and shook his head. Vegeta's constant screaming and shouting was very distracting. The older Saiyan turned to the Prince. "Hey! Vegeta! Calm the hell-"

Vegeta totally blew Bardock off and sped past both him and Piccolo. The Prince was practically free-falling as he sped after Frieza. Vegeta threw his hands above his head, arching his back as far back as he could, and then he threw a massive energy bomb towards Frieza. "Burn in Hell!'

Frieza turned midair and glared right into Vegeta's eyes. The Emperor chuckled silently and waggled his finger at the Prince, and then he vanished from sight. Vegeta's energy bomb plummeted towards the Namekian sea, coasting across the surface of the water and eventually colliding with a barren island. The island was immediately incinerated as Vegeta stared on in enraged confusion.

Bardock caught up to Vegeta and grabbed the Prince by the armor strap. "Calm the hell down! You're raging and rampaging isn't helping anything here, Vegeta!"

Vegeta snatched himself away from Bardock and glanced around. His ears ringing with fury, the Prince barely heard a word that Bardock had said. " _Where did Frieza go?!_ "

 _On the ground..._

The other three were confused as well. Gohan, Krillin, and Raditz all scanned up in the sky for any sign of their foes, but saw nothing. They were all confused and unsure, but they were quickly made aware of the situation when a very familiar, ghost-white fist smashed into the center of Raditz's back.

The elder brother launched forward, coughing up a jet of blood, and smashed into the ground hard. Gohan and Krillin both turned and stared in horror at the sight of Frieza right on top of them. Frieza chuckled and gently pushed the two of them aside. "Pardon me, gentlemen. I have come to realize that I have behaved rather rudely. Each and every person here has received a modicum of my one-on-one attention...except for _dearest Raditz_..."

Raditz shakily stood back up and glared into Frieza's eyes. However, the Saiyan was instantly taken aback at the sheer amount of fear that he felt. Raditz flinched back at the feeling of overwhelming power from his former boss and he began to panic. Frieza took a step forward with a sinister smile. "Whatever is the matter, Raditz? Do you have an issue with facing me? I seem to remember many times in the past when you, Vegeta, and... _the bald one_...would shoot me hate-filled glares when you thought I was not looking. Where is that fire now?"

Raditz didn't respond, his throat being super dry. Frieza shrugged and began to turn. "Oh well. Maybe that _precious child_ has more fire than you do~"

Raditz's eyes widened and he immediately launched towards Frieza. " **KAIOKEN TIMES TEN!** "

Not wanting to let his nephew die that easily, Raditz sped towards Frieza. He reared his fist back and launched it towards Frieza. He was going to hit the Tyrant with all of his might. And he did! Raditz's fist slammed right into Frieza...'s palm. Frieza gripped Raditz tight and turned to him with a smile. "There is that fire that I sought. Now... _I can enjoy putting it out_."

Frieza wasted no time. He pulled Raditz over his shoulder and socked the elder Saiyan brother right in the jaw. Raditz was knocked senseless and then Frieza's fun began. He ripped Raditz's shoulder out of its socket, slammed his foot into the Saiyan's stomach and then tossed him into the air. Raditz went up high and then began to fall. Frieza smiled at Gohan and Krillin and then, with a snap of his tail he battered Raditz far away and high into the sky.

Frieza bowed to the terrified Gohan and Krillin. "Til when we meet again, _ye merry maggots_ ~"

 _Up in the air..._

In the distance, Bardock and Vegeta were both still arguing as Piccolo scanned around. The two Saiyans bickered back and forth nonstop and Piccolo growled in frustration. "Where the hell did he-"

Piccolo was answered by the beaten and battered form of Raditz smashing right into him. Piccolo held the limp, unconscious form of the Saiyan that once tried to kill him and sneered. And then he turned his attention to the reappearing Frieza. Piccolo smirked and dropped Raditz to the ground below. "Do you have no shame? Picking on small fry first...Vegeta's right, as much as that pains me to say. You _are_ a coward!"

Bardock glanced down to the ground and sighed in relief to see Gohan and Krillin running towards the broken Raditz. The older Saiyan's gaze hardened and he glared at Frieza. "If you think I'm gonna let you get away with beating the shit outta my son, you're dead wrong Frieza!"

Frieza chuckled and cracked his neck. "Phrasing, monkey. _Phrasing_..."

Frieza smirked. "But you must excuse me. This is not a form that I am quite used to using. The sheer power...it is a strain to control it all. So, I wished to coordinate and adjust on a target _less deserving_ of my full wrath."

Frieza shook his head and began to float towards Bardock, Vegeta, and Piccolo. "I cannot risk accidentally ending one of your miserable lives too early. With how angry you have made me... I plan to give each of you _ten minutes_."

Piccolo sneered. "You think you can end this in ten minutes?!"

Frieza smiled at Piccolo. "Oh my word...you poor Namekian. You don't seem to realize..."

Piccolo growled. "Realize what?!"

Frieza chuckled. "A mere _five minutes_ with me is almost an eternity~!"

And then, in a flash, Frieza was gone. Bardock, Vegeta, and Piccolo were all stunned by the incomprehensible speed that Frieza kept showing. They were even more surprised when the Tyrant's voice echoed out right behind them. "Looking for someone?"

They all turned to see Frieza right there, an evil smirk on his lips. This sheer speed unnerved Bardock and, although he didn't show it, it did the same to Piccolo. Vegeta, on the other hand, refused to show any sort of fear or intimidation. "So, you're fast..."

Vegeta held up his hands and began to charge a massive handful of energy blasts. " _...SO WHAT?!_ "

To Bardock and Piccolo's chagrin, Vegeta began to immediately spam energy blasts at Frieza. The Emperor, with a chuckle, resumed his little game of chicken with his former subordinate. Vegeta snarled as he continued to fire. "You might have speed, but you will eventually tire! And then you're dead!"

Frieza continued along, flying in a wide arc through the air with a blooming trail of explosions occurring behind him. Casually, Frieza bobbed and weaved through the open air, not giving too much thought to dodging the frantic Saiyan's attacks. Frieza glanced around, looking for his next way to have fun, and eventually set his sights on Gohan, Krillin, and the injured Raditz. Frieza immediately arced downwards and went right at the unaware fools on the ground.

Piccolo immediately saw what Frieza was up to and began to panic. "Damn it!"

Piccolo forced as much of his power as he could, growling in frustration at the artificial limit within once again. He sped as fast as he could, making it to the other three just before Frieza did. Piccolo took up a fighting stance, but Frieza merely smirked. And then, the Emperor vanished from sight and left Piccolo and the others at the mercy of Vegeta's attacks. Piccolo grunted, knowing that he had been tricked. But he took it in stride. Pulling all of his power that he could, Piccolo released a might, explosive shockwave and negated Vegeta's vicious assault!

As Vegeta continued to fire off attacks, up in the air, Bardock gave him a harsh shove. Vegeta was practically foaming at the mouth as he shot a wide-eyed glare at Bardock. Bardock responded with a shout. "Will you calm the hell down already?! You nearly killed all of our allies on the ground!"

Vegeta smacked Bardock away. "To Hell with them! I have no need of weaklings! Not with my current power!"

Bardock clenched his teeth, letting loose a hissing sigh and calming himself. "Vegeta, listen. I-"

Vegeta cut him off. "No! No more of you! I don't need your advice of your restraint! I am a Super Saiyan and I will show Frieza the pride and wrath of the race he dared to defy!"

Bardock opened his mouth to speak again, but he was cut off by a shrieking scream. " _MR. PICCOLO!_ "

Bardock and Vegeta both turned their attention to the problem on the ground below. Piccolo was slumped over; his eyes having gone near totally white. The only thing propping him up was Frieza's glowering form. The scene was miserable as what had happened became clear. In a sneak attack, delivered while Piccolo was recovering, Frieza had rammed his fist through the Namekian's stomach. Piccolo angrily mumbled to himself as he slumped over. "D-damned...stubborn...old bastard..."

Frieza seemed pleased as Piccolo fell limp over him, a faucet of purple blood raining from his mouth. The Emperor ripped his arm from the wound it had caused and, with a light shove of his tail, he toppled Piccolo over onto the ground. Gohan, blinded by rage, leapt as Frieza with a punch ready. "Monster!"

Frieza calmly closed his eyes and raised his hand, pointing a glowing fingertip right into Gohan's face. "What an uncreative thing to yell..."

Things seemed dire for Gohan. But, in a flash, he was saved! Krillin reacted as quickly as he could, leaping up and grappling Gohan to the ground. Meanwhile, Raditz surged back to life! The elder brother shouted at the top of his lungs. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TEN!_ "

Raditz knew he couldn't damage Frieza, but he could at least shield from an attack. With all of his might, Raditz slapped Frieza's hand, pushing it away from Gohan and Krillin as the Death Beam fired off. The beam zipped through the free air and went flying off into the distance. Raditz, wasting no time, turned to his cohorts and yelled. "Grab Piccolo and get the hell out of here!"

Gohan and Krillin both froze up. In that instant, Frieza responded. He grabbed Raditz by the hand and began to squeeze. Audible snapping could be heard as Frieza's grip tightened. Raditz cringed and fell to his knees, but he swallowed the lump in his throat and shouted again. "Th-that was NOT a request! GET GOING!"

Eventually, Krillin found the will to move. In one arm, he grabbed Gohan. In the other, he grabbed the unconscious Piccolo. And then, the human ran off without looking back. Raditz nodded in approval as the three of them got away. But, this glowing sense of accomplishment was quickly snapped away. Mercilessly, Frieza forced Raditz's wrist backward. The sheer force of this sudden jerk was enough to not just break Raditz's wrist, but the entire forearm attached to it as well.

Raditz roared in pain and Frieza jammed that same finger into his face. "Deflect this one, monkey."

Frieza smirked. But, before he could charge up a Death Beam, Bardock came falling from the sky like a stone. He delivered a solid blow to Frieza's face and caught the Emperor off-guard. Frieza didn't budge, but his attention was immediately captured. Frieza let go of Raditz and turned to Bardock. Bardock sneered. "Raditz, it's your turn! Get lost! Vegeta and I are the only ones powerful enough to deal with this! And we're the ones Frieza wants dead the most..."

Raditz gave pause. "A-are you sure, Dad?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure. The rest of you are liabilities."

Raditz sheepishly nodded and took off, leaving Bardock alone with Frieza. Once he was well out of sight, a pregnant silence filled the air. Bardock glared at Frieza and Frieza glared at Bardock. Soon, another smile broke across Frieza's face. Bardock growled. "Why the hell are you just standing there?!"

Frieza cleared his throat. "Two reasons: I am allowing poor Raditz a short time to flee and..."

Vegeta leapt in out of nowhere with another massive ki blast. He slammed it downward and engulfed Frieza before landing right behind where the Emperor once stood. Vegeta had a wild smile on his face, but it quickly faded when the smoke cleared and Frieza stood unscathed. Frieza calmly continued. "...I felt it would be rude to continue on with the torment without Vegeta present."

Frieza snapped his tail against the ground and chuckled. "You see, you are quite correct Bardock. You and Vegeta are both the main targets of my fury. So, the other fodder may wait for now. Their execution is stayed until yours is carried out~!"

Enraged further, Vegeta roared and charged at Frieza once more. He began to try and punch at Frieza again. Vegeta threw jab after jab after jab at Frieza, but not a single one connected. No matter what, Vegeta still couldn't land a hit. Bardock sighed and shrugged. "Well shit...standing around won't do much good..."

And then, the older Saiyan leapt into the fray as well. He joined Vegeta in just trying to strike Frieza. But, when not caught off-guard, the Emperor proved to be impossible to hit. This spectacle continued until Frieza decided to finally strike back. The Emperor leapt into the air and threw a single punch and a single kick. The punching slammed into Bardock's throat and the kick smashed into Vegeta's crotch. Both Saiyans went flying back, but they both quickly recovered and summoned their signature attacks!

Vegeta roared. " _Galick Gun!_ "

Bardock shouted. " _Riot Javelin!_ "

Frieza saw these two attacks coming from either side and he simply snickered. The Emperor reached out and calmly grabbed each attack from the air. And then, with a mid-air twirl, he tossed each attack at the opposite Saiyan. Bardock and Vegeta both flinched in shock, but they each were quick to respond with an attack that destroyed the oncoming blast. The advent of ki-on-ki created a dusty haze in front of each of the Saiyans. Bardock coughed and snarled to himself. "D-dammit. He's making us look like stupid brats..."

But then, to Bardock's shock, Frieza came shooting through the smokescreen. The Emperor was rapid and vicious in his attack, smashing his right fist into the bridge of Bardock's nose and then smacking him away with an open, left palm. Bardock stumbled back, but he didn't get far. Frieza wrapped his tail around the older Saiyan's neck and then yanked him through the air, tossing him towards the still unaware Vegeta.

Vegeta was surprised, but he still caught Bardock. The Prince, however, had not even the time to snark as Frieza sent a massive blast flying towards the both of them. Vegeta groaned and dropped Bardock, flying into the sky to flee the blast. Bardock himself just barely managed to roll out of the way of Frieza's attack.

In the air, Vegeta rained another torrent of ki blasts down onto Frieza, but the Emperor simply strolled forward, avoid all of the attacks with little more than a casual walk. He ignored Vegeta's rampage and shot a cutting glare at Bardock. Bardock wasted no time in shooting up from the ground and throwing a punch, but Frieza simply met Bardock's fist with his own fist.

Bardock threw another punch, Frieza met it with an identical punch. Bardock tossed another punch and Frieza punched it as well. This little game of mirror-move went on and on, getting faster and faster and infuriating the unwilling participant in Bardock. Bardock howled in frustration and a sadistic grin cracked across Frieza's face. And then the Emperor punched Bardock in the eyes.

Bardock screamed in pain and Frieza laughed out loud. And then Vegeta came from behind for another attack. Frieza reacted quickly to this and grabbed Bardock by the armor strap. Frieza shot into the air, pulling Bardock with him and allowing Vegeta to sail under them both. And then, with a droll little laugh, Frieza slammed Bardock onto the ground like a basketball. Bardock smashed into the ground hard, bouncing up before tumbling off to the side, nearly rolling into the nearby Namekian sea.

Frieza landed gracefully and glared down at Bardock. He opened his mouth to make a biting remark, but was quickly cut off by quite the annoying sound. " _GALICK GUN!_ "

Frieza rolled his eyes and sighed, leaning over to one side and allowing the Galick Gun to shoot past him. The attack went flying off into the distance and disappeared over the horizon. Frieza turned away from Bardock and glanced over to Vegeta. To Frieza irritation, Vegeta began to do what Vegeta often did when things didn't go correctly for him: he began to rampage.

Veins popped from Vegeta's head as he threw a tantrum, stomping his foot onto the ground and smashing whatever was in arms reach in the ultimate showing of immature petulance.

Meanwhile, Bardock pushed himself up. He reached his hand into the Namekian sea and splashed some water onto his face. The older Saiyan stood up and walked past Frieza, walking up to Vegeta and shouting. "Why in the hell are you behaving like such a child! Pull it together, man!"

Vegeta, finally in the mood to actually speak to Bardock, let his frustrations be known. "I don't get it! I can sense the scales of power here! Frieza is not that much stronger than you and I currently are! We shouldn't be dominating him, but he shouldn't be treating us like play things! We're both Super Saiyans!"

Vegeta screamed at the top of his lungs and let a surge of power explode forth. " _WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!_ "

Bardock grabbed Vegeta by the shoulder and gave him a hearty shake. "Calm down, dammit! You're letting him get to you!"

Vegeta was breathing heavy. Bardock continued. "You know Frieza! He's the ultimate bullshitter! He could be acting right now, trying to get you to lose your cool! He could even have a _totally different form_ hidden away for all we know!"

Vegeta clenched his fists tight. He didn't want to admit it, but as much as that statement pissed him off, it also calmed the Prince just a bit. Bardock was right in this case. The needed to stay calm. The two Saiyans, in a small showing of mutual respect, nodded curtly to one another and then turned to face Frieza, each of them striking a fighting stance.

Frieza chuckled at the sight of this. "Ohohohohoho~ How nice to see that the two of you have finally gotten your act together!"

Frieza chuckled a bit more before shaking his head. "Unfortunately, Bardock, you are quite incorrect in this case. You see, monkeys, this is indeed my true form. My final form. The form that I was born and bred into. And the power you are feeling right now is no sort of trickery or obfuscation. I have even memorized the number: 1,200,000."

Vegeta and Bardock both scoffed. There was no way that that was the full story. Bardock sneered. "Fine! That might be true! 1,200,000...that might be your power right now, but it's clear that you're holding back! Your power is still under some kind of limit!"

Bardock smirked. "Like I said, Frieza, I know how much of a bullshitter you are. And even if you're coming at us at only half-power, you can't keep it hidden from people who are so much more battle-experienced that you! And-"

Vegeta cut Bardock off. "None of this idiotic tripe matters! None of it! I am a Super Saiyan! I'm not scared to face anything at its full strength! I AM INVINCIBLE! So, even if Frieza really is only using fifty percent of his power, I-"

"One percent."

That stopped Vegeta and Bardock both in their tracks. Bardock's pupils shrank. "Wh-what...?"

Frieza smiled, holding up a single index finger. "Forgive me, I must learn to enunciate better in the future. I said _ONE PERCENT_. Since the moment I assumed this form, I was only utilizing one percent of my full power."

Bardock's face went white. "No... No no no... _Nooooooo_..."

Vegeta's jaw went slack. "Y-you can't be serious..."

Bardock shook his head, adopting a bit of false bravado. "I... I knew you were a king bullshitter! One percent... _ **ONE PERCENT MY ASS**_! Nothing but lies and fake numbers to try and intimidate us into losing our cool! Is that really the best strategy you have?!"

In the blink of an eye, Frieza cleared the space between himself and Bardock and placed the open palm of his hand in front of Bardock's face. The Emperor chuckled and then opened the flood gate to his power a bit more. Bardock's pupils shrank. Frieza smiled. "Perhaps three percent wouldn't ruin too much of my fun~"

As the force of Frieza's power rippled from his body, the very force of it took Vegeta off of his feet. The overwhelming force dried the Prince's throat and made his hands tremble. Frieza charged a small blast into the palm of his hand and then waved that hand in Bardock's face. "Tah-tah, Bardock. Better luck next time your return from the grave."

The small blast in Frieza's hand erupted into a massive wave. The entirety of the attack engulfed Bardock and shredded the land beneath the Saiyan's feet. Bardock's features warped and then disappeared into the blinding, deadly light. The blast went flying off with Bardock's horrified screams echoing from it, and then it crashed into an island in the distance. The island was reduced to dust and then all went silent. A single shard of black and green armor fell from the sky and landed in front of Frieza. And the Emperor stomped it into dust.

The attack was done, the specter of the past had been dispelled, and now Frieza was left alone with only one person to absorb his wrath. The Emperor turned and shot a vicious, hungry glare at Vegeta. Vegeta, suitably taken aback, gasped and stumbled to his feet.

Sweat was pouring from the Prince's face as Frieza took a single step forward. In a sickly sweet, but quite venomous tone, Frieza spoke to his former charge. "You might be wondering...why did I kill Bardock so quickly? Quite frankly...he faced his tortures earlier in this fight. Therefore, his execution came up much sooner. I might be brutal...but I like to think that I am fair..."

Vegeta was trembling as Frieza walked towards him. Frieza spoke in a deliberate tone. "So, Vegeta, for the sake of fairness... **it is your turn**."

Vegeta quickly took a fighting stance. "D-do I l-look scared of you?! I... I am a...a..."

Frieza chuckled. "A 'Super Saiyan'?"

Vegeta nodded. " _Y-yes!_ "

Frieza smiled and sighed through his nose. "Vegeta. I will not speak on how scared I think you are, nor will I posit as to the validity of the 'Super Saiyan' prattle you keep spewing. However, I can comment on one thing I know for sure is true..."

Vegeta backed away as Frieza got closer. Frieza gaze snapped to the left and so did Vegeta's. Frieza's gaze then darted to the right, as did Vegeta's. And then, Vegeta jolted. He back hit something solid and he turned to see a sheer, rocky face behind him.

Frieza smiled and chuckled, gently tapping Vegeta on the nose with his finger. " _And that thing is that you, Vegeta, are all alone~!_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	35. Chapter 35: Dignity and Pride

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 35: Dignity and Pride**

 _Within Frieza's ship..._

Knelt on the ground, with their eyes squeezed shut, Gine, Bulma, and Chi-Chi all watched the fight with Frieza through King Kai's telepathic communication. Things were grave to say the least. Piccolo had been grievously injured, Raditz had been slightly crippled, Gohan and Krillin were too weak, Vegeta was outwardly terrified of the challenge he was left alone to face, and Bardock...

Wet streaks were still visible on Gine's cheeks as she trembled. In spite of the two of them using her to see the fight, it was not that much of a stretch to say that Bulma and Chi-Chi were the only ones holding Gine steady. Things were looking dire as the three women worriedly watched on.

But hope was not yet lost. Within the healing chamber, Goku once again stirred.

 _Meanwhile, within a certain subconscious..._

" **I do not care what you think you are.** "

" **I do not care for your power.** "

" **I am not a tool to be used by a** _ **brat**_ **.** "

" **I will watch you die...** "

" _ **...unless you simply hand over control~**_ "

 _On the battlefield..._

Piccolo's eyes snapped open and he sat up with a start. The Namekian was heaving breaths in and out as he buried his face into his hand. He was quickly broken from this by the familiar voice of a friend. "Mr. Piccolo!"

Piccolo turned his attention toward the voice and sighed in relief as Gohan came running up to him. Piccolo nodded. "Gohan..."

Gohan placed his hand onto Piccolo's shoulder. "A-are you okay? Is your stomach...?"

Piccolo looked down at the massive, fist-shaped hole in his torso. He and Gohan shared a quick look and then Piccolo sighed. The Namekian took a deep, deep breath, summoning a small ball of energy into his mouth. And then, he swallowed it. The apple-sized ball of energy went down Piccolo's throat and into his stomach, causing an explosion of Namekian flesh to erupt and fill the hole. Piccolo groaned and stood. "What happened while I was out?"

Gohan opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by an explosion. Piccolo growled. "I take it nothing good..."

The boy and his mentor both stood and walked to the top of a nearby ridge. They joined Krillin, Raditz, and the unconscious form of Nail and stared out into the distance. And it was quite the sight to see. Vegeta was clearly fleeing for his life, turning only to blast as Frieza, but maintaining his distance. Frieza's body language clearly portrayed how meaningless this all was to him. It was little more than a game to the Emperor.

Piccolo sneered. "And Bardock...?"

Noticeably, no response. Piccolo growled to himself. " _God damn it..._ "

 _Over with Frieza and Vegeta..._

Vegeta could feel his heartbeat in his throat as he fled at top speed. Every time he dared to sneak a look behind, it seemed as if his brutal pursuer only got closer. Vegeta screamed in fury and overhand tossed two ki blasts, one after the other.

Frieza stopped each with his finger and then flicked them aside with a smirk.

Vegeta gripped his fists tight. "Damn it. Damn it, NO! I...I'm... _ **I'M A SUPER SAIYAN!**_ "

Vegeta squeezed his eyes shut, his head lowering as he whispered to himself. Doubt was slowly penetrating Vegeta's otherwise unshakeable confidence. "I... I am a Super Saiyan. I am. _A-Aren't I...?_ "

" _Does it seem like you are?_ "

Vegeta's eyes snapped open and he shuddered with freezing terror at the sight of Frieza, right there in his face. The Emperor and the Prince were flying parallel, Frieza with an utterly amused grin on his face. "If you must ask the question, Vegeta, do you not know the answer already?"

Vegeta's face twisted and he screamed at the top of his lungs. He pulled his fist back and tossed a punch, landing it square in Frieza's face. Frieza chuckled, uninjured as Vegeta dug his fist further into the Emperor's cheek. Frieza responded with a punch of his own, sending Vegeta rocketing into the sky.

Frieza stopped flying and descended to the ground below, watching as Vegeta continued to struggle to stop.

Frieza landed onto the ground right in front of Piccolo, Raditz, Krillin, and Gohan. The four of them cringed in fear and prepared to defend themselves, but Frieza didn't seem to notice or care. He simply stared up into the sky at his current prey.

 _Up in the sky..._

It took all that Vegeta had to stop himself. But he eventually did. He was miles in the air by the time he did. The Namekian landscape was so small. Not a soul was able to be seen below. He could only tell where Frieza was by the feeling of his vile energy.

Vegeta reached his hand up to his face and rubbed his gloved knuckle under his nose. The white fabric of the glove came back died a sickening red. Frieza had smashed Vegeta's nose wide open, with nothing more than a glancing blow.

Vegeta began to tremble, floating there. His eyes were shadowed over, his teeth were gritted, and his fists were clenched tight. "No..."

Vegeta began to shake. "NO!"

Vegeta raised his hands into the air and summoned all of his energy into one, massive pink and purple blast. This attack was truly massive. It was his ultimate attack, his final strike, the single most powerful move he had invented in his entire life. Vegeta roared, his invocation ringing out all across the Namekian horizon. " _ **I AM A SUPER SAIYAN!**_ "

And then, Vegeta launched his mightiest attack down towards Frieza's energy. " _ **GALICK METEORA!**_ "

 _On the ground..._

Piccolo and the others all stepped back in horror as Vegeta's absolutely massive attack descended towards them. Krillin could barely manage to stammer out a single sentence. "He...he's going to...destroy the whole planet!"

Frieza was droll in his response. "Quite doubtful. But this island might be well done for. I would suggest you maggots leave, unless you desire that desperately to die."

Quickly getting the point, the four warriors began to retreat. Frieza sighed and wrapped his tail around Nail, tossing him towards Krillin. "Don't forget this one."

Krillin caught Nail and quickly turned, joining his allies in fleeing as fast as they could. Frieza chuckled as the blast got close. It really was quite large. Large enough that, if it were to hit the surface of the planet, it would most likely leave the space where Planet Namek stood totally empty. Frieza smirked and shook his head. "How _precocious_ , he's copying me~"

And then, Frieza raised a single hand into the air.

 _Up in the air..._

Vegeta smiled wide as he saw his attack collide. The shockwave alone sprawled across the surrounding landscape and flattened every last Ajisa tree. Vegeta laughed out loud. "Yes! YES! That's it! I knew it!"

Vegeta threw his hands into the air in celebration. "I knew it! I knew that it was true! _I... I HAVE ACHIEVED THE LEGEND! I HAVE AVENGED THE SAIYAN RACE!_ **I, PRINCE VEGETA IV HAVE ACHIEVED THE LEGEND!** _**I! AM! A SUPER SAIYAN!**_ "

Vegeta glared down at his mighty attack, waiting for it to explode and take Frieza with it. But the Prince was met by a sight that he did not expect. His attack was slowly coming back towards him. As it approached, Vegeta's confidence chipped away more and more and more. The attack soon floated up past him and Vegeta's stomach pitted. Soon, with his own blast high above him, Vegeta came face-to-face with his tormentor once again. Frieza floated there, his smirk unbroken and his body unscathed. "I suppose this was your final attack, Vegeta?"

Vegeta was speechless. Frieza chuckled. "Your silence betrays you."

With a flick of his wrist, Frieza tossed Vegeta's attack into the cold vacuum of space. The Galick Meteora rocketed into the deep, dark vacuum, and soon vanished into nothing. Frieza half-heartedly cocked his head. "If it makes you feel any better, I am sure that that will hit a populated planet eventually~"

Frieza began to fly forward. "So, I will ask you this...are you done with your meaningless resistance?"

Yet more silence from the Prince.

Frieza smiled a wicked smile. "Excellent."

And then, with a lightning-quick, mid-air flip, Frieza smashed Vegeta over the head with his tail and sent the Prince shooting down to the ground below.

 _Back on the ground..._

Vegeta smashed into the ground with a massive, exploding thud. Once the dust had cleared, the Prince was left sitting in a gigantic crater. The sheer force of Frieza's strike had caused him to fold like a piece of cardstock. Running up from nearby, Piccolo, Raditz, Gohan, and Krillin all stared down into the hole, seeing Vegeta lying there motionless.

Gohan was shaking. "Sh-should we..."

Descending from the sky himself, Frieza glared at the four warriors. The all froze up upon seeing the Emperor. Frieza smiled. "No please. Be my guest~! Anyone who wishes to jump in and take Vegeta's place is more than welcome to..."

Frieza landed in the crater, pressing his foot down onto Vegeta's back. "Any takers?"

Frieza closed his eyes. "No?"

And then, the Emperor chuckled. "Oh Vegeta, did you not bother to make a single friend during this entire attempted coup?"

Frieza shook his head. " _How foolish._ "

A massive kick rammed into Vegeta's side and sent him flying out of the crater. Vegeta gargled in pain as blood erupted from his throat. Frieza gave chase. "Did you genuinely have the gall to assume that you would be able to match me singlehandedly?!"

Frieza raced ahead of Vegeta and kicked him again. "Is your Saiyan arrogance really that deeply set?!"

Frieza raced below Vegeta and kicked him a third time. "I know I have instilled fear of my wrath into you! How dare you presume to ever be my equal you wretched, monkey filth!"

Finally, Frieza raced above Vegeta again and stomped into the Prince's back. Vegeta slammed into the ground hard, bouncing up before landing again. Vegeta's face splashed into the Namekian sea and he attempted to pull it out, but Frieza's cruel foot stomped down hard. Vegeta struggled, but he could not pull his face from the water. He couldn't breathe, but he couldn't make Frieza let him up.

As Frieza stood there, drowning Vegeta, the other four watched on in horror. None of them knew what they could possibly do. As it stood, Vegeta was the strongest person that was on their side. And yet, Frieza had reduced him to this. As the four of them stood there, listening to Vegeta gargle and scream for air underneath the water, they all realized just how hopeless their current situation was.

After a few, uninterrupted minutes of drowning, Frieza showed pity and pulled Vegeta from the water with his tail. Vegeta coughed and gasped and gagged up entire gallons of water, in spite of Frieza's tail being so tightly wrapped around his neck. The Prince hung there for a minute, limp and lifeless. But then, he pulled his shaking hands up and began to yank at the noose that was currently crushing his windpipe.

Frieza snorted and shook his head. "Oh dear. You still have...such a fighting spirit."

The smile on Frieza's face was sweet and malicious. "Please, Vegeta, allow me to tell you a story to remedy that..."

One of Vegeta's eyes weakly cracked open and Frieza sighed. "You have always wondered what happened to your Father, yes? Even if you did not care for the man personally...surely you must have wondered, at least once, how he died..."

 _24 years ago..._

King Vegeta lied there on the floor. Battered and beaten and broken to the point of being totally crippled, the Saiyan King could not even raise his noble head from the floor. In the background, screams of terror and pleas for mercy sounded out as Dodoria and Zarbon murdered the entirety of the royal guard. Not a single one of them, man nor woman, was spared.

Frieza, in all of his young, pink glory, stood from his hover chair and leapt to the ground. He walked up to his broken and battered toy and stomped his foot onto the back of the King's head. "Tell me, dear King Vegeta, why would you attack my ship like this? Hmm?"

King Vegeta could barely speak, his voice being rendered unintelligible. Frieza grunted and rolled his eyes, lifting the King by the hair with his foot. "Speak, Monkey!"

King Vegeta gurgled. "Our...our spies heard your plans. To...to kill the entire Saiyan race. To...execute all of us over...little more...than...than a legend..."

Frieza nodded. "Indeed. That is my plan, yes. And, furthermore, it is my right. Father gave you lot to me as a plaything. He gave you to me over Cooler because he knew I would make the correct choice with you. That I would end you the moment you became a threat to our rule!"

King Vegeta grunted in pain. "But...we have served you loyally...why-"

Frieza chuckled. "You wanted your eldest son to be the end of me, yes? That is why you bred him. To raise him as a weapon to kill me, yes?"

King Vegeta fell silent. Frieza smiled. "Dear King... _your silence betrays you_."

Frieza chuckled. "The eldest Prince has chosen to ignore my recall signal. But, worry not, I will go and deal with him after all of this."

King Vegeta's eyes flared and he summoned a blast into his hand. "YOU WILL NOT TOUCH MY SON!"

The blast never met its mark, however. Frieza simply batted it away, sending it flying across the room and into an unfortunate, nameless soldier's face. The corpse fell to the ground and Dodoria sighed. "Lemo! Clean that shit up!"

An orange Frieza Forcer stepped forward and grabbed the body, dragging it away with a warble of fear in his voice. "Y-yessir!"

Frieza, properly angered, pressed his foot onto the King's face and sent him flying back into the view screen. The King slammed hard and slid down, leaving a trail of crimson as he did. Frieza calmed down a little and stepped forward. "You do have other family, you know. I am also about to slaughter your wife and younger son. No love for them?"

King Vegeta coughed up blood, slumping over. "W-worthless..."

The back of the King's skull was cracked, but he still managed to sputter out a response. "B-both of them...both are...worthless. Cassava is... _weak_. And Tarble is... _weak_. Vegeta... _my legacy_...is all that matters..."

Frieza smiled. "Oh really?"

The young tyrant wrapped his tail around King Vegeta's neck and turned the broken King over, pressing his face against the glass. The brat leaned forward and whispered into King Vegeta's ear. "I will assuage your fears then, dear King. You see, I have decided that the young Prince Vegeta will, in fact, not die. Instead...he will be mine!"

King Vegeta flinched. Frieza sneered into the dying King's ear. "He will be mine. My property. I will dominate his life. He, unlike you, will know that he is property to be destroyed at my whim!"

King Vegeta gasped. " _N-no_..."

Frieza smirked and pressed his finger to the King's back, right behind his heart. "On the bright side, you will never have to see it. Now, enjoy your ride to Hell, King Vegeta."

And then, with a Death Beam, the King of the Saiyans was gone. Frieza smirked, enjoying his work. But then, he noticed explosions and dead soldiers flying around outside. Frieza sneered. "What in the blazes could that be?!"

Frieza turned and climbed into his hover chair, riding it out of the room. "I swear, my headache will not end until every Saiyan is dead."

 _Back in the present..._

As Frieza finished his story, Vegeta's arms fell limp. Frieza stopped waxing lyrical long enough to look into the captive Prince's eyes. The Emperor smiled at what he saw. In Vegeta's eyes, there was no longer any sort of emotion. No anger, no fire, no sadness, no fear. Just...nothing. Spiritually, Frieza had seemingly broken Vegeta. And this pleased Frieza to no end.

Frieza chuckled. "It would appear that that final twist of the knife has shattered your spirit, eh?"

Frieza turned Vegeta around, leaving the Prince's exposed back facing towards him. "Now for your body..."

Frieza reared back and let loose a serious punch. Something in Vegeta's back crackled and the Prince screamed in utter agony. Frieza smiled and did it again. And then he broke into a frenzy. Punches and punches and kicks and punches and kicks continued to rattle against Vegeta's back. The Prince screamed in pain, unable to resist or get away as Frieza had his fun.

Once that became boring, Frieza lifted Vegeta high into the air and began to slam him into the ground over and over. The bedrock of the Namekian landscape chipped and shattered with each thunderous blow. Blood splattered every so often, splashing out from Vegeta's steadily more and more damaged form. A jet of blood landed on Frieza's cheek and the Emperor chuckled, licking it away and savoring the taste of the pain.

Standing off to the side as Vegeta had the life beaten out of him, Piccolo, Raditz, Gohan, and Krillin stared on in disgust. Any immediate hatred for Vegeta faded as the four of them were forced to watch the proud, Saiyan Prince be ravaged by the vicious monster in front of them.

As Vegeta screamed and broke, Krillin and Raditz both individually came to the conclusion that they couldn't stand by any longer. Ready to go take their share of the pain to try and save Vegeta, the two of them began to charge. But Piccolo stopped them both.

Krillin sounded desperate as he tried to go around. "Piccolo! I... I get that you don't like him! I don't like him! But..."

Raditz was speaking through clenched teeth. "This is wrong. We have to stop this!"

Gohan looked up at his mentor. "Mr. Piccolo..."

Raditz and Krillin looked as well, seeing that Piccolo was just as furious as they were. It was clear that the Namekian was digging down deep, trying to pull more power from somewhere. But, to no avail. Piccolo snarled as he watched Frieza's brutal display go on. "He would kill any of us instantly if we tried to interfere..."

 _On Frieza's ship..._

Gine, Bulma, and Chi-Chi all watched on in horror as King Kai's telepathy showed them the true terror Frieza was capable of. Bulma was speechless. Chi-Chi's face was a sickly shade of green. And Gine just looked empty. Surrounding them, not seeing what was happening but feeling it, the remaining Namekians seemed to have lost all hope. Most of them were knelt on the ground as they felt the strongest being next to Frieza on the entire planet have his life slowly ripped from him.

King Kai sounded resigned as he mentally spoke to the ladies. "The true terror of Frieza comes forth. Perhaps...perhaps I was wrong to build hope that someone like Frieza could be toppled so easily. I am so sorry to have allowed you all to jump into this mess..."

Meanwhile, the ladies and the Namekians were not the only people observing this senseless cruelty. Within the healing chamber, Goku's fist clenched in anger.

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Frieza sighed in sheer bliss as he held Vegeta's battered body up high with his tail. Both Vegeta's broken form and Frieza's sadistic fists were dripping with the Prince's blood. Barely a groan emerged from Vegeta as Frieza regarded the Prince. "And so here we are, all of these years later! It is just as I told King Vegeta, his prized son now knows domination and fear!"

Frieza tossed Vegeta's body to the side and turned to the others. "Do you fools see now?! Do you see why you do not defy me?! My wrath is swift and all-encompassing! And you will all soon know the same pain that Vegeta-"

Frieza was cut off by the sounds of dragging and pained grunting. The Emperor turned a cold glare to the ground and saw his thought-to-be-broken prey attempting to escape. Frieza could not see Vegeta's face, but he did not need to. Clearly, the Prince still had much to be taught.

Vegeta had barely made it a few feet before Frieza's massive foot stomped down onto his leg. Vegeta didn't turn to face Frieza, he simply tried to yank his leg from the Emperor's grip, but to no avail. Frieza shook his head. "Perhaps this will teach you."

Frieza raised his tail into the air and whipped it down onto Vegeta's back. He did this several times, sending blood and chunks of armor flying as he did. Once the Emperor tired of this, he nudged Vegeta with his foot, flipping the Prince onto his back.

Vegeta groaned and Frieza responded with a massive stomp. The air left Vegeta's lungs and he wheezed in pain. Frieza sneered. "I hope that you have learned from this, Vegeta. I truly do."

Frieza pointed his finger at Vegeta and the Prince flinched, tears building and then streaming down his cheeks. As Vegeta began to silently sob, Frieza felt just a small something in his chest. Was this pity? Compassion, perhaps? Frieza thought about it and then decided...no. This feeling was... _amusement~_!

Frieza chuckled and retracted his finger. "Vegeta. You know me as a businessman. So, therefore, I shall make a deal with you. If you, right now, beg me for your life...then I shall spare you and keep you as a subordinate. You can become my new Zarbon~"

Vegeta's eyes cracked open. He stared up at Frieza and Frieza smiled. "All you have to say, Vegeta, are the words 'spare me'. Can you do that?"

Vegeta was trembling. The four off to the side watched and fell resigned. They knew that Vegeta was going to say it. He had to. In their entire time knowing him, each of the four of them knew Vegeta as someone who would do anything to survive. And, once he begged for forgiveness, they knew that Frieza would turn his attention to them. The others were frozen, but Piccolo took a stance. He was ready to fight for their lives, if he had to.

Vegeta gasped out. "S...s..."

Frieza smiled wickedly. "Yes Vegeta. Two words. Just two words and I will forgive all that you have done. Say it! Beg me for it! Say 'spare me'!"

Vegeta gripped his fists, pulling up two handfuls of dirt in his grip. "S...s..."

Vegeta's glare turned into one of pure hatred towards his tormentor. " _S-Super Saiyans don't beg!_ "

All at once, Piccolo and his group, Gine and her group, and Frieza himself all flinched back in shock. As Vegeta laid there on the ground, bleeding but defiant, no one could quite believe what they had just heard.

All of the joviality left Frieza's face and pure hate and malice took its place. The Emperor took his finger and pointed it right at Vegeta's heart, reading to execute the insolent Saiyan right then and there. Piccolo started to take off, rushing as fast as he could to intercept. Vegeta simply cringed, turning his head away and bracing for the inevitable.

Frieza screamed as he fired his attack. " _Insolent ape!_ "

The beam fired. Vegeta waited for it to hit. But...it never did. The Prince opened his eyes and was shocked to see the burnt hole in the ground next to him. Frieza had missed. But how?!

Vegeta turned his gaze back towards Frieza and was shocked by what he saw. Frieza looked shocked as well. Shocked and utterly furious. Holding Frieza's wrist, having shoved it off target from Vegeta's heart, was a thought-to-be-dead figure. Dripping with seawater and blood, looking ragged and nearly dead, was Bardock. The older Saiyan had a shit-eating grin on his face. "Damn it Vegeta. How dare you...make me start to like you?! Saying some badass shit like that..."

Bardock glanced down at the Prince. "I can't let your sour ass die now! _Goddamit_..."

Frieza roared in rage and frustration, bumping his power of to Five Percent! And then he slammed his fist into Bardock's chest and took the older Saiyan off of his feet. " _ **CONTEMPTUOUS, REBELLIOUS, STINKING MONKEY FILTH!**_ "

This was worse. Much worse. Frieza's power had grown even more and now all sense of playfulness had left him. Each hit devastated Bardock, taking him off of his feet and ragdolling him to the ground against his will. Frieza was out for blood this time.

The four off to the side could only watch on in terror as Frieza beat the life out of Bardock.

 _On Frieza's ship..._

Gine, Bulma, and Chi-Chi were trembling. This was it. Nothing could stand up to Frieza now. No one on the battlefield even came close to the power that the Emperor was putting out. Even all together, the lot of them could not stand up to Frieza at this point.

Gine was trembling. She couldn't do this. Stand up with a jolt and pulling her shoulders away from Bulma and Chi-Chi, Gine began to make her way towards the door. She didn't care about anything else at this point. She wasn't just going to sit there and let her husband die. At least...he wouldn't die alone!

Gine made it to the entrance with Bulma and Chi-Chi hanging off of her. But, before she made it out, a surging energy began to glow behind her. Gine, Bulma, and Chi-Chi turned in shock to watch as the door to the healing chamber exploded off. A familiar figure and massive power emerged from the chamber, reached down, and grab the newly repaired orange outfit off to the side.

Back on the battlefield...

Bardock landed on the ground with a sickening crunch. The boost of adrenaline that had propelled him forward before was gone. Bardock couldn't move a muscle as he laid there, staring up at his approaching demise. Frieza's pseudo-politeness was gone. It was replaced with frothing rage. The Emperor was striding up to Bardock on a mission, stepping past Vegeta as he prepared to eviscerate the older Saiyan.

But then, shock of all shocks, Vegeta leapt from the ground once more. The Prince was broken, but he would not just lay there and die. Vegeta summoned a massive energy blast and tried to hit Frieza with it, but the Emperor was prepared. Frieza batted the attack away with his tail and then reached back and grabbed a handful of Vegeta's hair. Yanking the Prince as hard as he could, Frieza tossed him towards Bardock and made the two bounce off each other. Frieza pointed at Vegeta's heart and shouted. "DEATH BEAM!"

The beam sailed towards Vegeta's chest, but Bardock kicked him at the last second. Instead, the blast pierced Vegeta's lower left flank. Instantly, Vegeta screamed and blood began to pool beneath his pierced kidney.

And, that was it. The fight was all gone.

Vegeta and Bardock glared at each other. Two former enemies that had someone been through the wringer together in such a short time. There was nothing approaching a friendship there, but the two of them seemed to have a grudging respect for each other. Vegeta, in spite of himself, chuckled. "D-damn...I guess this is it, huh?"

Bardock was heaving for breath, but he managed a smile. "N-not yet. There's still one more...hope."

Vegeta shook his head. "And just how...how do you know that?"

Bardock snorted. "Two reasons. One...f-future vision..."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "You and that damned clairvoyance. You'd think seeing the future would have helped you avoid all of this..."

Bardock ignored Vegeta's smartass remark. "A-and two...don't you feel that, Vegeta?"

Vegeta flinched as he suddenly felt what Bardock was feeling. Bardock chuckled. "Even if...even if we die... _Frieza is coming with us_..."

Frieza growled in utter fury and the two Saiyans turned their attention to him. Frieza snarled at the two of them. "Even staring death in the face, you both still hold on to this fruitless, idiotic hope?! _DO YOU NOT REALIZE HOW ANNOYING AND RUDE THAT IS?!_ "

Frieza held up his hand and fired a monstrous energy wave. The death dealing attack shredded across the ground right towards Bardock and Vegeta. Vegeta braced himself, but Bardock merely chuckled. And then, just before the attack hit, a blue energy beam came shooting from the sky and crashed into it, cancelling it out.

And then, once the smoke cleared, he was standing there. His orange gi shone brightly in the Namekian suns. Goku had arrived on the battlefield. And his power was _**MASSIVE**_!

Bardock stared up to his younger son. He thought back to that day long ago, the day he had first died. Burning up in that Supernova, Bardock had seen one last vision. A vision of a powerful Saiyan warrior standing up to that sadistic bastard Frieza. And now, even if things weren't exactly as he had foreseen them, that premonition had come true.

Frieza snarled. "INSOLENCE!"

He fired a Death Beam right at this new foe's chest, but the foe did not bother to dodge or block or anything. Frieza's Five Percent Death Beam hit this strange new intruder's chest dead on. And it did nothing.

Frieza flinched as this person stepped towards him. "W-who in the blazes are you?!"

Bardock let loose one last pained belly laugh, and then the battered, older Saiyan finally lost consciousness. Vegeta, meanwhile, stared up in a silent fury. So long ago, when he and Nappa went to Earth to hunt down Kakarot...the last thing he had ever expected it to lead to was this. As much as it pained Vegeta, he mentally had to admit that things had to be left to this low-class wretch. It killed Vegeta on this inside...but Kakarot was their last hope to stop Frieza as things currently stood.

And then, Vegeta passed out as well.

The table was set. All other warriors had either been totally outclassed or beaten into submission. On the sideline, Gohan and Krillin cheered him on as he stepped forward. Piccolo and his older brother watched on in silent awe.

He towered over his opponent as he stepped close. And Frieza, in confusion, regressed back a step. Frieza only became angrier as he did this, realizing that he had just given this new opponent ground. Infuriated, Frieza snarled. "I ask again: WHO THE DEVIL ARE YOU?!"

He stared down at Frieza and gripped his fist. "I am Son Goku. A Saiyan from Earth."

And then, Goku's power surged forth. "And you will not have your way anymore!"

 **Proofreading: StevenBodner**


	36. Chapter 36: Goku vs Frieza

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 36: Goku vs. Frieza**

 _On the battlefield..._

Goku and Frieza both stood closely to one another. Their powers clashed as they both glared at each other. Goku's power level was higher than ever. In his attempt to help out his Lord Frieza, Captain Ginyu had only succeeded in making things worse for the Emperor. Goku stood before Frieza with an unheard of Saiyan power level (4,500,000). This was still dwarfed by the mere 5 percent power that Frieza was exerting (6,000,000), but that did not seem to faze Goku. The Saiyan from Earth stood before his newest and greatest foe and waited for him to make a move. Frieza seemed to be waiting for the same thing as each of their powers radiated across the field.

The grass was pressed over by the force of the power. The Namekian sea rippled outwards. Small rocks and bits of debris hovered slightly off of the ground. And then Frieza's impatience got the better of him and he threw the first strike.

Frieza's fist shot towards Goku's face, but Goku caught it. The Saiyan pulled on Frieza's arm and smashed his own fist into the Emperor's nose. And then, Goku delivered a heavy kick to Frieza's stomach and sent him flying away.

Goku sped after Frieza and the two titanic forces clashed. Frieza glared at Goku and snarled. "You're doing it again! What is that?!"

Goku smirked as a small flame of red energy crackled in front of his face. And then and Frieza went at it. The two of them brawled across the sky with force and gusto, trading blows back and forth and sending sonic booms across the sky as they did. Each mighty blow sent ripples through the air and made the very ground beneath the two fighters crumble.

Frieza sneered at the impertinence of this fool. How dare this filthy Saiyan monkey match his power like this! Frieza's pride was bruised as he glared over to Goku. This... _creature_ would not force him to pull out any more of his power than necessary. He did not deserve the honor!

But then, to Frieza's shock, Goku chuckled. "I gotta say, Frieza...you're pretty strong. I probably won't be able to beat you like this..."

Frieza shot a snide smile at Goku. "Well, I will give you this one, Saiyan ape. You certainly have more sense than Vegeta or Bardock. Enough sense to know that you are outmatched...and yet not enough sense to cease this pointless struggling!"

Goku smiled confidentially. "I never said I thought I was outmatched!"

Goku crossed his arms across his chest and then thrust them to his sides. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWO!_ "

Goku's power shot up and the force of his power physically pushed Frieza backwards. Frieza flinched, unsure of what to make of this as Goku adjusted to his new power (9,000,000). And then Goku charged forth and slammed his fist into Frieza's gut. Frieza gagged in pain as the air was forced from his stomach. But he had no time to return with an attack of his own as Goku immediately raised his fists above his head and smashed Frieza down into the ground below.

As dust erupted from the ground below, Goku descended to give chase.

 _Meanwhile, away from the fight..._

As Goku and Frieza brawled in the distance, Gohan and Raditz returned to the site of Vegeta and Bardock's intense beating. Gohan ran up to his grandfather and placed his ear to Bardock's chest. Raditz, meanwhile, walked up to Vegeta and felt his neck for a pulse. Thankfully, both Saiyans were alive. If only _just barely_.

Gohan carefully hefted Bardock's body over his shoulder and took to the air. Raditz followed immediately behind, flinching in pain as Vegeta's dead weight weighed down on his broken hands. The both flew up to the top of a nearby rocky spire and joined Piccolo and Krillin atop. The Namekian warrior seemed distracted, staring off into the distance and angrily watching Goku and Frieza fight. While he did that, Krillin regarded the unconscious Nail and the deceased Dende, both lying next to one another on the ground.

Raditz carefully sat Vegeta onto the ground and looked to the massive hole in the Prince's side. "Vegeta is likely to bleed to death if we don't do something soon..."

Gohan and Krillin both reacted with concern. Piccolo didn't react at all. The Namekian warrior watched Goku and Frieza brawl and kicked himself harder and harder every second that he was unable to be involved. His power flared, to the shock of the others, but came to an unnatural and sudden stop.

At this point, the other three could tell something was wrong. Piccolo hadn't reached a natural limit; he had hit a sudden wall in his attempts to access his power. Something within Piccolo was constipating him. Raditz did not have time to give this problem any attention. He looked to the broken form of his father and then to the increasingly pale form of Vegeta. Raditz glanced over to Dende's corpse and shook his head. "Damn us all for not making sure that he survived. He would be more useful than any of us if he were still around..."

Raditz buried his face in his hand. "We need to figure out something quickly..."

The elder brother glanced over between his fingers and, to his relief, he caught sight of their remaining hope. In the distance, Frieza's ship was still standing. Raditz immediately called out. "Hey, King Kai! I need you to relay a message!"

 _Within Frieza's ship..._

Gine nodded her head as she listened to King Kai speak. "I see. Yes. O-okay! We should definitely be able to do that. Not sure what we'll find, but I'm sure we'll find _something_..."

Once King Kai broke off the communication, Gine turned to Bulma and Chi-Chi. "So, you both heard that, right?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yes ma'am!"

Bulma sighed with sadness. "Poor Dende..."

Gine shook her head. "We have to focus on those that are still alive for now. Bardock and Vegeta are both barely hanging on and we're their only hope to survive. Tear this place apart and find anything we can use to fix them up!"

As Gine, Bulma, and Chi-Chi plotted, however, the remaining members of the Four-Star Village all were despairing. The lot of them had felt a power outside suddenly vanish, but...for that monster to have done that to Dende, little more than a child...

One farmer raised his fist into the air. "We cannot stand for this! That beast keeps taking and taking and... we just stand around and do nothing, hoping that these people will perform a miracle for us?! We cannot continue this charade, my brothers! We must provide any little bit of assistance in any way we can!"

Several other farmers all seemed to agree, throwing their fists into the air as well. By the time Chi-Chi or Bulma managed to turn around, nearly the entire group of remaining Namekians had already left the room. Bulma gasped. "Sh-shouldn't we stop them?! They're all going out there and that Frieza monster is-"

Gine didn't answer, too busy ripping open various locked cabinets and looking at the various supplies within. Chi-Chi called over to her. "Gine?"

Gine shook her head, a more serious tone bubbling up. "We have to stay focused! I feel for the Namekians and their plight and I wish I had time to go and stop them, but we need to gather medical supplies. Bardock and Vegeta are going to die if we don't hurry up!"

Bulma and Chi-Chi both frowned, but they knew that Gine was right. The two women nodded to each other, and then they began to break open more cabinets as well.

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Goku descended from the air, scanning the ground as he fell. The dust that Frieza's landing had kicked up was still filling the air. Goku scanned around, trying to locate Frieza, and was immediately taken off-guard by what emerged from the dust. An entire mountain came flying towards the Saiyan from Earth and Goku had no room to dodge. With a harsh glare and a shout, Goku blew the mountain into pieces and dodged the ensuing rubble. Goku shouted. "What the heck are you doing?!"

Goku was answered by a titanic rumbling and the sight of two mountains in the distance rising into the air. Goku flinched in shock and both mountains came flying at him like missiles. Frieza stepped out from the dust, scuffed and clearly angry. The Emperor's power flared up even higher, now at a solid 10 percent of his true might (12,000,000).

Both mountains flew straight towards Goku and the Saiyan did as he had done before. He blew each projectile to pieces and dodged the rubble as it came flying towards him. But, Frieza was prepared for this. Using his telekinetic power, the Emperor took control of multiple pieces of rubble and forced them towards Goku.

Goku weaved through the air, dodging boulders and blasting them away if they got too close. Goku was intensely focused to avoid getting hit, but then he had a cheeky idea. The Saiyan reached both of his hands out and grabbed two boulders from the air. With a smirk, he dug his fingers into each of the rocks. And then, he whipped around and tossed one of them right at Frieza.

Frieza sneered and dodged the rock, but what happened next, he did not see coming. The moment the rock hit the ground, the side of it exploded and an energy beam came shooting out. Frieza was quick to react, throwing up his arm as a shield from the blast.

Reacting quickly Frieza turned to face Goku again just in time to catch the second rock. As with the first, the side immediately exploded and blasted right into Frieza's face. Blinded and distracted, Frieza had no ability to counter Goku's falling kick. The bottom of Goku's boot struck Frieza in the chest and sent the Emperor sliding back. Goku shot forward and threw a punch, but Frieza caught that attack. The Saiyan smiled. "So... the blast-in-the-rock strategy. Didja see it comin'?"

Frieza was taken aback by how glib this "Goku" creature was, but then the Emperor let loose a sinister chuckle. "Points for creativity, I suppose. Not enough points to save your life, but enough to ensure that I remember you at the very least~"

Goku smiled wide. "Well, I can't say I plan to die just yet!"

Goku snatched his fist away and leapt into the air, pulling his arms to one side. "Kamehameha!"

Goku fired the energy wave down towards Frieza and Frieza shook his head. The Emperor flicked his wrist and shouted. "Death Wave!"

The blue and red blasts collided midair and let loose a massive explosion. The ground crumbled and kicked up a gigantic cloud of dust that separated the two fighters. Frieza sneered and glared up at the cloud, firing his eye beams off into the unseen, unknown. He would have to hit that Saiyan scum at some point!

On the other side of the cloud, however, Goku was stunned by what was happening. The Saiyan was not moving at all, holding perfectly still, as Frieza's eye beams continued to wildly miss. Not a single attack came anywhere close to hitting him. Goku cocked his head and mumbled to himself. "What is he doing...?"

Goku flinched back as the beams continued to miss. "W-wait a minute..."

Goku cried out. " _HE CAN'T SENSE POWER LEVELS!_ "

Goku chuckled to himself and clapped his fist into his open palm. "Good to know. But..."

The Saiyan was confused again. "...how has he made it this far without such a basic skill?!"

Frieza shot out from the dust and positioned himself right behind Goku. The Emperor was sneering in disdain as he glared at the Saiyan. "You're starting to sound way too much like my Father for my tastes!"

Frieza fired off another set of eye beams and Goku quickly dodged. But the Saiyan was quickly met by a sharp kick to the gut. Goku coughed and wheezed and went flying backwards into the ocean. In the air, Frieza crossed his arms and waited, knowing that that monkey would not have been done in by such a simple blow. The Emperor was seething as he hovered, waiting for the Saiyan to emerge so that he could beat the life out of him.

 _Underwater..._

Goku quickly got his bearings and gathered himself. The Saiyan crossed his arms and floated there, thinking about his next move. Frieza had surpassed him in power again. So... the first logical step would be to adjust for that. Goku shouted in his head. " _KAIOKEN TIMES THREE!_ "

The Saiyan's power erupted and he gained a slight advantage over Frieza once more (13,500,000). With that done, Goku had to work out a strategy. The Saiyan closed his eyes and calmly thought out how to handle this. His mind drifted, wondering towards his friends and allies for help. " _Let's see...I need to approach this in a way Frieza won't expect..._ "

Goku warmly smiled. " _Yamcha! Of course...Yamcha has...and then Tien...Master Roshi...and then I could combine those and..._ "

Goku's eyes snapped open. " _Thanks guys! When I wish you all back, I'll have to tell you about this..._ "

Goku held out his hands and summoned two Kamehameha balls. The Saiyan shifted his index fingers to the left and the blasts shifted left. Right and then right. Goku smirked and nodded. " _Perfect._ "

 _Up in the air..._

Frieza flinched in shock as, suddenly, a Kamehameha ball launched from the ocean beneath him. Frieza, of course, dodged the attack. But then, a second one came shooting up at well. Frieza dodged again, considerably more annoyed. "What is this ape playing at?!"

And soon thereafter, Goku came shooting from the water himself. The Saiyan from Earth rocketed directly towards Frieza, making no attempt to be evasive in the slightest. Frieza sneered and pointed his finger at Goku. "A direct attack?! _The nerve_!"

The Death Beam fired out from Frieza's finger and blasted directly into Goku's heart. Frieza smiled maliciously as his foe fell backwards, but was then shocked as Goku simply faded from existence. Frieza was confused. "What the devil?!"

Before Frieza could process what he was seeing, another smirking Goku popped out of the water in the distance. The Saiyan smiled wide at Frieza and then started waving his arms in the air. What seemed to be random posturing quickly became something much more as the two blasts that Goku had previously fired out began to chase Frieza. The Emperor glared at Goku and then began to flee this new attack. " _This is your strategy?!_ You choose to attack me with party tricks?!"

Frieza turned, mid-evasion, and pointed his finger towards Goku. The Emperor lined up his hand with his line-of-sight and quickly fired off a Double Death Beam. This time, he would be sure that this monkey would die!

The two beams shot across the battlefield and both slammed into Goku's chest, piercing through him with ease. Frieza smirked, but his smirk quickly fell off when Goku faded away for a second time. An explosion of water behind the Emperor made Frieza turn and he quickly saw what he had feared he'd see: Goku had shot up from the water again. "How in the hell are you doing this?!"

Goku smirked and clapped his hands together, causing the two Kamehameha balls to combine into a massive one. "Yamcha's signature Spirit Ball and Tien Shinhan's signature Multi-Form technique!"

Goku heaved his arms towards himself and made the massive Kamehameha ball lurch forward. Frieza sneered and sped away from the attack, right towards Goku. "Go ahead! Have that blast chase me! You will only succeed in incinerating your-"

Goku held out his hands and shouted. " _Turtle School Last Resort!_ "

An electric blast shot out from Goku's fingers and slammed into Frieza, shocking the Tyrant still. Goku shot forward and grabbed Frieza tight, holding the Emperor in a tight, full-nelson. Another Goku shot from the sea below and smiled at Frieza. "That was Master Roshi's attack, by the way! And now..."

Goku pressed his hands to the Kamehameha ball and pushed it right into Frieza's face. " _KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

The energy from the ball exploded outward, enveloping both Frieza and the Goku clone and sending them flying into the sea. The force of the attack sent massive, cresting waves flying high into the air and brought them crashing down onto the surrounding landscape.

The water began to settle and Goku rubbed his finger under his nose. "Wonder what Frieza thought of that one..."

In a flash, the wet and slightly damaged Frieza appeared behind Goku and pressed his hand onto the Saiyan's back. "I am a tad impressed..."

Frieza shouted and his energy surrounded Goku. Goku grunted in pain as the sheer force of Frieza's energy began to squeeze and push him inward. Goku couldn't move. He could barely wince. The Saiyan glared out at Frieza and the Emperor chuckled at his new captive. "...however, I still have quite a few tricks of my own~"

Frieza snarled and let even more of his power loose, this time bumping himself up to 15 percent (18,000,000). And so, Goku was helpless. Frieza began to batter him around the Namekian skyline like a toy. Goku was sent flying in every which direction, only to be smacked in the opposite direction at the last moment. Each hit collided into Goku with the Saiyan able to offer no defense to the onslaught.

The beating continued on for minutes until, with a chuckle, Frieza caught his new toy with his tail. "How do you enjoy my Imprisonment Ball, monkey? I came up with this attack myself! It can be rather cruel~"

Frieza chuckled. "You see, I have designed this technique to be one that only I can touch! I can batter you around as much as I like and, once I have bored of that, I can simply swat you into something far away from myself and watch you explode!"

Frieza cocked his head with a sinister grin. "I have never experienced the explosion firsthand...but Nanny Berryblue seemed so cross when she had to call the cleaning staff to wipe up those soldiers that I had played with~"

Goku glared at Frieza, still unable to move. Frieza glared back, clearing amused. "And now, let us contin-"

A handful of blasts collided into Frieza's back. The attacks did absolutely nothing, bar pissing Frieza off. The Emperor turned towards his latest assailants and hissed at them. " _You_..."

Frieza balanced Goku on his tail and glared towards the ten furious Namekian farmers that had dare to fire upon him. Frieza shook his head and snarled to himself. "I simply must learn to be more _thorough_ in my work..."

One of the farmers stepped forward with fire in his eyes. "You will pay for what you have done, monster! The Namekian people will not be tread upon by the likes of you! You dare to be callous enough to take the life of an innocent child?! No more! Alone we might not be strong, but together-"

A Death Beam shot into the farmer's throat and he dropped like a stone. The Namekian fell to the ground with a thud and began to writhe, choking and gagging in pain. This rendered Goku instantly furious and he began to struggle even harder within his prison. Frieza turned to his captive and chuckled. "Did that make you angry?"

Without looking, Frieza shot nine more beams, each piercing the throat of a terrified and outmatched Namekian, all of them too petrified with fear to run. "How about that?"

Goku was even angrier. Still not angry enough to force any movement within his prison, but he was getting there. Frieza's smile faded. "But...I find myself asking a question..."

The Emperor turned his gaze away from Goku. "Where do these insects keep skittering from?"

Frieza began to scan the horizon. "I remember from my plotting with the Ginyu Force that there were only a handful of Namekians left. And all of them were there for the unauthorized use of my Dragon Balls...so where did..."

Frieza's eyes locked on to his own ship. " _Oh_...I see now..."

Frieza smirked and held his open palm towards his vessel. "Looking onto the bright side of this miserable situation, all of my men are dead. And, if you did not know, monkey, I am able to survive in the vacuum of space. Therefore..."

The Emperor's gaze hardened. " _That ship will no longer be necessary._ "

Goku was stunned and instantly worried. He began to struggle even harder, managing to shift quite a bit within Frieza's inescapable prison. Frieza, however, did not care. "That will be enough of you for the moment."

Frieza removed his tail from beneath the Imprisonment Ball and then batted it towards the ground. Goku could only stare in horror as he fell towards the crippled Namekian farmers. The attack hit the ground and resulted in a massive explosion. Frieza smirked as the mushroom cloud of dust and smoke rose behind him. And then, the Emperor shrieked in rage and fired a massive energy wave directly towards his ship.

As the attack went sailing by them, Raditz, Piccolo, Gohan, and Krillin screamed in horror. They couldn't stop it, they couldn't outrace it, they could only watch as a death-dealing blow screamed towards the hiding spot of their allies. Raditz, in particular, was quite hoarse as he expressed his terror. " _NO!_ "

 _Within Frieza's ship..._

Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Gine all looked down at the haul they had gathered. Bandages, disinfectant, blood bags, adrenaline needles, and clean water. It wasn't much, but it would have to do. Vegeta and Bardock would at least _live_ through all of this. Gine nodded and hurried towards the exit to the medical bay. "Come on guys! We need to go as quickly as possible!"

The door opened and Gine ran out. Bulma and Chi-Chi both moved as fast as they could, picking up their bags of medical supplies and beginning to rush after the Saiyan matriarch.

In the hall outside the medical bay, Gine was laser-focused. She wasn't going to let Bardock die all by himself! Not again! She wouldn't let that monster kill her husband again!

As Gine started to run down the hall, a bright light shone in through the window. Gine shielded her eyes, only to be quickly shaken by the ship rumbling as if the entire planet was quaking. Gine cracked her eyes open and screamed in horror. A wall of energy, Frieza's energy, was racing down the hallway right at her.

What happened next was a blur. Purely on instinct, Gine rushed the opposite way. She couldn't hear anything. She couldn't smell or taste anything. Every inch of her body was numb. Gine rushed back into the medical bay and came upon the sight of Chi-Chi and Bulma, with tears in their eyes, silently screaming in horror. The Saiyan Mother grabbed each woman by the arm, and then she heaved the two of them into Goku's former healing chamber.

And then, Gine and the remaining Namekians exchanged terrified looks as they were all engulfed by Frieza's blast.

 _Outside, on the battlefield..._

As smoke curled up from the blasted-out husk of Frieza's ship, Raditz screamed in utter fear. Not giving a single regard to Frieza, Raditz instead raced off towards the ship. " _MOTHER!_ "

Gohan was right on his tail. Tears filled the young boy's eyes as he followed his uncle to the twisted, burnt-up casket that Frieza had made. " _MOMMY! GRANDMA!_ "

Krillin joined them as well, looking just as worried. "Bulma and the other Namekians were in there too!"

Piccolo, meanwhile, stood firm. He glared up at Frieza and Frieza glared back down at him. The Emperor chuckled. "Care to have a second go-around, insect?"

Piccolo snarled and tried to summon his power forth once more. The power surged from Piccolo body but, once again, it hit a solid roadblock and stop. Piccolo growled in frustration and, once again, a sinster voice laughed out loud in the back of his head.

Frieza, up in the air, shook his head. "I suppose that would be a 'no'?"

Frieza chuckled. He didn't care. It didn't matter. That Namekian scum beneath him, those fools rushing to his destroyed ship, Bardock and Vegeta lying unconscious on the ground. All of them amounted to the same value to Frieza: _**ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!**_

Frieza floated in the sky, reveling that more and more of his hated foes were falling to him. So many miserable annoyances had dropped like flies before the might of the great Lord Frieza! Frieza was so satisfied with his work...and then one of those annoyances returned to the forefront.

Frieza saw a familiar form shoot from the smoke and dust beneath him and barely managed to block a strike with his forearm. Frieza flinched and an electric feeling of numbness shot up and down his arm. All joviality faded and Frieza was angry once more.

A flaming, red energy flared from Goku's body as he clashed with Frieza. The Saiyan was covered in minor damage. His orange gi had been shredded away and his arms and face were covered with scrapes and burns. But, Goku didn't care. " _ **KAIOKEN TIMES FIVE!**_ "

Goku's power shot up again (22,500,000). And then the Saiyan from Earth smashed his fist into Frieza's face, sending the Emperor crashing into the ground with righteous anger. After a moment, Frieza stood up and stared with hatred at Goku. And then, the two of them charged at one another once more!

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	37. Chapter 37: Determination

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 37: Determination**

 _Within Frieza's destroyed ship..._

With a creak and a hefty crash, the broken sliding doors to the medical bay were broken down. Raditz, Krillin, and Gohan rushed into the former base of operations for their group to see if they could find anyone left alive. The sight they came upon was both sickening and disheartening. The very first thing their eyes fell upon was the sight of several scorch, vaguely person-shaped heaps. Krillin was trembling. "A-all of the Namekians... _no_..."

Krillin and Gohan both ran forward, vainly hoping that maybe just one or two of the peaceful Four-Star Villagers had managed to survive. Raditz stood in shock, knowing that their efforts were fruitless. With each confirmed Namekian death, Gohan and Krillin began to despair just as Raditz was. The horrid truth was setting in...no one could have survived a direct hit from that attack.

Gohan had tears in his eyes. Krillin's face was hollow. Raditz gripped his fist, blood trickling from his broken hand, and lowered his head. "Damn that Frieza. Damn him..."

Raditz smashed his fist into the wall. " _Damn it!_ "

The burnt-out remains of the ship rattled, ash and soot raining from the ceiling. Gohan began to cry at the loss of his mother and grandmother and Bulma, but then a groan quickly caught all three's attention. From the far end of the room, the crumpled healing chamber began to shift. A fair hand emerged, trembling, and Bulma pulled herself out into view. Blood was streaming out from under the scientist's hair. Bulma moaned. "My head..."

Bulma was quickly joined by Chi-Chi. Chi-Chi looked flustered and ruffled, but she was uninjured beyond some scuffs. A single parcel was gripped tightly in her hand as she climbed out of the healing chamber. It was some of the healing supplies that they had gathered together. Chi-Chi climbed out and started to help Bulma out, but was quickly caught off-guard by something tackling into her. Chi-Chi turned, ready to fight, but was surprised and relieved at the sight of her son. Chi-Chi held Gohan tightly. "Gohan... _my Gohan_..."

Gohan was trembling as he buried his face into his mother's bosom. "Mommy...I thought I lost you..."

After helping Bulma stumble out of the pod, Chi-Chi fell to her knees and hugged her son tight. As mother and son shared a tender moment, Raditz walked up to the two of them. In spite of finding Bulma and Chi-Chi alive, the Saiyan still appeared to be despairing. He and Chi-Chi locked eyes and Raditz managed to force out a small question. "My mother...?"

Chi-Chi was still for a moment. She thought back to the last thing she saw, that repulsive wave of energy overtaking Gine and the Namekians. Tears welled in Chi-Chi's eyes, and then she turned her head away from her brother-in-law. Raditz's shoulder slumped down. In that moment, a small breeze could have made him crumble into dust.

As everyone began to silently mourn, Gohan started to look around the room. Frieza had taken so much. Other than Nail and Piccolo, the Tyrant had rendered the Namekian people all but extinct. Nothing meant anything to him. He took whatever he wanted. He destroyed the rest.

But, as Gohan glanced around and absorbed the full scope of Frieza's carnage...he noticed something peculiar. In the center of the room, from under a large pile of rubble, am arm was sticking out. In spite of the damage, the blackened burn marks and all, Gohan could easily tell that that arm did not belong to a Namekian. Gohan broke away from his mother and ran to the pile. The rubble took a few moments to remove, but Gohan was relieved when he did. As he sent the final piece of metal detritus flying, Gine's face was revealed. Gohan smiled wide in relief. " _Grandma!_ "

It took no time for the others to come running over. As they did, Gine's eyes cracked open and she was instantly flooded with intense pain. The Saiyan mother sat up and gripped her arm tight, seething with pain as she glanced over to her crisp, blackened, barely twitching arm. Everyone gathered around her, happy tears in their eyes. Gine could tell they were saying something, but she wasn't paying enough attention to hear it. She glanced over the corpse of a Namekian farmer and briefly flashed back. Right before the full blast overtook them, that farmer threw a single blast as the ceiling that caused it to collapse onto top of Gine. A guilty frown developed on Gine's face. She closed her eyes and silently thanked that Namekian for saving her.

And then Gine opened her eyes and struggled to her feet. She looked down at everyone: Gohan, Krillin, Raditz, Bulma, and Chi-Chi, and then she turned and began to walk towards the door. Raditz called to her. "Mother! You shouldn't be on your feet yet! You'll-"

Gine interrupted. "We don't have time to sit around, Raditz!"

Raditz flinched. Gine turned and glared at her comrades with fire in her eyes. "I'm not dead yet. And I won't let everyone else's sacrifices go to waste. We need to hurry up, take whatever medical supplies survived that attack, and go heal Bardock and Vegeta! And we need to do it now!"

Gine started to limp towards the door again. Everyone was stunned by just how gung-ho she was. Gine's arm was all but falling off, but she didn't seem to care. Gine turned to her allies again and shouted, putting much more force than ever before into her voice. " _I SAID NOW!_ "

Everyone flinched in fear, but then they complied. Chi-Chi grabbed her bag and then five of them followed Gine's lead.

 _On the battlefield..._

Goku and Frieza continued their epic clash across the Namekian landscape. The Saiyan and the Tyrant brawled hard, back and forth and up and down, clashing and sending sonic booms shooting out across the Namekian planes. Annoyed at Goku's persistence, Frieza raised his power even higher. The Emperor wanted to stomp this nuisance out in short order, so he released 40 percent of his maximum power (48,000,000).

Goku was on the outs. Frieza's new strength was overwhelming him, but his tank wasn't empty yet. Frieza fired off a blast at Goku and Goku shouted. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TEN!_ "

Goku's power rose up (45,000,000) and allowed him to combat Frieza's attack. Goku fired a blast of his own at Frieza's blast and the explosion rocked both of them away. Frieza went backflipping through the air and Goku landed feet first on the ground, skidding backwards and coming to a halt. Goku looked up and was met by a sharp headbutt right to the face.

As Goku clenched his face and groaned in pain, Frieza smirked and turned to strike the Saiyan with his tail. But, to Frieza's surprise, Goku managed to catch it. The Saiyan spun around on his heel and launched Frieza into the distance. Goku took a minute to breath as Frieza recovered and began to feel out the situation.

Goku chuckled. "Heh...this ain't good..."

Frieza did not take long to recover. He caught himself mid-flight and sped back towards Goku as fast as he could. Goku leapt into the air to avoid a devastating stomp, watching as the ground crumbled beneath Frieza's foot. And then, the Saiyan from Earth turned tail and began to speed away.

But, his attempt to create some distance was utterly fruitless. Frieza was able to use his speed to catch up and he and Goku started brawling as they flew. Goku was hitting as hard as he could, and it was easy to tell that Frieza was feeling it. However, Frieza was also hitting as hard as he could and it was easy to tell that Goku was taking the blows much harder.

The two of them continued to fly, going from island to sea to island to sea. Once they reached land again, Frieza snarled and raised his hand above his head. Goku gasped, seeing the attack at the end of Frieza's finger. Frieza roared and stroked his arm downward, unleashing his powerful Fissure Strike.

Goku just barely managed to dodge and was shocked to watch as the energy sliced into the ground, splitting the island in half and causing magma to erupt from the depths of Planet Namek. Goku cried out. "Holy cow! He split the entire island!"

Frieza smirked and then shot towards Goku again. As magma exploded right next to the two of them, Frieza slammed the bottom of his foot into Goku's chest and sent him cascading to the ground below. Goku hit the ground with an intense thud and gurgled in pain. Frieza landed next to him and fired a Death Beam.

Goku jerked his head to the side, barely avoiding the attack, and then pushed himself from the ground. Goku threw a punch right at Frieza's face, but the Emperor caught it. Shoving hard and forcing Goku to stumble back, Frieza then unfurled even more of his wicked power. The Emperor roared and a full 50 percent of his true strength (60,000,000) came rushing forth!

Frieza leapt forward with a vicious grin and kneed Goku in the jaw. Goku felt a very disorientating crack and went flying backwards. He fell onto his back and rolled. Frieza landed on the ground, looking smug and satisfied, watching on with murder in his eyes as the Saiyan recovered.

Once Goku managed to get to his feet again, Frieza chuckled. And then he whipped his arm towards the Saiyan and fired a Death Beam right through his shoulder. Goku cried out in agony and gripped his shoulder, instantly feeling a warm waterfall oozing from under his hand. Frieza savored Goku's pain and rushed for the kill, but Goku was able to think fast and fire a massive energy blast to force a distance between himself and the Tyrant.

The smoke cleared and Frieza stood, unharmed. Flaming magma and soot rose behind the Emperor and, for a brief moment, Goku genuinely thought he was staring at the devil himself. Goku backed away, a fierce glare on his face. Frieza just stood there, quite confident. "Take your time, monkey. I can wait~"

Goku was breathing heavy as he considered his options. The first thing to cross his mind: Kaioken Times 100. That Ginyu guy had pulled it out while he was in Goku's body and his power shot super high. Goku thought hard about it...but then he shook his head. In his mind, Goku pictured the intense power boost. It would surely be enough to end Frieza right there. But... _then Goku pictured his predicament if he missed_. Frieza was fast. If Goku was going to risk ruining his body that way...he would need to do it at a juncture where Frieza was unable to evade.

Goku needed some help to think. So, he closed his eyes and mentally called out to someone who would give him decent advice. " _Hey! King Kai!_ "

King Kai quickly answered. " _Yes Goku? What is it?_ "

Goku was jovial, if anything. " _You're watching this, right?_ "

King Kai nodded. " _I am. Quite a hard situation you've managed to fight your way into. Uhm...would a joke maybe help to ease some stress?_ "

Goku shrugged. " _L-Lay it on me, I guess._ "

Frieza watched as Goku just stood there, his eyes squeezed shut. The Emperor was slowly coming around to the idea that his foe might've just passed out, but then Goku gave off a light-hearted chuckle. "Oh dear...the poor fellow seems to have gone insane. Pitiable. Almost..."

King Kai spoke to Goku, mentally. " _All jokes aside though, you're stuck Goku. You're using the maximum Kaioken that is possible, at your level, without risk of permanent injury. Going any higher would be a foolhardy thing to do. Remember what Ginyu's foolish mistake did. You might irreparably cripple yourself if you push any harder..._ "

Goku nodded. " _Yeah King Kai...you're probably right..._ "

And then, Goku's eyes snapped open and he glared right at Frieza. " _ **KAIOKEN TIMES TWENTY!**_ "

Goku's power surged, his energy going from merely tinted red to flat-out bloody red. Goku roared as his power soared to a new height he had never even considered before (90,000,000)! Goku shouted. "I can't afford to let this fight go on anymore! All of my friends are counting on me to win this one! _So, you're going down, Frieza!_ "

 _On King Kai's planet..._

Tien and Yamcha dusted themselves off as they stood above the defeated spirits of the recently deceased Ginyu Force. Jeice, Burter, and Recoome all laid motionless on the ground, beaten senseless by the newfound power of King Kai's current pupils. Chiaotzu smiled, sitting on Guldo back. "I can't believe it! I managed a Kaioken! It was only Times Two...but-"

Yamcha interrupted. "Not buts, man! You did great! We all did! These guys were whooping Vegeta as one point!"

Tien seemed distracted, not joining Yamcha and Chiaotzu in celebration. As his two allies picked up their training dummies and tossed them off the side of the planet as King Kai had requested, Tien glanced over to the sage deity. King Kai seemed in awe, but not at their feats. Tien chafed just a bit. "Looks like I still haven't caught up yet...eh Goku?"

King Kai stood silent and stunned at what he was watching. In spite of the danger, in spite of the risks, Goku pressed on. And while King Kai was definitely going to scold him over the recklessness, he was displaying in doing all of this, he also couldn't help but respect his pupil just a little. Goku was a fool to fight Frieza. He was a fool to push the envelope this hard. But that foolish behavior was at least quite admirable to witness.

King Kai flinched in pure amazement as Goku pushed a half-powered Frieza back. Maybe, just maybe, Goku would be able to pull this one out of the bag!

 _Meanwhile, on the sidelines..._

A pair of eyes snapped open and glanced up at the familiar green skies above. Those green skies were comforting. They never seemed to end no matter how much he stared up at them. However, he looked over to his side and came upon proof that nothing lasted forever. He eyes fell upon the revolting sight of Dende's corpse, lying motionless. He could barely register any outward feeling to this sight. Everything that he was forced to take in since this farce had begun...it had all just rendered him totally numb. He reached over and touched the once warm hand and felt only cold deadness. And he shuddered at just how cold it made him feel.

Nail sat up, choosing to pull his eyes away from his dead, younger kin, and scanned his surroundings. Off to the side, Bardock and Vegeta both laid on the ground. Vegeta was pale, a puddle of his own blood having formed beneath him. Bardock was unmoving, the only sign he was alive being the shallow breaths his unconscious form took in.

Nail continued to scan around and he eventually saw a new sight. It was a Namekian that he assuredly did not recognize. This new Namekian was standing there, watching as some form of conflict tore asunder what was left of the Namekian's hard work. Years upon years of recovering from the cataclysm: all gone.

Nail stood and walked over to stand next to this new Namekian, joining him in watching the fight below. From their high perch, the two of them observed that Saiyan from before, Goku or some such name, fighting with all his might against that Frieza monster.

Nail turned to Piccolo and spoke briefly. "We are all that is left...and we are unable to do any more than stand by and watch. Infuriating, is it not?"

Piccolo grunted, barely acknowledging Nail's existence. Nail shook his head. "And you are much, much stronger than I. And yet you too are left to stand aside. Left in the same position as I am. Forced to watch as our home is ruined by the cruelty of that creature..."

Piccolo did not share Nail's intense love of the Planet Namek. Frankly, the loss of this planet would not register much on Piccolo's mind, should it happen. But he did agree with Nail's sentiment that being forced to the sidelines was utterly frustrating. Piccolo tried once more to summon forth his power, but he hit that similar road block. Piccolo snarled in frustration at all of this.

However, before tempers could fully erupt, the others returned. Krillin, Raditz, Gohan, Gine, Chi-Chi, and Bulma all came flying up to the top of the rocky spire and hit the ground running. Krillin was the only one to stop and notice that Nail was back on his feet. "Nail! Good to see you up, man!"

Nail managed a small smile, but then he noticed the brutal display behind Krillin. The ship that they had been using as a base was nothing more than a scorched heap. Nail's face went tight. "That ship...the...the villagers from Elder Tsuno's village..."

Krillin's smile faded, his face suddenly looking quite heavy. The monk opened his mouth to speak, but then he shook his head and let his gaze hit the floor. Nail's world began to spiral as he stared off at that burnt ship. Slowly, it fell on him what this all meant. It meant that, other than that strange new Namekian, Nail was the only member of his race left alive.

Meanwhile, as Nail stood there looking as if a feather could knock him over, Gine was already hard at work. She reached over and took the remaining bag of medical supplies from Chi-Chi, ripping it open and getting to work on her first patient: Bardock.

Gine tried to lift her damaged arm, but the crisp crackling of her own skin instantly told her that that was a bad idea. Instead, her attention snapped over to Bulma and Chi-Chi. "Hey! I need you two to get it together! We don't have much time left!"

Gine motioned with her head. "Bulma! Start checking on Vegeta! Chi-Chi! Help me with Bardock!"

Both women complied and got to work. Bulma grabbed a bag of blood and looked at it. "W-wait a minute...how do we know this is the right type of blood?"

Gine didn't look up, instead grabbing a bag of her own and pulling the cap off with her teeth. "Frieza Force plasma bags don't have a type. They're reactive. Plug it in to the person who needs it and they blood is formulated to instantly match types."

Bulma gasped. "That's...that's so cool! We could use this kinda thing on Earth. Capsule Corp could market it and-"

Gine snapped her fingers. " _Bulma! Focus!_ "

Bulma flinched. "R-Right!"

Gine stuck the plasma bag into Bardock's arm and allowed it to flood in. "Chi-Chi! We need to get Bardock on his feet. Grab that syringe!"

Chi-Chi nodded. She reached into the bag and grabbed a rather large, yellow booster syringe. "Wh-What is this?"

Gine spoke bluntly. "Adrenaline needle. Take the cap off and jam it into Bardock's heart."

Chi-Chi, Gohan, and Krillin's eyes widened and they all screamed in unison. "HIS HEART?!"

Raditz shuddered. "M-Mother...are you sure-"

Gine shook her head, clearly quite impatient with all of this. "Bulma! Get over here and do it!"

Bulma immediately ran over, pulling the syringe from Chi-Chi's hand. "And... you're sure you want me to do this Gine? It's going to hurt him..."

Gine snapped back. "I'd rather him be awake and in pain than lying there dying. Do it!"

Bulma nodded. "Right."

The scientist took a deep breath. She raised the syringe above her head and then she plunged it into Bardock's chest, through the bone and right into his heart. She pressed the button and waited a moment...and then Bardock woke up screaming in rabid pain. " _ **AAAAAAGHHHHHHH!**_ "

The older Saiyan slammed his fist onto the ground over and over and over. " _Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!_ "

He reached over and grabbed Bulma by the collar of her vest. " _What the hell is wrong with you?! Agggghhh!_ "

Gine was quick to act. She reached over and forced Bardock to let Bulma go. And then, after pulling the syringe from Bardock's chest, she pulled her husband into a tight hug with her remaining, good arm. Bardock's voice was shaky, but he still regarded her. "G-Gine..."

For just a moment, Gine's focused façade cracked. She began to shake in Bardock's arm. " _I...I...I was...so...I was so..._ "

A small sob escaped Gine's throat. "I thought that...I don't want us to die apart. _N-Not again..._ "

Gine glanced up at Bardock. "Please. I...when Frieza killed us last time, I..."

Gine closed her eyes and gripped Bardock's hand with her remaining good hand. "I just want to be able to grip your hand tight. When our time truly comes and things really are at an end...I just want to be able to hold your hand tight."

Bardock brushed Gine's hair out of her face. He sighed. "I'm sorry that I worried you so badly..."

And then, his gaze fell upon Gine's charred arm. "H-Holy shit! Hey, get over here and patch this up guys! What the hell are you standing around for?!"

Bulma seemed to ignore this, instead grabbing the last plasma bag and walking off to the side. Chi-Chi, however, nodded in agreement. She grabbed a bottle of disinfectant and rushed over, but Gine quickly refused this. "No! Not yet! We can't afford to waste medical supplies! We still have Vegeta to patch up!"

Chi-Chi tried to argue. "But Gine! If we don't do something about your arm, you might lose it!"

Gohan agreed. "Mom is right, Grandma! We have to-"

Gine cut Gohan off. "I appreciate that you care, I really do. But, losing this arm won't kill me! Vegeta is dying as we speak! We need to-"

" _GET THE HELL OFF OF ME!_ "

Everyone's attention shifted over to where Vegeta was still lying. Bulma and Krillin were both over there, trying their damnedest to get the Prince to hold still long enough to receive blood. But, Vegeta was as belligerent as always. Raditz commented. "He's probably loopy from blood loss..."

Vegeta shouted. "I refuse! I won't have my life saved by trash like you! Get the hell off of me at once!"

Bulma and Krillin both looked annoyed. In spite of everything, Vegeta was still Vegeta. And, it was quickly dawning on the both of them that they still weren't all that fond of the Prince of Saiyans. As Vegeta continued to struggle, though, Gine stood up. She held her bum arm and walked up to Vegeta...and the two of them glared at each other. Vegeta's was full of confusion and hate, but Gine's was full of mostly pity. The shared a silent staredown, and then Gine spoke in a gentle, motherly voice. "Vegeta...I understand how you feel. I think I understand how it all works up there in your head..."

Gine knelt down and took the plasma bag from Bulma. She stared into Vegeta's eyes, holding the Prince's attention long enough that she was able to inject the bag into his arm. "...but we aren't just going to sit back and let you die, okay? So, you can continue to despise us, but let us at least treat you."

Vegeta grinded his teeth together. But, as he and Gine continued to glare at each other, the Prince eventually relented. Gine nodded. "Bulma, I gave him the blood. Bandage up that wound, okay?"

Bulma nodded. "Y-yes ma'am."

She reached down and lifted Vegeta's armor. As Bulma, with the help of Krillin, started to dress Vegeta's wound, Gine turned and walked over to her daughter-in-law. "Okay...you can bandage my arm up now, if you want to, Chi-Chi..."

Chi-Chi and Gohan immediately got to doing that, swarming Gine and attempting to save her damaged limb. As they did this, Bardock shakily got to his feet. The older Saiyan hobbled over to the ledge and joined Piccolo, Nail, and Raditz in watching Goku fight with Frieza below.

 _On the battlefield..._

Goku and Frieza's war continued. However, efforts were not much better for Goku than before. The Saiyan from Earth was putting his all into every attack, but two factors were quickly working against him. First, his own fatigue was rapidly building. The Kaioken Times Twenty was not a technique he could properly utilize yet and his body was feeling the burn. Goku's muscle screamed with every movement, furious with their foolish master for using this technique with them in the first place.

Secondarily, however more importantly, Frieza's power was still on the rise. The Emperor was not having this ape take the lead on him. It pained Frieza to give this much meter to his hated foe, but he unleashed a full 70 percent of his maximum power! Frieza's power level (84,000,000) was still lesser than Goku's current power. But, unlike Goku, Frieza's power would not fade anytime soon. The mockery that Frieza displayed normally was put on the backburner. He was inwardly stunned as how much power this Saiyan was producing. He hated it. He wouldn't have this. This Saiyan would not draw out his maximum power!

Frieza snarled. "I will ensure that your entire race disappears this time around!"

Frieza reared his fist back and tossed a punch at Goku. Goku met it with a punch that sent Frieza recoiling ever-so-slightly backwards. Goku was breathing heavy. "D-damn...fading fast...gotta end this now..."

Frieza came shooting forward again. He and Goku exchanged blows, punches and kicks flying forth like they were free. But, Goku managed to squeak just ahead and seize the advantage. He slammed his knee into Frieza's gut and then grabbed the Emperor by the head, flinging him sky-high. Goku immediately pulled his hands to his sides and began to charge his attack. " _ **KA! ME! HA! ME!**_ "

Frieza sneered as he stopped mid-air. He thrust his hand forward and fired his own attack. " _ **DEATH CANNON!**_ "

Goku fired back. " _ **HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!**_ "

The two blasts collided and Frieza was stunned. There was a small struggle, but then a noticeable push-back sent both attacks slowly crawling towards Frieza. The Emperor panicked, knowing that taking both of those blasts at the same time would not spell good tidings for him. Frieza didn't want to, but his body panicked. Against the Emperor's will, 80 percent of his power (96,000,000) came rushing forth. Frieza pumped some of this power into his own attack and both beams exploded.

The force of the explosion sent Goku flying back. The Saiyan from Earth went tumbling and crashed into the ground hard. And, in that instant, his Kaioken Times Twenty slipped away. Goku was lying on the ground, powerless and exhausted.

Up in the air, Frieza collected himself. The Emperor stared daggers at Goku on the ground, and then his attention shifted over to his own hand. Frieza's entire hand and forearm was burnt. The palm of his hand, in particular, being covered in intense burns and small gashes.

Frieza was quivering with rage. In one instant, that Saiyan monkey had managed to both scare Frieza into unleashing more of his power and damage the Emperor to boot. Frieza clenched his fist tight, blood flowing from his hand and pittering onto the ground below, and then he began to descend towards his hated foe to bring this matter to an end.

Goku stared up at Frieza, watching as the Emperor descended, and then realized that he only had one option left.

 _On the sidelines..._

Everyone started to panic again as they observed the situation at hand. Goku had fallen, his power faded and his stamina gone. With the strongest among them having bottomed out on power, and Frieza still having a lot left in his proverbial tank, what could they possibly do now?

Bardock quickly looked around. He looked back and saw Bulma, Chi-Chi, Krillin, and Gohan all panicking. He looked over to Nail and Piccolo. Piccolo was still fruitlessly trying to summon more power and Nail was standing there, morose and despondent. Gine was severely injured. Raditz was injured and still quite weak in comparison to Frieza. Not that Bardock could talk. He looked at himself and he looked over to Vegeta. Neither of them was fully healed, but the bit of recovery that they had been allowed made for a small zenkai boost. If his calculations were correct, Bardock was at 3 million and Vegeta was at roughly 3.5 million. Not that any of that helped, even with their current power levels, they were both still pretty beat up and not even close to Frieza's current power.

Bardock gripped his head tight and began to mumble to himself. " _Gotta think of something. Gotta think of something. Something. Something. Anything..._ "

The older Saiyan gripped his fists. " _We've come too far for things to just end like this..._ "

As everyone panicked and the first signs of bickering began to flare up, however, Nail suddenly spoke up. "This feeling..."

All attention turned to the Namekian warrior. Nail's eyes were closed, the expression on his face one of complete calm. "This feeling is so... _peaceful_..."

Nail's antennae curved upward. "... _so warm_..."

Everyone fell silent as they tried to decipher just what the hell Nail was talking about. Everyone except for Gine and Vegeta. The Saiyan Mother and the Prince both lied on the ground, both of them recognizing the feeling that Nail was speaking of. Gine glanced up into the green sky of Namek and saw, to her surprise, small glimmers of energy falling from the atmosphere. This energy seemed to bathe all of Namek in that warm, peaceful feeling.

Vegeta stared as well, clenching his fist. "I would recognize this feeling anywhere...I still recall it slamming right into my face..."

 _On the battlefield..._

Frieza was visibly furious as he touched down on the ground. He glared over towards Goku and seethed at what he saw: that Saiyan was just standing there, his hands raised high above his head. Frieza was practically foaming at the mouth. "Do you dare to presume that _mercy_ is an option at this point?! No, no, monkey, you have no option to surrender anymore!"

Goku didn't respond. He focused on his plan instead. His arms quivered as he held them above his head, but he had to hold them firm. This was their last chance to defeat Frieza. The last tool in his arsenal.

Annoyed, Frieza, jabbed his finger towards Goku. The wind pressure from the finger jab shot forward and slammed into Goku's chest. Goku buckled, but he did not fall. He couldn't let himself fall. And this only made Frieza's mood that much worse.

Goku was shaking, but he stood firm. Mentally, the Saiyan from Earth called out not just to Planet Namek, but to every planet in the Namekian solar system. "All of the plants...and the animals...and the seas...and the skies...and even the stars..."

Goku sounded desperate. "Please...I need you to lend me your energy! I need your power! Otherwise...Frieza will destroy everything!"

Goku looked up and he flinched at the sight of Frieza right there. The Emperor's nose was barely an inch away from Goku's. The Saiyan and the Emperor stared at one another for the longest second of Goku's life...and then Frieza slapped him in the face!

The all-out assault broke out then and there. Frieza pummeled Goku, ragdolling the Saiyan with all of his strength, but making sure not to actually kill Goku. He would see this miserable monkey begging for mercy at his feet even if it took the rest of both of their lives!

Frieza's beating was merciless. And the Emperor was so blinded by his own rage...that he failed to notice the ever-growing Spirit Bomb that pulsated right above him!

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	38. Chapter 38: Golden Dawn

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Chapter 8. Small retcon. Bardock doesn't use "Final Riot Javelin" he just uses "Riot Javelin". Sorry for the mistake. I'll try to avoid them in the future. :3_

 **Chapter 38: Golden Dawn**

 _On the battlefield..._

Goku gasped in pain as Frieza slammed his fist into the Saiyan's chest. Goku went sliding back and Frieza hit him again. The Emperor was getting angry with his foe, not understanding what the Saiyan was hoping to achieve. "Why won't you put your arms down?!"

Frieza slammed his fist into Goku's face. "I demand that you put your arms down right now!"

Frieza kicked Goku hard in the ribs and the Saiyan gurgled up a bit of blood. He couldn't let his arms fall, no matter what! This was their last chance at winning this. If Goku dropped his arms and the Spirit Bomb failed, then Frieza would kill them all.

Frieza continued his assault, battering Goku senseless. This beating was brutal, but it did provide one benefit to Goku. In his boiling rage, Frieza was too livid to look up. And, therefore, the Emperor did no notice as the Spirit Bomb swelled larger and larger right over his head.

 _On the sidelines..._

The sickening crunch of Frieza's fists slamming into Goku was perfectly audible even on the distant sidelines. Each punch and the scream that followed made everyone flinch. It was uncomfortable for everyone who was forced to sit on the sidelines and watch. But...what could they do? None of them were powerful enough to step up to Frieza and most of them were still severely injured.

Gine couldn't feel her arm anymore, Vegeta was grievously injured, and every bone and muscle in Bardock's body was strained or cracked or broken. Piccolo had a vein bulging on his head as he tried to force his power out. It wouldn't be enough to fight Frieza, but he could at least provide a distraction. But, despite his best efforts, the Namekian still couldn't unleash his full power.

No one was sure what to do. Goku wouldn't last this entire beating. Not long enough to charge the Spirit Bomb, not long enough to throw it.

And then, Raditz took a step forward.

The eldest child of Bardock and Gine looked down at his busted hand and then out to the sight of Frieza beating Goku senseless and he shook his head. Gine glanced over to her son and held up her hand. "R-Raditz...what are you thinking Raditz?"

Raditz sighed. He turned to Gine and spoke with a nervous waver in his voice. "Honestly...I'm thinking I might be headed straight to Hell again..."

Bardock grunted. "Raditz..."

Raditz put on an uneasy smile. "B-But..."

The older brother gripped his fist. "Even if he's stronger than me...and even if Frieza is stronger than him...Kakarot is still my little brother. So, I can't just sit on the sidelines and watch him get beaten like this. I might die, but..."

Raditz took a deep breath and sighed. "...but I guess that's my job as the older brother."

And then Raditz roared. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TEN!_ "

With a burst of power, Raditz took off. He went flying directly towards the action with everyone else watching on.

 _On the battlefield..._

Frieza snarled, slamming Goku to the ground with his tail. The Emperor glowered over the Saiyan with an intense sneer. "Drop. Your. Arms. _Now_!"

Goku glared up Frieza, not dropping his arms. He did not bother to respond to Frieza in the slightest. Goku shakily got back to his feet and glared at the Tyrant. Frieza was frothing. He jabbed his finger towards Goku and shot a beam through the Saiyan's knee. "I said drop them!"

Goku was knelt on the ground. He had to hold out to the last. He had to make this attack work. Frieza marched forward and lifted his leg, pressing his foot on top of Goku's head. The Emperor began to push down, growling as he did. He was going to make this Saiyan obey him. He would obey. Frieza would make him.

Frieza squeezed Goku's head with his toes. " _You are behaving so irritatingly..._ "

The Emperor began to raise his gaze upward. "What are you even-"

Before Frieza could look up, however, a swift kick from the side smashed into his cheek. The Emperor went tumbling and slid across the ground. Shakily, Goku looked up towards his savior. Relief and worry both instantly crossed the Saiyan from Earth's face. "R-Raditz?"

Raditz chuckled nervously. He reached down and grabbed the wrist guard that was crushed around his broken hand, breaking it off with a grunt. "Hey Kakarot..."

Goku was confused. "Wh-What are you doing?! You aren't strong enough to fight him!"

Raditz shrugged. "You let me worry about that. Just focus on your thing, okay? I'm your big brother! I got this!"

Instantly, Frieza came rocketing across the field and knocked Raditz across the face with a devastating right hook. Raditz was knocked to the ground and laid there, still. Goku gasped in horror and Frieza chuckled, vile and mocking. "I'm sorry. What exactly do you plan to do, Raditz?"

Goku shouted. "L-Leave him alone, Frieza!"

Frieza turned to Goku with an angry glare. But then, that glare became a malicious smirk. "Make me. Put your arms down and make me, monkey."

And then, with a skip in his step, Frieza marched up to Raditz. He used his tail like a whip and cracked it against Raditz's side, shattering the armor and snapping Raditz's ribs. Raditz clutched his side and Frieza responded with a bell-ringing right hook to the face. Frieza chuckled. "You're the big brother, are you? Tell me, what exactly is being the 'big brother' supposed to accomplish?"

Raditz smirked at Frieza. He opened his mouth and coughed up a several teeth and a small puddle of blood. "Y-You're just jealous...probably the first time you've seen a big brother care about his little brother, huh?"

Raditz's smile faded and he delivered another heaving blow to Raditz. "Glutton for punishment, aren't you?"

Woozy and struggling to stay conscious, Raditz snapped into a loose fighting stance. He put up his fists and stared right at Frieza. "I... I could do this all day..."

Frieza nodded and gripped his fists tight. " _We shall see._ "

 _Back on the sidelines..._

With a groan and a lot of struggling, Bardock shakily got back to his feet. The older Saiyan was clearly in no condition to fight, but he didn't care in the least. Bardock flashed back to his and Chi-Chi's argument on the ship. He flashed back to what she said, her scolding about letting offspring be hurt for the sake of achieving the greater good. And he agreed with her.

Bardock limped forward, towards the edge of the platform they were all standing on. He couldn't just sit back and let Frieza beat his boys like that.

Bardock lurched forward, ready to leap into the fray, but then he was stopped by a hand wrapping around his wrist. Bardock turned and was shocked to see Gine on her feet as well. The two of them stared at one another. Bardock quickly broke the silence with a shout. "Gine! What the hell are you doing?! I have to get down there!"

Gine started. "Bardock-"

Bardock interrupted. "'Bardock' nothing! I can't just stand around, Gine! I gave up my life 25 years ago to make sure that the two of them got to live, Gine! I can't just stand by and let them die now!"

Gine snapped. "WE gave up our lives!"

Bardock flinched. Gine squeezed his hand and lowered her head. "We gave up our lives so they could live Bardock. You and me..."

And then she glared right into her husband's eyes. "And we'll do it again if we have to!"

A confident smirk spread across Gine's face. "Right?"

Bardock was slightly taken aback, but then he returned the smirk. "You're damn right!"

The two of them squeezed each other's hands, and then Gine leapt up to kiss her husband on the lips. And then, finally, the two of them powered up!

" _ **KAIOKEN TIMES THREE!**_ "

" _ **KAIOKEN TIMES TWENTY!**_ "

Gine turned, her power surging. "I hope we live. I really wanna retire to Earth together~"

Bardock chuckled. "We'll live! _Probably_..."

And then, the two of them took off and rushed to the battlefield.

 _On the battlefield..._

It had only been a few minutes, but Raditz was already on his last legs. The elder brother was giving it his best against Frieza, but his best was nowhere near good enough. He had already been beaten out of his Kaioken, and now he was at Frieza's mercy.

The Emperor seemed bored. He slammed his fist into Raditz's chest and Raditz instantly crumpled back. But, before he could fall to the ground, Frieza caught him by the hair. Raditz groaned, shakily pulling up his arms to block and Frieza chuckled. "Poor, poor Raditz..."

Frieza held up his hand, charging a blast. "I'll make it quick~"

Frieza's hand was glowing with death and Raditz knew it. He wouldn't survive this. The elder brother limping shifted his gaze over to his younger sibling and they shared a prolonged stare. Goku's hands trembled. He couldn't just watch this happen. Quickly, Goku prepared to drop the incomplete Spirit Bomb onto Frieza, hoping that the shock would throw the Tyrant off-guard long enough for Goku to land a solid hit.

But, before Goku could do that, two more saviors stepped in. Gine and Bardock both fell from the sky, each of them on a mission. Bardock slid under Frieza and slammed an energy-coated fist into the monster's gut. Gine, meanwhile, grabbed her beaten elder son and dragged him to safety.

Frieza snarled, taking the blast in his extended palm and trying to slam it down onto Bardock, but Bardock quickly caught it. Frieza's strength was massive, much larger than Bardock's. But, the elder Saiyan was at least one hundred times more stubborn. With a roar, he held his ground, preventing Frieza from striking him down.

This show of strength lasted long enough for Gine to make her return. Sliding in from the side, she took Frieza's feet out from under him, allowing Bardock some relief and giving her husband enough leeway to uppercut Frieza into the air. Gine stood and she and Bardock each tossed a blast at the monster, but both attacks harmlessly smashed into Frieza's skin and dissipated. The Emperor glared down at each of these two new intruders and zipped back towards the ground as quickly as he could. He instantly turned his attention to Bardock and grabbed his hated enemy by the chest piece. " _Why?! Why are you my one problem that just refuses to die?! How many times do I have to kill you before you stay dead?!_ "

Frieza slammed his fist into Bardock's face. " _You're like a cockroach!_ "

Gine leapt at Frieza from behind, her fist raised. "Let him go!"

Without looking, Frieza wrapped his tail around Gine's fist and face, snapping it tight around both and keeping Gine held high in the air. "All of these other fools are nothing! I could kill any of them at once with only half interest! I focus on killing you _three times_ and keep returning! What must I do to end you?!"

Gine dangled there as Frieza continued to beat her husband. Each punch took a toll more and more as Frieza landed them. Bardock was already plenty injured as it was, he couldn't take much more of this sort of punishment. Gine had to think of something to get loose.

She tried to lift her other arm, but that wasn't working at all. It was totally dead. Gine struggled in Frieza's grip. She wiggled around fruitlessly and quickly became frustrated. As Bardock's beating continued and Gine got angrier, she glared at Frieza. And then, Gine realized that she had one strategy left to try.

Frieza was venting his frustration. With each vicious punch, Bardock's face got bloodier and Frieza got more satisfied. Maybe, this time, the stubborn monkey would stay dead. Frieza gripped his fist tight and surrounded it with energy. He reared back to slam it into Bardock's face, but then was overcome with the most intense pain.

Frieza shrieked and turned, livid to find Gine latched down on his tail with her teeth. Gine bit deeper and deeper, her teeth sinking into Frieza's flesh until she drew blood. Gine glared at Frieza, the Tyrant's blood running out of her mouth. Frieza glared back.

And then, Frieza dropped Bardock and instantly began to beat the hell out of Gine.

 _Back on the sidelines..._

Standing at the edge of the peak, Gohan was trembling as he watched Frieza beat on Bardock and Gine. The boy trembled with utter fury as the wicked Tyrant beat both of his grandparents, tossing them around like playthings.

As Gohan stood there and watched, his guilt weighed heavy on his shoulders. He had heard both of them, his Grandpa Bardock and Grandma Gine, resign themselves to die and... he just couldn't accept that. Gohan was ready to explode, but then he felt a steady hand clap down onto his shoulder. The boy turned and was surprised to see Krillin standing there. The monk nodded his head. "Ready for one last ride, partner?"

Gohan smiled and nodded. "Yeah! Let's do it!"

The two of them shared a fist bump, and then they both took off. Chi-Chi's eyes widened as she watched her son fly towards the danger. "Gohan!"

Chi-Chi's first instinct was to call for her son to return. But then, as she stepped forward and saw how Frieza had pummeled most of her family, Chi-Chi made a split-second, foolhardy decision. "D-Damn it..."

Chi-Chi summoned what little power she had. "Wait for me!"

As even Goku's wife leapt into the fray, Piccolo stood there. The feeling of his uselessness weighing heavily on his mind. But the more upset he became and the more negative his mindset, the less power Piccolo seemed able to pull. Piccolo squeezed his eyes shut and continued to try and force his power loose. "Son of a bitch..."

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Frieza stomped his foot down onto Gine's chest. In the short time since she had bitten him, Frieza had made her existence a complete misery. Every part of her frail body ached from the severe beating Frieza had rewarded her for her efforts at injuring him. Gine's face was bleeding and bruised and swelled. Her every twitch sending waves of pain through her body.

Frieza pointed his finger directly at the center of her forehead. "You scum! How dare-"

Coming screaming into the fray, Gohan wasted no time in kicking the wicked Emperor directly in the face. Frieza went sliding again, but this time he did not fall into a tumble. At the moment, Frieza was almost expecting intruders to come in and attack him from the side. He glared over at yet another problem he had failed to properly exterminate. "Eventually, you insects will run out of surprise attacks!"

At Frieza lunged at Gohan, however, he did finally notice a sneak attack coming from the side. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, Frieza saw the briefest flash of golden yellow and leapt into the air. He snarled as a Destructo-Disc sailed under him.

Frieza jerked his attention over to Krillin, practically glaring a hole through the human. Krillin flinched a cursed himself. "Dammit..."

Frieza seethed at Krillin, turning to face the human. And then, Gohan came flying in from the side. He had a kick prepared and was ready to pummel into Frieza again, but the Emperor finally seemed to be learning from his mistakes. He grabbed Gohan by the foot and whipped the boy into the air. He spun him around and then tossed him at Krillin with enough force to make a sonic boom. Krillin prepared to catch Gohan, but then the boy shouted. "Krillin! Dodge!"

Krillin was shocked, but he complied. He flew out of the way and allowed Gohan to fly past him, but was immediately set upon by Frieza.

Krillin was terrified as Frieza began to attack him. He dodged the first couple of hits, but then two shattering blows managed to strike him. Each devastating punch blitzed Krillin and shook him to his very core. He doubled over in pain and Frieza delivered a hefty punch to the top of his head, sending the monk crashing to the ground. Frieza charged an attack, screaming in rage. "DEATH WAVE!"

The Emperor launched his attack at the helpless Krillin. It looked like it was going to hit, but it was intercepted by an energy attack from behind. Frieza turned and was met by a slamming kick to the stomach from Gohan. The boy screamed in rage and began to pummel his foe, landing punch after punch into Frieza's stomach.

He went for a final strike to send Frieza to the ground, but the Emperor quickly regained focus and grabbed Gohan's fist at the last second. Gohan flinched and Frieza responded with a clubbing punch to the side of the head. Gohan cried out in pain and then Frieza flipped in the air, whipping his tail into the boy's side and sending him down to the ground next to Krillin.

Gohan landed hard on his shoulder, dislocating it and breaking the shoulder plate on his armor. He and Krillin both shakily pushed themselves up, but then Frieza landed right on top of them. Without any preamble, bravado, or mockery, Frieza aimed his index and middle fingers as Gohan and Krillin and screamed in a furious rage. " _DOUBLE DEATH BEAM!_ "

But just before he could fire the attack, something else got in Frieza's way. With a fearful war cry, Chi-Chi dropped from the sky. Physically, she was nothing to Frieza. But that didn't mean she couldn't provide support. Chi-Chi ripped her shawl from around her neck and stretched it between her hands. And then, landing on Frieza's shoulders and straddling the Emperor, Chi-Chi wrapped her brown scarf over the monster's eyes. Frieza screamed in frustration, stumbling back and misfiring his attack.

Gohan and Krillin both stared in shock. Chi-Chi snarled at Frieza from her position on his shoulders. "I don't care who you think you are! I won't just let you kill my-"

Frieza reached up, grabbing a handful of Chi-Chi's hair. And then, effortlessly, the Emperor ripped Chi-Chi from his shoulders and slammed her hard onto the ground. Chi-Chi bounced up, blood erupting from her mouth and her prim and proper hair bun exploding into a sea of black hair. Chi-Chi tumbled forward and landed right next to Krillin and Gohan, physically wrecked and unable to move.

Frieza snarled and aimed his hand at Krillin, Gohan, and Chi-Chi. He was ready to blast them all to Hell, but then three more familiar intruders came rushing in. Raditz and Bardock both rushed Frieza from either side, grabbing his arms and jerking them to the side with all of their strength. Bardock shouted over to Krillin. " _Throw a goddamned Destructo-Disc!_ "

Krillin nodded and stumbled to his feet. He summoned the disc, charging it up as Gine ran up behind him to grab Gohan and Chi-Chi. Krillin pulled his arm back and threw the Destructo-Disc at full force. "Take this, you bastard!"

Frieza snarled. He wasn't going to be hit by that attack. Not again. Using his current strength, Frieza effortlessly pulled Raditz and Bardock off of their feet and flung them towards the Disc. Krillin gasped in horror and diverted its course in a panic. The Destructo-Disc rose up, but Bardock and Raditz collided right into Krillin. All three of them landed in a heap and Frieza summoned a mass of energy in his hand. He threw his attack at all three of them and scorched them all at once. Krillin, Raditz, and Bardock flew into the air and then crashed back to the ground.

Frieza sneered at the three of them, but then he saw Gine, Gohan, and Chi-Chi fleeing out of the corner of his eye.

Gine rushed away. She didn't look back, because that would make her stop. She blistered through the air as fast as she could, with Gohan held tight in her good hand and Chi-Chi tossed over her opposite shoulder. She had to deposit these two somewhere safe, and then-

In a flash, Frieza appeared right in front of Gine. Feeling in control again, the Emperor had a vile smile across his face. "And where do we think we're going?"

Gine flinched in fear, but she was quick to react. Dropping Gohan, Gine summoned a blast in her free hand to fire at Frieza. But the Emperor was unfazed. Gine shouted. "Mother's Blast!"

Frieza barely regarded the attack, slapping it away with almost no effort. Gine was shocked. Frieza smiled and cracked his tail into her chest, sending both her and Chi-Chi flying into Gohan. The three of them crashed onto the ground and tumbled across the Namekian plains, eventually sliding into a stop.

Frieza landed slightly away, holding up his hand and charging yet another deadly attack. "Now you die!"

Off to the side, Goku's pupils shrank. The Spirit Bomb didn't matter anymore, his wife and son and mother all needed him. Goku started to lunge forward, ready to intervene.

 _Meanwhile, happening concurrently on the sidelines..._

Watching on as Gohan, Krillin, and Gohan's mother, of all people, fought against Frieza, Piccolo's patience had finally worn. Playing it smart and trying to pull out his full power had soured on him and, now, the Namekian warrior had decided that enough was enough.

Power or no power, he could not just stand aside and let Gohan face that monster alone. Piccolo snarled and sighed in frustration. And then, he took a step forward. It was time to join the fight.

But, as Piccolo prepared, a strong grip came out and grabbed him by the wrist. Instantly angered, Piccolo turned to face this interloper and found himself staring right at Nail. The two Namekians maintained a glare at one another, with Bulma nervously observing in the background, until Piccolo finally spoke. "And just what the hell do you think you're doing?!"

Nail held Piccolo firm. Piccolo bared his fangs and jerked his hand out of Nail's grip. Nail maintained his silent glare, even as Piccolo got into his face. "What?! Are you suggesting that I just cower here when I could be down there fighting that bastard? Am I meant to be a coward that just lays there asleep when he could be helping?! Cuz that seems more like your thing!"

Nail took a deep breath, closing his eyes and calmly sighing at Piccolo's biting words. "That stings, brother. However, I cannot say I disagree with your summation..."

Piccolo quickly turned and started to walk away. "Good. Then stay the hell out of my way! I have a job to go do!"

Once again, Nail reached out and stopped Piccolo. Piccolo turned and glared, looking like he was about to rip Nail's arm off. However, this time Nail spoke. "It would be irresponsible to just allow you to rush head first into everything that is happening down there. You and I are the last two Namekians left alive. And... while I have failed in all of my other duties as Namek's defender..."

Nail took a solemn glance at Dende's corpse. Then, he glared at Piccolo. "...I can't still work to prevent the total extinction of the Namekian race. You were brought back to life in order to restore the Earth's Dragon Balls. If you die, then they go with you and the only method of restoring the Namekian populace goes up in smoke. I cannot allow you to rush into a situation where your demise is certain."

Piccolo responded with venom. "Who gives a shit about the Namekian race?!"

Nail was taken aback. Piccolo continued. "I know nothing of this planet. I don't care to know anything of this planet. I have two goals in my life: protect Gohan and defeat Goku. Everything else is secondary at best, or totally irrelevant at the norm."

Nail was speechless at Piccolo's careless attitude. He glanced into the Namekian's eyes and saw a firm look of determination. Piccolo was quite serious in everything he had just said. Nail nodded. "I see..."

He shook his head. "To each their own opinion, I suppose..."

Piccolo tried to jerk his hand away, but Nail held firm. Piccolo sneered. "You're starting to piss me off! Let me go so I can go help Gohan!"

Nail spoke again. "I cannot change your mind. But you cannot change mine. I will not just allow you to kill the only chance at saving our kin."

Piccolo summoned a blast in his hand. "If you won't let me go, then I-"

Nail interrupted. "I propose a compromise that will satisfy us both."

Piccolo flinched, holding the blast firm in his hand. Nail grimly looked into Piccolo's eyes. "Your summation before was correct. I am a failure. And... the shame of my failures weighs to heavy on my shoulders to ever feel relief again. Even if they are returned to life, I cannot bring myself to face my brothers. I have betrayed their trust and faith..."

Nail let go of Piccolo's wrist, but then he grasped his fellow Namekian's hand into a firm handshake grip. "...but I can still provide support in my own way. I can compile my power, for what it is worth, onto yours and give you a fighting chance against that Frieza monster. Together, brother, we might be able to defeat his evil and gain decisive revenge for the terror he has brought to Planet Namek."

Piccolo flinched, clearly confused. "What...?"

Nail responded. "You appear to have already done this process once. It will be much of the same. You and I will merge, with you as the functioning benefactor, and you will benefit from the bonus well of power that I add to your own. You will gain all of my wisdom and skill as a warrior and you will increase in power exponentially. Perhaps not enough to match Frieza, but more than likely enough to at least stand a chance."

Piccolo sneered. He didn't want to borrow the power from someone else. He had more than enough to stand up to Frieza all on his own at the moment. It was just being blocked by the part of himself that he had recently reclaimed. However...desperate times called for desperate measures. Piccolo squeezed Nail's hand and growled under his breath. "I'm not accepting this because I want it. I'm excepting it because I need to be able to fight. If, for any reason, I start not liking this, I'll boot your ass out. Understood?"

Nail smiled. "Of course. So, is that a yes?"

Piccolo nodded. "Yes."

Nail sighed with relief. "Excellent choice. Now then-"

From behind, a shrill voice called out. "Wait!"

Piccolo and Nail both turned their attention to the source of the voice: Bulma. Nail looked down at the human woman and put on a friendly smile. Bulma stared at Nail with sadness in her eyes. "Nail! Don't do this! We'll find another way to win! No one blames you for any of this! This is all Frieza's fault! You don't have to give yourself up like-"

Nail held up his hand to silence her. "Your name is Bulma, yes?"

Bulma nodded. Nail sighed and turned his gaze away from her. At that moment, his voice just sounded solemn. "The greater good. We have discussed that before, right?"

Bulma nodded again. "Y-yes, but-"

Nail spoke again. "Everything, at the end of the day, should be for the greater good. So, that is all this decision is: I am serving the greater good. Working to save all of my kin and ensuring that they can live."

Bulma fell silent, small tears welling in her eyes. Nail sounded resigned, but in a positive way. "I do have a request though. If...no, _when_ you succeed in ending Frieza's tyranny and you return Dende to life...tell him to grow into a fine Namekian."

Nail then stared Piccolo square in the eyes. "I trust you to use my power well, brother."

And then, suddenly glowing with a shining light, Nail let loose a mighty roar and began to fuse with Piccolo.

 _Within Piccolo's subconscious..._

A sudden, blinding surge of energy flash within Piccolo's mind. Deep within the dark, a familiar sinister force wickedly smiled. "The fool! He has let his guard down! Now is my chance!"

The dark wisp of King Piccolo slowly took form and walked towards the light. "Yes! Yes! This is where I take control! The power is mi-"

A hand shot out from the light and grabbed King Piccolo by the face. From the shining, power aura, Nail's corporeal form stepped. "So... you are the issue..."

Nail squeezed the Demon King's face. "Disgusting cur! Your petty behavior is the cause of much spilt Namekian blood!"

Nail glared down at King Piccolo and sneered. "You seem to believe that you are above all of this. That you may idly stand by with no consequence, but that is wrong. You will contribute your power! Whether by choice... _ **OR BY FORCE!**_ "

Nail squeezed King Piccolo's face tight and Piccolo's full power burst forth, engulfing his entire subconscious and spreading out to the rest of his body.

 _On the battlefield..._

Goku was ready to abandon the Spirit Bomb. Gine, Gohan, and Chi-Chi all sat there, staring death in the face. Frieza seemed satisfied as he launched his attack towards the three of them. Nobody on the battlefield was quick enough to save their lives.

But then, crashing down, a new fighter joined the battle.

Frieza flinched back as the smoke cleared, and then his anger flared up again. This time, standing between his prey and their deaths, was that same Namekian from before. Gine and Chi-Chi both stared up in awe at their newest ally on the field. Gohan, injured as he was, chuckled with joy, almost as if he was expecting this from the start. "Mr. Piccolo!"

Piccolo turned and smiled at Gohan, and then he glanced over at Goku. "Focus on the Spirit Bomb! I'll hold him off!"

Frieza cocked his head. "Spirit Bomb? What the devil is a-"

Piccolo lunged forward, chopping his hand down at Frieza's neck. The Emperor raised his arm to block, but was surprised at the sheer amount of pain he felt. Frieza glanced over at his steadily numbing arm and then glared back up at Piccolo. "What in the hell is this?!"

Piccolo smirked and then he allowed his full, new power to burst forth. All 120,000,000 of it pressured against Frieza, making the Emperor slide back. Piccolo chuckled. "I'd say...this is you losing your edge, bastard! Ready for Round Three?"

Frieza shot his hand into the air. "How dare you be so glib?! I'll kill you!"

Piccolo pressed his fingers up to his forehead. In the time it took Frieza to prepare his own attack, Piccolo charged one of this own. Before Frieza could throw his hand forward, Piccolo thrust his fingers towards the Emperor and shouted. " _SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

The attack shot forward and collided with Frieza's raised hand. And, in that moment, Frieza felt a level of pain that he hadn't felt before. He wasn't sure what it was, but he knew that something was off. Frieza brought his hand down and looked at it, mortified to see what Piccolo had done. Not only was Frieza's Death Wave totally dispersed, but he was now missing both the middle and the index finger from his right hand.

Frieza trembled in place as Piccolo stood there, smirking with satisfaction. "See what I mean? Your edge over us is slowly fading? You're going to lose this one! And this planet that you took such pleasure in terrorizing will now serve as your tomb!"

Frieza glanced from his mutilated hand, to Piccolo, and back to his mutilated hand. And then he gripped it tight, watching the blood ooze out and splatter against the ground. " _ **OH, TO HELL WITH THIS!**_ "

Frieza roared in anger, summoning the full 100 percent of his power. As he muscles bulged and swelled, Frieza stared hateful daggers through Piccolo. " _ **THIS IS MY TRUE FINAL FORM! NOW TELL ME, NAMEKIAN, ARE YOU PREPARED TO DIE?!**_ "

Piccolo rolled his eyes, ripping off his damaged shirt and taking a fighting stance. "How many goddamned final forms do you have?!"

And then, rushing towards one another and screaming at the top of their lungs, Piccolo and Frieza clashed.

Back on the sidelines...

It was down to two. Still misty-eyed, Bulma watched from her spot on the ledge as Frieza and Piccolo brawled. To her surprise and joy, Piccolo seemed to be holding his own. Maybe they would all survive this after all...

Bulma was broken from her focus on the fight by the sound of grunting and heavy breathing. She turned to see, to her surprise, that Vegeta was back on his feet. Bulma stood to go and provide some support for the crippled Prince, grabbing him as he was about to topple over. "Hey! Come on! Take it-"

And then Bulma remembered who she was helping and let Vegeta fall onto his face. "Hmph. Sorry. I have a strict policy against helping murderers."

Vegeta coughed, pushing himself up. "Vindictive...can't say I dislike that..."

The Prince crawled to the edge of the ledge to watch the action unfold. He could barely move, he was pale and cold, Vegeta was still on death's door. "F-Frieza is...one-hundred times stronger than when he first assumed that form...I suppose this is his limit."

Bulma sat down next to Vegeta, glaring down at the fight again. "Good. Then his genocidal ass can die and you can go with him."

Vegeta chuckled with mirth. "Heh...such a callous woman. But I suppose someone from Earth needs to have common sense, right?"

The two of them fell silent, both of them watching the battle unfold beneath them. Bulma, sighing, turned to Vegeta. "Hey..."

Vegeta glared up at her. Bulma asked a question. "You're pretty battle-hardened so...expert opinion: are we going to win this?"

Vegeta turned his glare back to the fight below. "Frieza and that Namekian are currently equal in power. So..."

Bulma noticed Vegeta pause. "Is something wrong?"

Vegeta's face was pale, his eyes hollow and his jaw slack. The Prince seemed totally thrown for a loop. "Y-You have got...to be kidding me..."

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Piccolo leapt back from his opponent, cracking his neck and baring his fangs. "You have got to be kidding me..."

Frieza charged again and threw a massive punch at Piccolo. Piccolo caught it, but the strength of the attack hit him just a bit harder than it had last time. The Namekian was truly pissed off by what was facing him. Frieza did not even seem to realize it was happening. But, as he and Piccolo fought back and forth, the Emperor's body seemed to be learning from the experience. Tick by miniscule tick, Frieza's battle power was creeping just a little bit higher.

Once again, the forces from Earth were on the losing side of the battle.

Goku, meanwhile, used the time that Piccolo was buying to focus solely on the Spirit Bomb. The Saiyan from Earth pulled and pulled, borrowing all of the power he could from the entire Namekian solar system. But, very suddenly, Goku came to the horrifying conclusion that he had reached the limit of what he could take. Any more energy pulled from the surrounding life would damage and kill it.

Goku cursed to himself. " _Dammit! What do I do now?!_ "

The Saiyan looked out onto the battlefield. He looked to all of his beaten and battered friends and family, and then he looked to Piccolo having a brawl with Frieza, whose power seemed to grow more and more as the fight progressed. Goku realized he only had one choice.

Telepathically, the Saiyan from Earth called out to everyone. "Guys! I need your help."

Bardock, Gine, Raditz, Gohan, Krillin, Chi-Chi, Bulma, Piccolo, and even Vegeta all snapped into the mental communication. Goku called out to them quickly and concisely. "The solar system doesn't have enough power to stop Frieza, not how he currently is! So, I hate to ask, cuz I know you're all injured...but I need you to lend me your power in order to make the Spirit Bomb effective!"

Piccolo took a brief pause from his brawl with Frieza to glare up at the Spirit Bomb. Even from his layman's point-of-view, he could see that the blast was too small to do anything. Frieza lunged to attack, but then he noticed Piccolo staring off into space. Taking a moment of respite, Frieza glanced up as well. "What are you...looking...at...?"

Frieza's pupils shrank. "What the devil is that?"

Frieza turned his glare to both Piccolo and Goku. " _WHAT IN THE HOLY HELL IS THAT?!_ "

Frieza was shaking with anger. " _You filthy, sneaking vermin!_ "

Without missing a step, Piccolo charged at Frieza. He shouted to everyone else around the battlefield. "Everybody hurry the hell up and give your energy to the Spirit Bomb! _**Now!**_ "

Piccolo and Frieza clashed again, getting into a wild brawl with one another. Frieza tried to fire and attack at the Spirit Bomb, but Piccolo slapped it to the ground. The Namekian punched Frieza in the mouth, Frieza responded with a headbutt.

As the two of them fought, everyone else raised their hands and gave as much energy as they could. And, while it wasn't much given how badly hurt they all were, Bardock, Gine, Raditz, Gohan, Krillin, and Chi-Chi's contributions made the Spirit Bomb double in size.

Goku stared up at the Bomb with a dire look on his face. "Not enough. Not yet..."

Goku shook his head. "Damn it!"

 _On the sidelines..._

Bulma lowered her hand, tired and worn by the energy being pulled from her. "Ugh...it wasn't much...but..."

Bulma watched on and was horrified to see that Goku still wasn't throwing the Spirit Bomb. Bulma gripped her fists tight. "Is...is it still not big enough?"

Bulma glanced around the battlefield. "What's going on? I get that Piccolo's busy, but even without him it seems like..."

And then it dawned on her. Bulma's gaze jerked over to the person right next to her. "Vegeta! Why the hell haven't you contributed yet? We need you to help!"

Vegeta sneered, not answering. Bulma shouted. "Vegeta!"

Vegeta still didn't answer. He couldn't bring himself to. He neither wanted to help build that attack up nor did he want to have to answer to Bulma. Bulma turned her focus and her anger directly onto the Prince. "What is the matter with you? Why aren't you helping, Vegeta?! Don't you want Frieza dead more than anyone else?!"

Vegeta still didn't answer. His pride wouldn't let him.

Bulma slapped the Prince as hard as she could. "Gine, and Bardock, and everyone else here have risked their asses to keep you alive up to this point! Can you not be bothered to be just a little bit of a help?! Not even to take out a monster that you hate just as much as they all do?!"

Vegeta remained silent. Bulma growled under her breath and turned her attention back to the fight. " _Ungrateful asshole!_ "

Meanwhile, internally, Vegeta was struggling with what he should do.

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Frieza and Piccolo continued to fight. And, as it had been before, Frieza's power continued to grow. It had taken a moment, but Frieza started to gain the upper hand again. With a hefty strike from his tail, Frieza battered Piccolo aside. And, with a new and clear line of sight, Frieza smirked. "So, that attack is your last flame of hope, is it?"

Frieza's smile faded. He screamed at the top of his lungs and summoned a massive Supernova. "Then, allow me to just crush that for you right away! The burning flames of my power will take that hope, this planet, and all of you worms and reduce you all to ash!"

Seeing that Frieza was serious and that he was out of time, Goku leapt into the air. Flying up to the Spirit Bomb, Goku pressed his hand to the energy sphere. "Well...I guess it's now or never..."

Frieza snarled with utter fury and threw his Supernova towards Goku. Goku roared right back and tossed the Spirit Bombs. The two attacks clashed and an epic energy struggle began!

The sheer force of the two attacks sent bolts of energy lashing across the Namekian planes. The shocks from the attacks shredded the land that surrounded them. Very quickly, the entire island beneath Frieza degraded under the pressure of the Spirit Bomb and the Supernova.

Taking to the air, Raditz supported both of his parents while Krillin carried Gohan and Chi-Chi. Things were not looking good. Even as big as the Spirit Bomb looked, it paled in comparison to the size of Frieza's Supernova. Krillin was panicking. "D-dammit! What do we do now, we gave it all of the energy that we could and it's still not enough?!"

"Not all of the energy."

Suddenly, to the surprise of everyone including Goku and Frieza, the Spirit Bomb doubled in size yet again. Now, it matched the size of Frieza's attack. Piccolo flew up next to Raditz and Krillin. "We've done all we can do for now! We need to get the hell out of dodge!"

Raditz was confused. "What do you mean? Where do we go?!"

Piccolo pointed to the rocky spire. "We grab that woman and we retreat to the nearest cover! Now come on!"

Raditz and Krillin both nodded in agreement and followed Piccolo as he rushed off in the direction of Bulma. The group landed on the rocky spire and Piccolo acted quickly. He ran up and grabbed Bulma under one of his arms to carry her.

Piccolo turned to leave, wanting to get as far away as they could as quickly as possible. But then, the Namekian glanced down and saw Vegeta laying there. Piccolo juggled his thoughts and, despite his better judgment, he spoke to the Prince. "Vegeta! Get up and come on! This entire area is about to be pulverized flat!"

Vegeta didn't not respond. He didn't even move.

Piccolo shook his head. "Whatever."

He turned and motioned to Raditz and Krillin. "Come on! We gotta move! We don't have long before those things explode!"

Piccolo, Krillin, and Raditz all took off, carrying the rest of their allies in their arms. Bardock was totally out of it, Gohan and Chi-Chi were both struggling to stay conscious. And Bulma was panicking so badly she wasn't paying attention.

But, as they flew away, Gine and Gine alone regained consciousness just in time to look back at the rocky spire. And what she saw made her flinch in shock, but in a good way. Lit up by the backdrop of Goku's Spirit Bomb and Frieza's Supernova was the image of Vegeta. And, when Gine looked closely enough, she saw the Saiyan Prince laying there...with one hand raised high into the air.

 _Meanwhile, over with Goku and Frieza..._

Goku was struggling, His power was fading fast and, as big as the Spirit Bomb had gotten, he knew that it was still not enough.

And, on the ground, Frieza agreed. The Emperor was practically manic as he pushed all of his 100% plus power against his Supernova and that pathetic monkey's attack. This was going to be it! Victory! Finally! And a sweet victory it would be! Finally, the end of the Saiyan race was at hand.

Goku was fading against the force of Frieza's power. He had one more...just one more trump card, but popping it at this point would be pointless. Without a powerful enough attack to pair it with, Goku would just be destroying himself for Frieza.

But then hope burst forth once more. Out of nowhere, another source of aid came to Goku. He didn't know where it came from or who provided it, but the Spirit Bomb suddenly expanded yet again. Goku was shocked and so was Frieza. And, right then, that was when Goku decided! This was it!

Before Frieza could gain the upper hand once more, Goku roared as loud as he could. " _ **KAIOKEN TIMES ONE HUNDRED!**_ "

Goku's power flared up high. His muscles burst like balloons, his bones cracked and crumbled under the pressure, and his mind and soul felt like they were on fire, but Goku ignored all of that. This was his one chance! Pushing with his newfound might, Goku shoved the Super Spirit Bomb towards Frieza.

On the ground, Frieza stared in shock. This new, oversized attack quickly and effectively ate his own. With the Supernova totally swallowed, the Spirit Bomb became even bigger. Frieza's eyes widened and bulged from his head. He couldn't get around this one!

Panicked and terrified, the Emperor could do little more than raise his hands and try to block the attack. But, this effort near instantly failed. The Spirit Bomb collided with Frieza's palms...and then it swallowed him up just as easily as it did the Supernova beforehand.

The Spirit Bomb continued its downward descent until it collided with the Namekian seafloor. And then, once it hit the bottom, it exploded into a blinding flash of white light. Goku's crippled form was swallowed by the aftershock of the attack, as was Vegeta. And soon after, all of the others were engulfed as well.

From space, it appeared as if over half of Planet Namek was swallowed by this overbearing brightness.

 _Nearly an hour later..._

Gohan awoke to waves softly lapping across the nearby shore. His face half-submerged in a puddle, Gohan slowly pushed himself up and coughed up a full pint of water. He looked down and examined himself and saw that his once fairly pristine armor was reduced to a slightly tattered, blue jumpsuit and a little bit of his one unbroken shoulder pad connected to him by the former collar of his little half-Saiyan got to his feet and looked around, seeing nothing. "Wh-Where is everybody?"

Gohan took high into the air and looked around. The landscape of Planet Namek had been totally changed. The greenery that once stretched as far as the eye could see was gone. All that was left was barren, rocky landmasses in the middle of an endless sea.

Gohan continued this flight for what seemed like forever, not seeing or sensing anything. Gohan couldn't find anyone.

The boy was just about to give in to the despair of being alone, but then a familiar voice finally called out. " _GOHAN!_ "

The sudden voice sent a jolt through Gohan's spine. He looked down at the islands below and eventually came across the sight of a similarly damaged Krillin. Excited, Gohan rushed to the ground below and ran up to his friend for a giant hug.

Krillin reciprocated, but then was immediately slapped aside by a more intimidating force. Gohan gasped in shock, thinking it was a threat, but then was immediately relieved by the feeling of a pair of warm and familiar arms wrapping around him. Gohan sighed in relief as his mother's jet-black locks fell on top of him, and relaxed into a caring embrace.

The young boy looked around and took in the sights around him. Bulma was knelt next to Krillin, chuckling at the bright red mark in the shape of Chi-Chi's hand on the top of his head. Off to the side, Gine was gently massaging the unconscious Bardock's back. The older Saiyan, due to the various beatings and the energy loss, was rather permanently out of the count for the time being.

But then, Gohan got a look around and noticed a few missing faces. "W-Wait. Where is Uncle Raditz. And Mr. Piccolo. And... where's my Dad?"

Chi-Chi opened her mouth to speak. But then she was interrupted by the rushing splash of the nearby shore. Pulling himself from the water, Raditz emerged for a breath of air. And then, immediately after, Piccolo emerged as well. Gohan cried out. "Uncle Raditz! Mr. Piccolo!"

Both of them seemingly ignored Gohan as they reached back into the water. And then, with a heave, Piccolo and Raditz pulled Goku from the ocean and threw him onto dry land.

Everyone immediately rushed to check on Goku as the Saiyan from Earth shakily pushed himself into a sitting position. Krillin gave his best friend a firm pat on the back and Goku choked up a ton of water. But then, once the coughing subsided, Goku smiled wide. "H-Hey guys...I... uh...I think we won~!"

And so, everyone rejoiced. The Spirit Bomb had worked! Frieza had been defeated! They had won!

And so, with that, everyone began to disperse to regroup. Bulma sighed. "I guess we need to get into contact with Earth. Ask them to get the Dragon Balls together so that we can fix everything that went wrong here..."

Raditz picked up his unconscious dad. "I agree. We need to start getting things in place. At the moment, we're looking at quite a bit of time before we actually get to fulfill our goals for coming here in the first place..."

Gohan helped Chi-Chi to her feet. The mother gripped her aching back and limped along with her son. She nearly fell, but then she was caught by an unexpected helper. Chi-Chi looked up and saw Piccolo. The Namekian grabbed Chi-Chi's arm and pulled it over his shoulder, taking the weight off of Gohan. "Come on. Let's go somewhere where your mother can rest, kid. And then, once you and I rest up, we can train."

Gohan chuckled, following along with Piccolo. "Y-you're stronger than my Dad at the moment, right Piccolo?"

Piccolo nodded, a satisfied look on his face. "Yes. Yes, I am..."

Meanwhile, Gine went off on a little journey of her own. Unbeknownst to anyone else, Gine spotted a very familiar, navy blue sleeve sticking out from behind a nearby rock. And, although the others would be willing to leave him behind, Gine couldn't bring herself to do the same.

Rounding the rock, Gine sighed at the sight of a crippled Vegeta miserably attempting to stand-up. The Prince was weak, visibly feeble, and probably wouldn't last long out here on his own. So, Gine walked up to the Prince, not caring when he shot her his normal sour glare, and offered him her hand. "Vegeta, come on..."

Vegeta's voice was shaky. But, he had enough of his princely dignity left to spit at this offer from mere common folk. "Get away from me! I don't need your help...I don't..."

Vegeta cringed, clearly in a ton of pain. "I don't want your help. So... why don't you mind your own common, gutter-scum, low-class business?!"

Gine stared down at Vegeta. She was tired. She couldn't feel her arm at all anymore. Everything down to the bone was gone and she was just waiting for someone to cut it off. But, in her normal spirits, Gine had one good hand left to offer. "Vegeta...I said this before to try and get at you. But now I'm just asking... _how long do you plan to hold on to the past_?"

Vegeta flinched. He tried to push himself up again, but this time he slipped and fell onto his ass. Gine stared at him, sadness in her eyes, and knelt down close to the Prince. "It's over Vegeta. Frieza is dead. The past is done. Finished. There's nothing to worry over anymore. Isn't it time to move on? M-Maybe start a new chapter?"

Vegeta sneered, refusing to look Gine in the eye. Gine shook her head. "Listen...you don't have to be our friend. You...you don't ever have to see our faces again if you don't want to. But you need to learn that sometimes...accepting help is important for survival, Vegeta. You outlived Frieza. You can carry that as a trophy for the rest of your life. But if you want to brag about it like I'm sure that you do...you need to be able to live..."

Vegeta's shoulders slumped. Gine reached out her hand one more time. "So, take my hand, just this once. Let me help you get back onto your feet and let us patch you up...and then you can go and live a life you'd be happy with, Vegeta~"

It took a moment. But then, to Gine's delight, a white-gloved hand extended and grasped her. Gine gave a motherly smile. "See Vegeta, doesn't that make things easier?"

But then, as things seemed to be at their best, Gohan suddenly cried out in shock. Everyone turned just in time to see the body hit the ground. Piccolo had slumped forward, a fresh, smoking hole in the center of his back, and fell face first onto the ground.

Gohan screamed, tears in his eyes. " _ **Mr. Piccolo!**_ "

Bulma and Raditz both rushed over to their Namekian comrade. Raditz set Bardock onto the ground and knelt to check on Piccolo. Chi-Chi pushed herself up, pulling herself out from under Piccolo's body. The stared across the rocky expanse of the island and what she saw made her face turn white.

In the distance, Chi-Chi saw Gine. The Saiyan Mother had a shocked look on her face. She fell back, a smoking hole in her chest. Gine splatted against the ground, with a stunned Vegeta staring is utter disbelief. Chi-Chi screamed in horror. " _ **GINE!**_ "

And then, an evil laugh echoed out across the land. Krillin and Goku both looked up, to the top of a nearby mountain, and Krillin's face turned fifteen shades of blue. " _F-F-F..._ "

Standing there was a ghastly sight. Dripping wet, missing his right leg, supporting himself with the remainder of his tail, and wreathe in a blood red aura was...

" _ **FRIEZA!**_ "

Frieza stood there, alive and well, glowering at his remaining enemies. There was no room for smiles or faux politeness on Frieza's face. Only crystal-clear anger and hatred remained in those squinting eyes. "This is what happens..."

Goku had just noticed that his mother had fallen. As he called over to her, Frieza continued. "This is what happens with property that forgets its place. I own you Saiyans! _Do you not understand?_! _**I OWN YOU!**_ "

Ignoring everything else, Chi-Chi ran over to Gine's body. She cradled her mother-in-law in her hands and tried to convince her to stay awake. "Gine! Gine! Stay with us Gine!"

Chi-Chi looked down at her hands and stared in shock at all of the blood on them. Gine, meanwhile, stared across the island at something entirely different. Feebly, the Saiyan mother reached her hand out to the blurry form of what she knew was her husband. "Ba...Ba...B-Ba...Bar..."

Chi-Chi had tears streaming down her face. "No! Shush! Save your strength! You have to-"

Gine choked, coughing up blood. "Bar...dock..."

And then, Gine fell limp. Her eyes went white and her jaw fell slack. Gine...was dead.

Vegeta's ears were ringing. Goku was still desperately shouting to his mother, but to no avail. Frieza continued his rant. "You see?! I own everything about you disobedient monkeys! I own your lives! I own your dreams!"

Frieza glared directly at Krillin, who was still supporting Goku on his shoulder. " _ **And I own your loved ones!**_ "

Frieza pointed his finger at Krillin, firing a simple speck of his energy at the human. This energy burnt directly through Krillin's chest and entered his guts. Frieza then used his psychic powers to lift Krillin high into the sky. Krillin screamed in panic and Goku stared on in horror. "No! NO! Frieza, stop this!"

Frieza glared at Krillin one final time, and then he clenched his fist tight. Krillin gave one final, fearful yelp. "GOKU!"

And then, from the inside outward, Krillin swelled like a balloon and exploded into a ball of flames.

Frieza snarled and called out. " **VEGETA! AND THE OTHER ONE...the one they call 'Goku'...THIS IS YOUR REALITY! I WILL RIP EVERY LAST THING YOU LOVE FROM YOUR HANDS AND DESTROY IT BEFORE YOUR EYES! YOU WILL KNOW UNENDING SUFFERING AND PAIN FOR THE HUMILIATION YOU HAVE PROVIDED ME!** "

Goku and Vegeta both sat, totally stunned. As Frieza ranted and raved behind them, all manner of thought and emotion ran through both Saiyans heads. Frieza looked around and his eyes eventually fell upon Gohan. "I suppose you'll do as the next victim, brat."

Goku thought of all of his friends. His family. They were counting on him to defend them. And now...the innocent Namekians, Piccolo and the Earth's Dragon Balls, his own mother, and even Krillin. They were all gone. Goku was shaking with rage. " _Curse you..._ "

Vegeta thought back to his lost home, the former King Vegeta so brutally slain, all of the torture and humiliation and degradation of his scared pride. And then, at the last moment, the briefest image of Gine offering her hand flickered through Vegeta's mine. The Prince gripped his fist. " _Damn you..._ "

And then the atmosphere changed. The air became thicker, more heavily charged around everyone present. In the distance, thunder rumbled and then, all around, lightning began to crackle and strike. Goku and Vegeta were both shuddering, convulsing as the rage and sorrow overtook them. Frieza took a step back. "Wh-what is this...?"

And then, Goku and Vegeta both stood. Their bodies swelled with power, and then they both screamed with primal, Saiyan fury.

" _ **FRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEZAAAAAAAAAAAAA!**_ _"_

Lightning struck and shattered the ground around each Saiyan as they cried out. And then, intense golden energy exploded from both of their bodies. Taken aback, Frieza could only watch in terror as the injuries he caused seemed to burn away from Goku and Vegeta's bodies. The Saiyan's eyes were blank white, but the power they were displaying was more prevalent to the Emperor. Frieza was shocked and horrified as an old ghost story played through his head. " _No... no...it can't be..._ "

Goku and Vegeta were both shaking, the new golden power convulsing from their bodies. Slowly, their pupils return in a striking, emerald color. Everyone was speechless at the sight of this. No one knew what to say. But then, Gohan briefly remembered back. He remembered Vegeta and his grandfather talking about this during the fight with Frieza. In a small, almost inaudible voice, Gohan spoke in reverence of this new power. " _Super Saiyan..._ "

All was silent. Not a noise to be heard. Frieza was standing there, shaking with fear. And then Goku and Vegeta's pupils both shifted and locked right onto the Emperor.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	39. Chapter 39: The Fall of Frieza

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Hey everybody! Big chapter here! I hope that this fight with Frieza and everything I've done in it has been an entertaining read. I know I might not be sticking strictly to Dragon Ball Z/Super/GT/Movie canon, but that's kinda the point. I wanna make a unique take on things. Something entertaining that I hope will continue to entertain people for a while! So, once again (I know I say this a lot), thank you to all of you who have stuck around and reviewed and everything for this long. I might not get the chance to respond to every review, but I just want you to know that each and every one of your opinions means the world to me and it means a lot that you share them~!_

 _So, going forth into the next arc, the Garlic Junior arc to follow, Future Trunks, and even the Androids and Cell, keep letting me know what you all think~ :3_

 **Chapter 39: The Fall of Frieza**

 _On the battlefield..._

Frieza stood atop his rock, glaring down at his newly energized foes. The power of this strange, new transformation radiated around Goku and Vegeta like an endless, golden flame. Frieza stood in awe of this power, not knowing what to say. It was only when he felt the first flicker of fear in his heart that Frieza managed to regain composure. He couldn't show fear. The Emperor snarled in the face of this new threat. "Will you miserable Saiyans never cease this fruitless rebellion?!"

On the ground, Goku's allies examined this new change in both their friend and Vegeta from a distance. Gohan and Chi-Chi were in awe and Bulma was trembling in the light of this new form both of them had taken on. The human woman watched as the sheer heat from this power sealed the minor wounds on both of the Saiyans, but noticed that the hole in Vegeta's side was still gushing with blood. Unable to process her thoughts clearly, she tried to speak. "V-Vegeta...your side is...is still...uh..."

Vegeta didn't look at Bulma. A vein erupted from Vegeta's forehead as he turned to face Frieza. The Prince tossed one of his hands behind himself, towards Bulma, and sent her flying back with a forceful burst of energy. " _Shut your damn mouth, Earth woman!_ "

Bulma shivered in fear, her normal snark having left her. What in the hell was this golden form?!

Gohan and Chi-Chi both sat there, stunned at what had happened. They watched as Vegeta, seemingly ignoring the critical wound on his side, marched over to Goku and faced Frieza. The glowing hatred in Goku and Vegeta's eyes was hot enough to melt steel.

Raditz was the only person not affected by this new development. The older brother was injured and exhausted and all remaining focus he had left was on one thing: the corpse of his mother. Raditz knelt down next to Gine, trembling and with tears in his eyes. He screamed in anguish, his power flaring and bursting out. "M-Mother..."

Raditz's weeping lament echoed across an otherwise silent wasteland, hitting Goku's ears and making the Saiyan from Earth even angrier. In his mind, Goku was trying to hold onto some semblance of self-control, but he could feel himself fading into an almost feral anger. He gripped his fists tight, and then he pointed to his son, his wife, and his brother. "Gohan! Chi-Chi! Raditz! Gather everyone together and get out of here! Now!"

Gohan and Chi-Chi both flinched at Goku's forceful, violent tone. Raditz was still distracted by his own grief. After a few moments of hesitation, Gohan stood and tried to talk to his father. "B-But Dad..."

Goku snapped. "I said go! While I still have a bit of control over myself! Grab everyone and leave right now, damn it!"

Gohan flinched back. Goku continued to speak. "Piccolo is still alive! We need to keep him that way! If the Earth Dragon Balls die, then everything that Frieza has done becomes permanent! _Now, quit standing there and do as I say!_ "

Gohan was trembling at first, but he quickly caught on to what his father was saying. Gripping his fists, the boy took on a steely demeanor and nodded. "Right! Yes sir!"

Gohan turned to Chi-Chi and Raditz and spoke. "You heard him! We need to move! Mom, you have the least experience with flying, so you carry Bulma! Uncle Raditz, grab Grandpa Bardock and Grandma Gine's body! I'll carry Piccolo!"

Everyone was quick to spring into action. Chi-Chi ran over and grabbed the still shaking Bulma, Gohan grabbed Piccolo, and Raditz, still grieving, grabbed his mother and father. As Raditz took off, Chi-Chi and Gohan both looked back to Goku and Vegeta. The both stared longingly at Goku, and then they turned to each other and shared a nervous, but faithful nod. Goku's behavior was scaring them both, but they knew that they would be safe from Frieza now. And, with that, the two of them took to the air as well.

On his rock, Frieza glared at the fleeing forces of Earth. "Earth Dragon Balls, eh? Well then...I suppose I should avoid killing that Namekian just yet..."

Frieza pointed his finger on his good hand into the air, squinting and aiming right at the back of Gohan's head. Frieza seethed. " _I have not forgotten your crimes against me either, brat!_ "

Frieza fired off a Death Beam, but something blocked it in an instant. The attack collided against this new wall and dispersed into nothing. Frieza flinched back and was shocked to see that Goku was suddenly right on top of him. He cowered for a brief moment and Goku took brutal advantage. The Saiyan reached out and grabbed Frieza's good hand into a vice-grip. With a heavy squeeze, Goku punished the spiteful Emperor by crushing every bone in his hand.

Frieza screeched in pain. "Agh! Dammit! Who...who in the hell do you think you are?! Unhand me!"

Frieza struggled, whipping around in Goku's hand and thrashing in frustration. Frieza lashed with his tail and stomped his remaining foot against the ground and against Goku's chest and stomach. " _I said unhand me!_ "

As Frieza struggled, Goku seethed at the Tyrant. He squeezed even harder, making blood burst from the bastard's hand. " _Monster_... do you have any idea how many lives you've ruined?! How much you've hurt and destroyed?! I'll never forgive you for this Frieza! I'll make you pay!"

Frieza glared at Goku. Goku sneered at him. "For Krillin and for my mother and for everyone and everything that has fallen to your cruelty, I swear that I'll put a stop to you!"

Frieza snarled. " _What nonsense!_ "

Frieza wrapped his tail around the wrist of his trapped hand. With a mighty yank, he pulled himself from Goku's grip and fell back onto the ground. The Emperor stared up at his Saiyan foe and snarled. Goku took a single step forward and the Emperor scuttled backwards. The two of them stared at one another, but then Vegeta came shooting up and punted the Emperor right in the face, sending him flying into the sky. As Vegeta gave chase after his target, Goku turned and looked into the distance. He was relieved to see that Gohan and the others had gotten away, and then he gave chase to Frieza and Vegeta.

In the distance, Frieza had managed to stop himself midair, but was quickly met with a fearsome assault from his former servant. Vegeta was radiating with anger and fury, laying heavy blow after heavy blow into his former master and, for the first time in his servitude to the monster, causing Frieza to feel pain.

Vegeta slammed his fist into Frieza's face and sent him flying back. The Emperor recovered and screamed in frustration. "This can't be happening! I cannot accept that td his fist into Frieza's face and sent him flying back. The Emperor recovered and screamed in frustration. "This can't be happening! I cannot accept that this real!"

The Emperor summoned a blast and threw it right at Vegeta's face, but the Prince was able to slap it away with no effort. Frieza gasped in shock and Vegeta charged at him. The Prince snarled in rage and delivered onto Frieza the beating of his life. Punch after kick after punch after headbutt slammed into Frieza, breaking and battering the Emperor like a punching bag. And then, with a double axe-handle slam to the top of the head, Vegeta sent Frieza slamming into the Namekian sea like a stone. The sheer force of the attack created a sonic boom and sent a fissure cutting through the waters all the way over either horizon.

Goku joined Vegeta in the air and they both stared down at the water as it settled. Waves lapped up and down and eventually became still. Both Saiyans were laser-focused. They watched Frieza's position with pinpoint accuracy, keeping a constant read on his power. They knew that he was alive and they weren't going to let him slink off.

But then, two attacks came shooting up from the water. Two slicing energy discs. Goku snarled. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

Goku and Vegeta both fell back from the attacks and Frieza emerged from the water, laughing like a madman. "Forgive me for the lack of finesse, monkeys! This attack is rather new! I call it the Death Slicer! _It's a gift from your pathetic Earthling friend from beyond the grave!_ "

Goku was furious. He looked over and watched as Vegeta blew up his "Death Slicer", but Goku had no intention to do the same. The Saiyan from Earth thought that he had reached the limits to how angry he could get, but Frieza somehow had managed to find a new low. Goku coated his hand with energy and reached out, grabbing the attack and stopping its forward motion. Frieza flinched in shock. "Wh-What?! But, but how...?!"

Goku sneered and whipped around, flinging Frieza's attack back at him. The Emperor panicked and tried to fade to the right, but only succeeded in putting his more damaged arm right in the path of the attack. Frieza screamed in pain as his own attack lobbed off the rest of the arm that Piccolo had damaged, watching as it fell to the waters below and sunk. As Frieza screamed in pain, Goku shouted at him. " _You just don't know when to quit, do you?!_ _ **How dare you mock Krillin?!**_ "

Frieza gripped his bleeding, arm stump with his remaining, broken hand. He glared up at watched as Goku and Vegeta descended down to his level, their golden hair billowing in the wind and their emerald eyes trained right on him. Frieza felt, on the inside, as he had often made others feel: helpless and preyed upon.

This feeling, in addition to creating fear within Frieza's soul, indelibly pissed the Emperor off. All of his other foes had disappeared from view and Frieza was left with two massive problems. And, what was worse, the Emperor was being forced to come to terms with the fact that he had made these problems for himself.

He wasn't going to survive. Not with both of them focused like this. He had to throw one of them off somehow. The Emperor knew practically nothing about Goku, so he knew who it was he had to target. Frieza turned his attention to Vegeta and snarled at the Prince. "I must applaud you for your new power, Vegeta! I always knew that you would become some form of a threat to my power someday! But, to think...you would gain that power through attachment to some low-class filth!"

Frieza sneered. "And here I thought you to be so much more than that! To think, you would gain power from sorrow over not being able to prevent a death! Pathetic! I _**pity**_ you, Vegeta! You've gained strength, but you've become soft and weak as a result..."

Vegeta glared at Frieza, his eye suffering a small twitch. Frieza smirked, thinking he had found a cinch in the armor. But then, Vegeta shot forward and slammed his fight into the Tyrant's stomach. A mixture of blood and spit erupted from Frieza's throat and then Vegeta slammed his fist into the Emperor's head. As Round Two of Frieza's punishment began, Goku followed along. Vegeta was engaged and focused in the fight, but Goku was prepared for Frieza to pull something.

Vegeta was merciless as he beat on Frieza. The Emperor tried to fight back, blocking incoming attacks from Vegeta, but his missing limbs quickly made themselves apparent. Every attack Frieza blocked led to another one hitting dead on. After just a few minutes of the continuous assault, Frieza was bruised and bleeding all over.

As his fist slammed into Frieza's face again, Vegeta chuckled. "You must be kidding me..."

Frieza showed visible confusion. Vegeta punched him again and laughed out loud. "Do you really think this is all about that woman? Huh, Frieza?! Are you really that short-sighted?!"

Vegeta slammed his elbow into Frieza's forehead and the Emperor's eyes briefly rolled back. Vegeta roared. "This is all so much bigger than anything that woman represented! This is a matter of pride! A matter of vengeance!"

A kick to the chest. "You've spent the majority of my life lording over me! Taking everything from me! My planet! My birthrights! My dignity! You've robbed me of everything that was supposed to be mine! You've turned my life into a miserable, living hell for over two decades! And-"

Vegeta's gaze harshened. For just a moment, the Prince retreated back into that moment...

 _A few moments earlier, in Vegeta's mind..._

The young Prince Vegeta sat there, in a dark prison of his own making. He had been in here for years, cut off away from everything else in the world. Nothing could get close. He wouldn't allow anything to get close. Anything that he allowed himself to get attached to would just be something Frieza could use against him later.

But, as of this moment, maybe that could be different...?

Frieza was gone. Finally gone. Maybe now he could. Maybe, Vegeta could finally let something get close. Maybe he could finally let go and have something to break this endless feeling of loneliness that he had felt all of this time.

He looked over and saw that hand reaching out to him. Vegeta heard that voice. And... he decided to let his guard down for just a moment. That wall lowered and Vegeta reached his hand out for the first time in years... and then, in one ruthless strike, that wall went right back up.

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Vegeta roared and kicked Frieza in the face. "And I will have _NOTHING ELSE_ taken from me by a pathetic coward like you ever again!"

Vegeta rocketed after Frieza once more. Goku floated to the side and watched. Vegeta's anger and sense of righteous vindication was getting the better of him, but Goku knew that something was off here. And that was when he saw the game. Goku sped forward as Frieza twitched his finger, getting between Vegeta and the Death Slicer that erupted up from the sea. Goku dispelled the attack with a blast and then turned and glared at Frieza. "What did I just tell you?! _STOP MOCKING KRILLIN!_ "

And then, with a flip, Goku got above Frieza and knocked him away with an elbow. The Emperor went flying and smashed into a sharp-pointed rock. Frieza impaled onto the stone and then went limp.

With a brief moment of respite from dealing with the Emperor, Goku and Vegeta turned to face each other. Near instantly, Vegeta seized Goku by the remainder of his blue undershirt and pulled the his fellow Saiyan close. Vegeta and Goku were nose-to-nose and the Prince shouted. "How dare you?! Who are you to interfere with my vengeance?! Well Kakarot?!"

Vegeta punched Goku right across the face. " _Where do you find the gall?!_ "

Not in the mood for this, Goku glared at Vegeta. And then he returned the punch to the face that Vegeta had given him. Goku shouted. "You need to get your head together, man! I'm just as angry at Frieza as you are, but you nearly just got cut in half! You need to watch yourself, Vegeta!"

Vegeta pulled away from Goku, shaking with rage. Goku sighed and looked to his fellow Saiyan with sorrow in his eyes. "I... I can see why you're so angry..."

Vegeta spat at Goku. "What are you on about?!"

Goku shook his head. "Frieza. All he does is take and take...he hurts and destroys and burns everything that steps in front of him. He took Krillin and my mother. I'm sorry that you had to-"

Vegeta was quick to interrupt. "Save it."

Goku glanced over to Vegeta, Vegeta glared back. "The past is the past. I don't need your pity, Kakarot. I'm not sorrowful or bitter, I just want my vengeance. I want to leave this miserable planet comfortable in the knowledge that Frieza is dead. So...in a sense...we have already won."

Goku flinched back. "What do you mean?"

Vegeta shook his head, floating away from Goku and staring into the distance. "Frieza is too damaged. His body is more focused on trying to maintain his life than it is on increasing his strength. His power is still progressing, just at a much slower rate..."

 **Frieza's Current Power Level** : 165,000,000

 **Vegeta's (Super Saiyan) Current Power Level** : 170,000,000

 **Goku's (Super Saiyan) Current Power Level** : 225,000,000

The Prince crossed his arms. "I could kill Frieza with enough effort..."

He clenched his teeth in frustration. " _And you could kill him effortlessly..._ "

Goku chuckled and shot Vegeta and encouraging smile. "Aww, don't be like that Vegeta. You're plenty strong and I'm sure you'd be able to catch up if you trained hard enough~"

" _ENOUGH!_ "

Goku and Vegeta both turned to face the source of that shout: Frieza. The Emperor was floating there, a massive, rocky shard sticking through his stomach. The Emperor was beside himself with rage. Shifting his focus from Vegeta, Frieza focused solely on Goku for his next rant. " _WHO IN THE HELL ARE YOU?!_ "

Goku glared at Frieza. Frieza seethed in response. "Bardock and Vegeta being here makes sense! I have personally dealt damages to them! But you... _I'VE NEVER EVEN SEEN YOU BEFORE! WHO ARE YOU?! WHAT ARE YOU?!_ "

Goku faced down Frieza, narrowing his glare at the Tyrant. "What am I...?"

Goku smiled. "You haven't figured it out yet? I am the youngest child Bardock and Gine. A Saiyan raised on Earth, free from your shameless rule. Born as Kakarot, but raised Son Goku. And me and Vegeta, we are warriors whose sole purpose for being here is to bring an end to your terror. Born from righteous fury and having shattered all previous limitations! Super Saiyan? Legendary Warrior? I've never heard of anything like that. All I do know is this; we are your worst nightmare. The end of the horrors that you've reigned down onto the innocent people of the Universe!"

The Saiyan from Earth chuckled. "Like I said, I don't know anything about the myth or the legend, but we have become what you fear, Frieza. We are-"

Frieza snapped and fired a Death Beam, hitting Goku right in the face. Goku smirked, unscathed. "Saiyans!"

Frieza screamed and charged at Goku, blind with fury. The Emperor pulled the rocky spike from his stomach and tried to stab Goku, but Goku was prepared. With a basic strike, Goku shot his fist upward and reduced the stone to dust. And then Goku went in for his own vengeance on Frieza.

Pulling out his Turtle-Style Martial Arts, Goku quickly overwhelmed the declining Tyrant. Strike after strike, he pounded into Frieza and picked apart both his defense and offense. Nothing Frieza tried could do anything to Goku. Every attempt to hit the Saiyan was countered with precision and ease and even more damage was given to Frieza in turn. With a hard, palm strike to the head, Goku sent Frieza flying back.

Frieza snarled and reached even deeper into his bag of tricks to try and deal any damage to this Saiyan. Frieza used his psychic powers to pull rubble from all around, but Goku rid himself of that with a might surge of power. The Emperor flinched, but then he fired his eye beams at the Saiyan. Goku coated his palm with energy and thrusted them away, repelling them back into the Emperor's eyes.

Frieza reeled back, rubbing his face. Once his vision cleared, he glared up at Goku. Goku was still hovering in the same spot, staring down at Frieza. Frieza sneered. "You scum! How dare you look down on me!"

Frieza summoned a Supernova, quickly taking it and compressing it down into a Hypernova just like he did in his fight with Piccolo. "Eat this, monkey!"

With the last of his power, Frieza reeled back and launched his final attack at Goku. The attack sailed right at the Saiyan warrior, but Goku didn't move. Frieza smiled, unaware of the power difference and totally assured that this would finish him off. But, right as the attack flew into his face, Goku roared and smacked the blast. It blew up in his face and Frieza wickedly sneered. But, once the smoke cleared, that sneer became a look of pure confusion and terror. Goku was standing there, mostly uninjured. The only noticeable difference was that his undershirt had been incinerated away.

Frieza stared blankly up at Goku and Goku stared back down at him. And then the Saiyan smirked. " _Is that it?_ "

In that instant, as Frieza's jaw fell slack, all of the power left the Emperor. He had been in his 100% power form for too long. All at once, the Tyrant's power fell back down to nothing. His swelled muscles deflated and he was reduced back down to his lesser state. Frieza floated down to the ground below, falling to his knees and then to his elbows. Moments later, Goku landed in front of him. The Emperor shakily glared up at Goku and Goku glared back down at him. "Surrender. You've lost Frieza. Your only option left is to surrender."

Frieza seethed. "I... I will never..."

The Emperor raised his hand into the air and summoned a massive blast. " _I will never accept defeat to a Saiyan!_ "

Frieza started to slam his hand to the ground. He would send this attack straight to the core of this planet and take all of them with him! These Saiyans and the planet would all die! But then, as Frieza prepared this final spite, two white energy rings appeared around him. Frieza's pupils shrank and then the rings quickly closed in on him. A massive explosion resulted and totally engulfed the Emperor.

The force of the explosion repelled Goku back. The Saiyan from Earth looked down onto the ground as the smoke cleared and was horrified to see Frieza laying on the ground, left in mangled pieces by the sudden attack. Goku wondered what had happened, but he was answered by a call from above. "That was a move my father taught me. He called it the Flash Strike. But...I've always preferred Dirty Fireworks."

Vegeta landed next to Goku and glared down at Frieza. "It's a shame you weren't in the air for the full effect."

Goku and Vegeta stood side-by-side. The two Saiyans shared a glance with one another and Goku chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "Man, Frieza nearly blew up the planet there, huh? Th-Thanks Vege-"

Vegeta held his hand up. "Piss off, Kakarot. You dare have the nerve to lecture me about not being observant and then nearly get us all killed yourself?!"

Goku chuckled. "Y-yeah...sorry..."

Vegeta shook his head. "You're an idiot."

Vegeta stepped forward, towards the groaning crater where Frieza laid. What remained of the Emperor was not a pretty sight. The Tyrant's entire lower half had been blown off, his remaining leg and tail laying a few feet away from his torso. Using his remaining arm, Frieza shakily pushed himself up and glared at Vegeta. One eye was permanently closed, blood streaming down Frieza's face, but the other had more than enough hate left in it to be directed at the Prince. "W-Well...? What are you waiting for, Vegeta? Finish it! N-Neither of you have the guts to actually do it..."

Vegeta held up his hand with a smirk. "Are you willing to bet on that?"

The Prince summoned a massive blast into his hand and pointed it right at Frieza. Frieza snarled in the face of death. But as it became more and more apparent that Vegeta was actually about to kill him, Frieza's defiant façade faded. The Emperor held up his hand. "W-wait! Wait, Vegeta! Please!"

Vegeta flinched. Frieza shook his head. "Please! Please don't! Spare me!"

This sudden appeal for mercy only served to enrage both of the Super Saiyans. Goku marched up next to Vegeta and both of them glared down at the sniveling, begging tyrant. Frieza shook his head. "P-Please...mercy! Somewhere, deep down inside, you two have to have mercy!"

Goku snapped back at him. "Mercy?! You're begging for mercy?! After everything you've done...after everyone you've killed..."

Vegeta's teeth were grinding together. " _You have the nerve to sit there and beg...?!_ "

Vegeta clenched the blast he had prepared into his fist, dispelling it. The Prince was livid. Goku was as well. Neither of them could process how, after all of this, Frieza could just sit there and beg to be spared like that. After everything he had taken, after everything he had done. Now, he would sit there and snivel and cry and rob them of even a satisfying victory?!

Goku squeezed his eyes shut. Vegeta clenched his fists. After all of their struggles, this was the point things had reached?! The might, brutal Emperor Frieza...a wanton murderer who scoffed and laughed at pleas for mercy... he would just sit there, and... with no shame he would...?

Frieza wheezed at his foes. "Please... _spare me_..."

Lightning quick, Goku whipped out his hand and fired a small ki sphere at Frieza. The Tyrant flinched in terror, but was surprised when death didn't claim him. Instead, the energy went into Frieza, giving the Emperor just a bit of power back. Vegeta's eyes widened, he turned to Goku with an utterly flabbergasted look on his face.

As Frieza floated into the air, glaring towards Goku in total confusion, the Saiyan from Earth spoke. "Take that energy and leave!"

Goku stared at Frieza with enough force to propel the shamed Emperor back. "You heard me! _Go!_ "

Frieza was speechless. This Saiyan...he could not genuinely be serious! Could he?!

Vegeta was quick to voice his displeasure. He marched right up to Goku and got into his face. " _WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!_ "

Goku shouted back. "What would be the point in killing him Vegeta?! He's a coward! And we've beaten him! He has nothing left! We should be able to stay ahead of him if we continue to train with this new power and he knows that! At this point, killing him would just be letting him get away with everything he's done!"

Goku glanced over at Frieza and then back at Vegeta. "Don't you want him to feel just like he made you feel? Trapped and lost and helpless? If we kill him right now Vegeta, that would be it. But, if he lives for the rest of his life, then he has to live with the fact that not only did he lose, not only did he have to beg for help to live..."

Goku turned to Frieza and smirked. " _But he has to face his followers knowing that all of this happened at the hands of a couple of monkeys~!_ "

Vegeta's frown didn't fade. He still seemed unconvinced. "You're playing a dangerous game Kakarot. That sort of thing works on martial artists and warriors, but Frieza-"

Vegeta was cut off by Frieza suddenly taking to the sky. The Emperor was flying as fast as he could for the atmosphere, wanting to get away from these two contemptible Saiyans. Goku chuckled as he watched Frieza get further and further away. "See Vegeta? I gave him just enough energy to flee. It's his only option here!"

Vegeta sneered and turned his attention to the sky.

 _High in the Namekian sky..._

Frieza was sweating bullets as he flew away. Damaged and crippled, possibly beyond repair, the Emperor flew higher and higher, feeling his intense fear of Goku and Vegeta's new Super Saiyan power welling in the back of his throat. As Frieza flew towards his escape, he thought back onto everything that had happened, on every creature that dared oppose him. He would escape, raise another elite army, and then go to Planet Earth and slaughter everyone and everything that those Saiyans held dear! He swore it!

Frieza had a sinister smirk on his face as he flew. His vengeance would be glorious!

But then...the last thing that Goku said echoed through his head and Frieza's smile slipped. " _But he has to face his followers knowing that all of this happened at the hands of a couple of monkeys~!_ "

"... _all of this happened at the hands of a couple of monkeys~!_ "

" _...couple of monkeys~!_ "

"... _monkeys~!_ "

" _Monkeys~!_ "

" _ **Monkeys~!**_ "

If one were to look at Frieza's face as he thought over Goku's last, mocking words to him...it would almost be possible to hear something break within the Emperor's head. Like cracking ice, or shattering glass, Frieza's patience and sanity finally completely collapsed. Dismembered and low on power, Frieza turned midair to glare at his foes. And then he thrust his remaining hand into the air and summoned his Death Ball.

Frieza giggled with glee as the attack formed above his head. A massive ball of whatever energy that he had left swelling and forming with the express purpose of turning this planet, the people on it, and all evidence of this embarrassment into dust. Would Frieza die? Who knows? Who cares?! All that mattered at this moment to the Emperor was watching this planet and everyone on it die!

Frieza shrieked as he launched the Death Ball down to the planet below. " **DIE! AND TAKE EVERY WITH YOU, YOU MISERABLE SAIYANS!** "

 _On the ground..._

Goku and Vegeta both stared up in shock as Frieza's Death Ball came crashing down towards them. Neither Saiyan had times to speak or discuss as it flew right at them. Goku and Vegeta had to act. So, with very little in the way of options, the two Saiyans threw their hands into the air and roared as they summoned forth all of their power.

 _In the sky..._

Frieza was laughing like a madman as he saw his Death Ball collide to the ground below. This was it! Frieza didn't care about survival or anything else! All he cared about was that he had won! Not that Vegeta! Not that Goku! Not the Saiyan race! Him! Lord Frieza! The one true Emperor of the Universe!

Frieza's laughter continued. But, as the time wore on, the Emperor quickly noticed that the boom had yet to occur. Where was the explosion? The fire? The end of all life on this planet? _WHERE WAS FRIEZA's VICTORY?!_

This question was answered by screams in stereo. The Death Ball, Frieza's ultimate final attack, warped and buckled...and then it burst a massive explosion. Frieza was confused about why his attack had not pierced into the center of the planet, but then the smoke cleared and his confusion was quite direly dispelled. Standing there, in a burnt-out shallow crater, were Goku and Vegeta.

Both Saiyans were damaged. Goku had taken on a lot of injury and Vegeta's upper armor had been blasted away. But, both of the Super Saiyans were still standing, and their glares were trained right in Frieza.

Not missing a beat, each Saiyan pulled their arms to the side and started charging their counter-attacks.

" _KA! ME! HA! ME!_ " " _SUPER! GALICK! GUN!_ "

Frieza recoiled in terror. He thrust his open palm towards the Saiyans and, pulling from his very life force, the Emperor fired on final, desperate blast.

" _ **HAAAAAAAAA!**_ " " _ **FIRE!**_ "

Goku and Vegeta's attacks, the Super Kamehameha and the Super Galick Gun, sped through the air. The two of collided with Frieza's Last Emperor Blast, but were not made to yield in the slightest. The attack tore through Frieza's like butter and continued right towards the Tyrant!

Frieza's eyes widened, his pupils shrunk to the size of pinpricks. " _No! No! THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!_ "

The two beams slammed into and engulfed Frieza. As the attacks from his two hated enemies overwhelmed him and propelled him into space, Frieza shrieked louder than he ever had before. It was a new sensation for the Tyrant, the feeling that he had given to so many other before! As the pain of death engulfed Frieza, the Emperor shouted one final, desperate plea, totally unable to accept what was happening to him. " _ **THIS CAN'T BE! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING! I AM LORD FRIEZAAAAAAaaaaaaaa...aaa...aa...a...**_ "

The two attacks burnt away their target and then exploded into a flash of light.

 _On the ground..._

Goku and Vegeta were both exhausted. Injuries and fatigue and over-exertion of their energy had rendered both Saiyans unable to move. The two of them stood there, not even well enough to speak to one another and stared up at the sky. Once the smoke had cleared, nothing remained. A few cinders and ashes rained from the sky and disappeared into the wind. The battle was finally over. Frieza's energy signature had totally vanished.

In the conclusion of the Battle of Planet Namek, the side of good (plus Vegeta) had won. The blight that had terrorized the Universe for so long was no more. Frieza was finally dead.

The Super Saiyan power left Goku and Vegeta, their blonde hair reverting to its natural shade of black. Vegeta's dour expression melted away, replaced by a satisfied smirk. And the Prince fell forward, totally drained and unconscious.

Goku let loose a tired, but satisfied chuckle, and then he fell onto his back, unconscious as well.

 _A short way away, on a nearby island..._

Standing next to the Ginyu Force Battle Pod that he had been lucky enough to comes across, Raspberry couldn't believe his eyes. Those two Saiyans had just killed Lord Frieza! Raspberry was trembling in place. "Wh-What the hell is today?! Wh-Wh-What do...what do I do now...?!"

The soldier of the now defunct Frieza Force glanced around, making sure the coast was clear. He walked over to his escape vessel and frantically punched the button to open the door, wanting to escape before any of those Saiyans allies showed up.

Raspberry turned and looked over at the unconscious Goku and Vegeta one final time, not noticing as a Namekian Frog hopped into the Battle Pod. "I... if I go to the King... _he'll kill me._.."

Raspberry hopped into the pod and pressed the button for the door to close. "I have to run off! Yeah! I have to find a border planet where no one would never bother to go! I'll be safe there!"

The door to the Battle Pod closed and it started to rise into the air. Raspberry smirked. "And then I can get big bro Cranberry to bring me some supplies and..."

Raspberry looked at the viewing window of his escape vessel, seeing something spelled on the glass in what appeared to be slime. "Wh-what the hell?! _Ch-Chan...Chan...ge...N..._ "

The Battle Pod sped off into the atmosphere, a single golden flash bursting from the window as it ascended. And then it went flying off into space.

It's destination: nowhere good.


	40. Chapter 40: A New Threat

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 40: A New Threat**

 _Two months after the death of Frieza..._

Bulma and Chi-Chi both sat there, in front of the computer screen, speaking to everyone back on Earth. A lot had happened over the past two months...

 _After he felt Frieza's energy signature disappear, Gohan and Raditz took off without hesitation. Chi-Chi and Bulma were left to worry for nearly twenty minutes, but the two of them eventually returned with an unconscious Goku and Vegeta slung over their shoulders. Once it was confirmed that Frieza was well and truly gone, plans were set into motion to achieve the original goal they had all come to this planet to do: revive all of their fallen friends._

 _Raditz immediately got into contact with King Kai and had him connect them to Kami. The Guardian or Earth, already suspecting that they would be necessary, had already gathered the Earth Dragon Balls. They wish they had to make was clear, Planet Namek had to be returned to its pre-Frieza state. The wish to Shenron was made to return all of the Namekian people to life._

 _The return of the Namekians triggered the return of another figure as well: Porunga was back. The wish was made to the Namekian Dragon to return Planet Namek to its former state, and then Porunga vanished for another Namekian year, roughly three months._

 _And then, everyone went to the Grand Elder Guru for guidance on what to do next. The Grand Elder did not have long left, even before Frieza had injured him so gravely. By the time everyone had gathered, the eldest elder was already on his last breaths. However, he did not seem sad by this. In his final moments, Grand Elder Guru did two things. First, he reached out and passed on the title of Grand Elder to Tsuno. And then, with the last of his power, Lord Guru reached out and healed Goku and Vegeta, the saviors of Namek._

 _His work done and his long life finally drawing to a close, Grand Elder Guru Molluska settled into his chair. And then, he passed on for the final time._

 _The mourning period was brief, but not sad. The Namekian people celebrated the life of their great leader with tears in their eyes. And then, they immediately got to work. The farmers got back to farming, the children played, and the new Grand Elder Guru Tsuno made a promise to everyone from Earth: within three months, the Namekian Dragon Balls would be back and be stronger than ever._

Roshi nodded, waiting for Bulma to finish speaking before he himself spoke. Once Bulma was done, the old man asked another question. "So, how is everyone since then?"

Bulma shrugged. "Sort of the same, sort of different."

The woman leaned back in her chair. "Piccolo was pretty weird for a while there. He actually seemed kinda sad about the Grand Elder dying, but that's probably just Nail shining out through him. He was there for the entire funeral, he even helped out with burying Grand Elder Guru next to that unknown grave..."

Roshi nodded. "Maybe he's starting to come around from his old, evil ways."

Chi-Chi interjected. "I'd like to think he's becoming a nicer person. He's been very polite with me. And he's been keeping Gohan entertained between meals and studying with their training sessions~"

Roshi flinched, seemingly surprised at how accepting of training Chi-Chi suddenly was. Bulma nodded in agreement with Chi-Chi. "They aren't the only ones enjoying training either."

Roshi nodded. "Goku, eh?"

Bulma nodded back. "It's crazy...but Goku, Raditz and _even Vegeta_ have been at it near non-stop!"

Roshi gasped. " _V-Vegeta?!_ "

Bulma nodded. "Yeah! Saiyans are nuts, man! It's almost like the three of them have forgotten how recently they were being mauled by an evil space monster!"

Chi-Chi crossed her arms in a huff. "It's because those damned tails grew back! Goku was always so much wilder with that thing attached to his waist!"

Roshi's jaw dropped. "G-Goku's...tail...grew...back?!"

Bulma nodded. "Y-yeah. When the Grand Elder healed Goku and Vegeta, before he passed on, their tails both popped out all of a sudden. They both seemed really confused when they woke up and they were there."

Roshi was sputtering. "B-B-B-B-But Kami removed Goku's tail permanently! How is it back?!"

Bulma thoughtfully stroked her chin. "If I had to guess...I would say that the transformation into the Super Saiyan state caused their Saiyan biorhythms to go nuts and sorta...reset them. But, it would be irresponsible to think that Lord Guru's influence didn't have a hand in all of this..."

As Bulma continued to mumble to herself about Saiyan biology, Chi-Chi spoke up. "But, yeah. The tails are making Goku and Vegeta go wild! And I feel so bad for poor Raditz too..."

Roshi nodded. "Why is that? Is the poor guy fallin' behind Goku and Vegeta?"

Chi-Chi nodded back. "Yeah. But, not for lack of trying. He's just juggling so much all at once..."

Bulma frowned. "Poor Raditz. Trying to keep up with his brother and Vegeta, taking the time to make sure Gine's body is ready for when she comes back, and spending so much of his day checking on Bardock..."

Roshi stroked his beard. "Bardock eh? I imagine losing his wife must have been hard on him."

Chi-Chi glanced away from the screen, a pained look on her face. "He was so happy to hear that Frieza was gone. It's the first time I've seen him genuinely happy about something. But...when he saw Gine..."

Chi-Chi wiped her eyes and Bulma continued. "He... looked so lost. He saw Gine's body and... he just left. He's been wondering Namek for the past two months, not saying anything to anyone."

Roshi nodded. "He sounds like a lost soul. Poor fella."

Chi-Chi sniffled. "We've been trying. Me and Raditz both. Taking him food and trying to talk to him. But, something inside him has changed. I haven't seen him cry or scream or get upset... but something inside his head has just... _changed_..."

 _Meanwhile, in a far off Namekian field..._

Golden energy flared as Goku and Vegeta clashed against one another. Each of the Super Saiyans fought to the best of their ability, exchanging blows faster than the eye could comprehend. The two of them were having the time of their lives, trying to outdo one another with their new power and gain the lead in what was becoming quite the hot rivalry.

Vegeta shot around behind Goku and tried to slam him over the head with a double fist smash. But, as he slammed his arms down, the Prince was surprised. Goku's tail shot up and wrapped around Vegeta's wrists. And then, with a quick spin, Goku threw Vegeta towards the ground.

Vegeta scoffed and spun in the air. The Prince shot a massive blast towards the ground to cushion his fall and then, landing on his feet, Vegeta fired two more blasts into the air. Goku smirked and then countered with two blasts of his own. The result of these blasts clashing was a massive, fantastic explosion.

Goku hovered there, waiting for the next attack to come. He was surprised by Vegeta shooting out from the smoke, a fist drawn. Vegeta threw his punch at Goku, but Goku caught it. Goku threw a punch of his own, but Vegeta caught it. The two of them floated there, holding each other in place. Unable to move, they each boosted their power as high as they could, hoping to push the other off. The two Super Saiyan powers flared against each other and resulted in a small, flashy explosion. Neither Goku or Vegeta was hurt, they separated and smirked at each other, looking ready for more.

But then, after a moment, both Goku and Vegeta let out a lighthearted chuckle and released their Super Saiyan forms. As the golden glow faded from each warrior, they addressed their growth. Vegeta sighed. "I hate to admit it, but working with you has actually served to make me quite a bit stronger..."

Goku smiled wide and chuckled. "You just hate to admit that you're starting to like all of us~!"

Vegeta instantly frowned. " _Don't push it._ "

Goku floated over to Vegeta, acting like his normal, goofy self. "Aw come on! You know that you're starting to like everyone! You like Chi-Chi's cooking! And you and Bulma are starting to get along! And-"

Vegeta slugged Goku in the face, but Goku took it in stride. "I mean...you and Piccolo still don't get along, but I think that's just because you too aren't used to each other yet."

Vegeta was bitter and silent. Goku sighed. "Fine, I'll stop."

The Saiyan from Earth tapped his fist into his palm. "Oh! I know! How about we try training with the other form!"

Vegeta put on a confident smirk. "There we go. I'd be up for that. But we need to go and find Raditz. He can't just stand aside and avoid training all day. He's a Saiyan too! I expect him to be at his best so that I have more challenging opponents to fight against in the future!"

Goku snickered and nodded. "Yeah! I feel the same way!"

Vegeta turned to Goku. "Also, I need him to be strong in case some random idiot decides to let the next threat live."

Goku frowned. "Oh, come on, man! Can't you just let that one go? I didn't... Hey! It's Raditz!"

Vegeta turned and he and Goku both saw Raditz flying by in the distance. The older brother was holding a parcel and looked focused on whatever he was doing. Goku and Vegeta both flew over to him and called out. "Hey! Raditz!"

Raditz turned to see his brother and Vegeta approaching and sighed. He stopped as they flew up to him. "Hey Kakarot. Vegeta."

Vegeta glanced down at the parcel. "What are you carrying there?"

Goku sniffed. "Whatever it is, it smells delicious!"

Raditz held it up. "It's dinner. For Dad. If you're hungry, Chi-Chi has started on dinner for everyone else. So, you should probably hurry up and head that way before she comes looking for you. You know how she can be when people are late."

Vegeta stared at the parcel. "For Bardock, eh?"

Raditz frowned. "Yeah..."

Goku cocked his head. "How is Dad, anyway?"

Raditz shrugged. "I... can't answer that. He'd have to talk for me to tell you anything other than that he's alive..."

The mood quickly shifted to sullen and tense. Raditz shook his head. "Listen. Go eat. And then, once dinner is over and you've both had some time to rest, I'll join you guys for some more training..."

Raditz smiled, making the bags under his eyes more apparent. "Okay...?"

Goku put on a cheerful smile. "Right! Sounds good, Raditz!"

Vegeta sarcastically shrugged. "Whatever."

The three Saiyans nodded at each other and then they split off. Goku and Vegeta flew off back towards the Capsule Ship and Raditz flew in the direction of Bardock's energy signature.

 _Meanwhile, over a ridge near the Capsule Ship..._

The Namekian wind blew over the field as two warriors cried out. The pages of one of Gohan's books fluttered in the breeze as he and Piccolo sparred against one another. Things had been really good for the two of them lately.

Ever since Chi-Chi had given her blessing for some training, with a focus still being on academics, Gohan had been a lot less stressed. His mother's approval of Piccolo, after the Namekian had saved them from Frieza, was a welcomed change indeed. And, although he would never verbalize it, Piccolo was a lot happier too.

With his new power, the Namekian was at a level he had never thought of before. And, with his friend and pupil training with him, he was getting to exercise it against a worthy challenger. Gohan and Piccolo both kicked at one another, their legs crossing. Piccolo proved to be the stronger warrior and sent Gohan flying back. The boy tumbled across the ground, but quickly recovered and stood up. "Nice kick, Mr. Piccolo!"

Piccolo shook his head. "Don't think you're so big that you can complement me, brat! Your kick was sloppy!"

Gohan smiled and took a fighting stance. "Yes sir! I'll get it right next time!"

Piccolo took a fighting stance of his own. "I'm sure you will."

Gohan and Piccolo clashed again. As the two of them fought, they started talking to one another. "So, Mr. Piccolo, are you still gonna try to take over the Earth?"

Piccolo was a bit shocked by the question. Gohan tried to take advantage with a quick jab, but Piccolo caught it. "No."

Piccolo punched Gohan in the stomach and tossed him away. "Earth is nothing more than a trinket at the end of the day. All I really want is to hand Goku his ultimate defeat!"

Piccolo fired a weak ki blast at Gohan as the boy was standing up, knocking him onto his back. "Do you have an issue with that, kid?"

Gohan stood, brushing himself off. "I..."

Gohan took another fighting stance. "No. As a matter of fact, I'm happy that you still want to do that. I'm sure it would make my Dad happy to know that one of his favorite rivals is still out to beat him! But if you were to hurt or kill my Dad..."

Gohan leapt at Piccolo, a blast charged in his off hand. "I'd probably have to seek revenge!"

As his pupil chuckled, Piccolo couldn't help but do the same. The Namekian levied his hand towards the boy and fired a blast of his own. "You're still too weak to be that cheeky with me, runt!"

Gohan threw his blast and, to Piccolo's surprise, Gohan's attack negated his own. The boy dropped from the sky and, catching Piccolo off-guard, kicked the Namekian in the face. Piccolo glared down at the scrappy half-Saiyan... but then he smiled. "I'm glad to see that once Goku is gone, I already have another rival in the making!"

Gohan smiled wide. The two of them prepared to go at it again, but then an all-too-familiar sound started echoing out. A wooden spoon clattered against a metal pan and Chi-Chi came flying over the ridge. "Dinner time you two! Pack up the books and the training gear and get over here! It's time to eat!"

Piccolo and Gohan looked to one another and sighed, and then they both followed Chi-Chi's orders.

 _In front of the Capsule Ship..._

The tables were set up and the spread was truly impressive as everyone gathered for another one of Chi-Chi's spectacular dinners. The group had run out of Earth food a month ago, but Chi-Chi made due with what she had around her. Several platters of Namekian seafood were spread across the table. Alongside them, a few different dishes made of Ajisa as well as several items made from the fruit of the Namekian trees were on display. It all smelled amazing, cooked with the Mt. Paozu/Fire Mountain touch.

And the group from Earth was not alone. As Chi-Chi laid out all of her hard work, Dende, Talus, and Grand Elder Tsuno joined them as well. Chi-Chi, being the kind host, kindly showed them to the kettle of hot Ajisa tea and the juice from the Namekian fruit. Elder Tsuno sipped from his mug and smiled warmly. "Thank you for your hospitality!"

Chi-Chi winked. "Thank you for joining us. And please, I know that Namekians don't have to eat, but I insist that you try a plate of my cooking~"

It was a peaceful environment. Dende and Gohan both sat at a table together, laughing and joking around as Gohan ate. Piccolo sat on the other side from them, eating a sparse amount of Chi-Chi's food, only because Gohan went through the trouble of making him a plate.

The three of them were quickly joined by Goku, who was all too happy to join them in joking around.

Over at the food-serving table, Vegeta snapped his fingers. "Hey! Hey! Kakarot's woman! Where's the bread?! I demand bread!"

Chi-Chi, a vein popping from his forward, smashed her tongs down against a pot of steamed Ajisa. "You can wait a minute, you impatient ass! It's still baking!"

Vegeta growled under his breath. Chi-Chi snapped the tongs at him. "Don't you take that attitude with me! Don't think that you're too 'super' to have a foot jammed up your ass!"

As Vegeta and Chi-Chi stared each other down, Bulma called over. "Hey! Vegeta! Quit fighting with Chi-Chi and come over here! I need to talk to you about something!"

Vegeta broke away from Chi-Chi and walked over to the rock Bulma was sitting on. He sat in the grass next to her and started eating. "What do you want?"

Bulma pointed over to the project she had been spending two months on, the four recovered Ginyu Force Pods. "I think, using the parts from the pod that you came here in, I managed to fix up the four of those pretty well. I'd like you to test fly one for me. Okay?"

Vegeta spat out a ligament from the Namekian crab he was eating. "Test fly to where?"

Bulma pointed up. "Nearest planet and back. Think you can handle that?"

Vegeta nodded. "Yes, Earth woman, I can handle that."

Bulma sighed. "Bulma."

Vegeta glared over at her. Bulma said it again. "Bulma. My name is Bulma."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Fine, _Bulma_ , I'll test drive your repaired pod for you after I take a nap."

Bulma smiled. "Thanks, _Vegeta_."

All in all, everything was good and everyone was at peace. The laughed and made merry and brightly discussed the future. And not a single one of them noticed the lens of a stealthy spy drone snapping pictures in the distance.

 _Far off, in a distant Namekian plane..._

Raditz scanned the ground at he flew, eventually finding what he was looking for. Down on the ground, looking haggard and worn. Since the last time he had seen him, Raditz could tell that Bardock hadn't slept. The older Saiyans gait was limping and sluggish. His movements imprecise and sloppy. He was still wearing the damaged armor from two months ago. Bardock was a wreck.

Raditz didn't even bother with the preamble of calling out to him. Instead, the eldest son simply landed and thrust the parcel at his father. Bardock didn't look at Raditz, he simply snatched the food from his son and continued walking without a word.

Raditz remained tight-lipped. He just waited, hoping that Bardock would say _something_. But, once a good 100 feet had been made between them, Raditz finally spoke up. "Why don't you come back, Dad?!"

Bardock didn't stop walking. Raditz turned and glared at his father. "Hey! Answer me!"

Still nothing.

Raditz was grinding his teeth. He shouted at his father, even though Bardock kept walking. "Come back! Join us! Frieza is gone, Dad! We won!"

Nothing. Raditz was practically shaking. "We've all spoken to her! King Kai let us! Don't you realize how badly you're hurting her by refusing to speak to her?! She doesn't know what she did to make you so upset!"

Bardock limped over a nearby hill. As he disappeared over the horizon, Raditz called out one more time. "What's wrong with you, Dad?!"

Over the hill, Bardock continued his march forward. After hearing Raditz take off, screaming in frustration, Bardock sighed. He needed a break. Bardock continued his shuffling walk until he came across a cave. The older Saiyan walked in and sat down, ripping open the food parcel and eating it with his hands.

Bardock fired a blast at a nearby pile of wood and lit it up. The warmth of the fire settled onto his skin and Bardock continued to eat in silence.

But then, ghostly whispers started echoing through his head again.

" _Wouldn't it be nice to retire on Earth~?"_

Bardock gripped his fist, remembering how cold she was.

" _I just want to relax together...live a little..."_

He clenched his teeth and remember the look frozen on her face.

" _...I don't want to die alone...again..."_

He thought of the sadness in Raditz and Chi-Chi's voices. He knew that they were right, but...he couldn't face her again. Not after all of this. Not after he had failed her like this. He let her die, _again_ , to that little bastard.

Frieza's laughter echoed through Bardock's head and he began to shake. He was furious. Furious at Frieza, furious at life, furious at himself. And then, another familiar feeling hit. Bardock felt another future vision coming on. As the look into the future came to him, Bardock snarled in frustration. And then, before it could start, he smashed his head against the wall of the cave behind him and put it to a stop.

Bardock sat there, feeling the warmth and the wetness as it oozed down the back of his head and down his neck. The older Saiyan was fading in and out of consciousness, and he didn't know what to say or do. He just went limp and... his mind started going to a pretty dark place.

As he thought about Gine's face, her silly laugh and her cheerful smile, Bardock slowly closed his eyes. But then he heard a faint sound that was totally alien to Planet Namek and Bardock's eyes snapped open. He turned his head and, to his shock, Bardock saw what appeared to be a stealth drone zipping by.

Bardock stood, taking a brief break from the demons in his head, and then he stood and gave chase to the drone.

 _A short distance away, in a small quarry..._

Bardock came up upon the ridge of a small quarry and suppressed his power down to nothing. Carefully and quietly, the older Saiyan sneaked up behind a rock a spied down into the quarry. Down below, Bardock saw a miniature interstellar travel ship, a radar dish, and two soldiers that he did not recognize: a pink, lizard-looking guy and a green-skinned, older fellow with a white beard.

Bardock didn't take either of them too seriously. They didn't look like fighters. They were probably just a couple of Frieza Force nobodies looking for their boss. Bardock watched as the green one plugged his drone into the side of the ship and pressed a button. He couldn't make out what the two of them were saying to one another, but something here felt off. And then, the pink one turned and Bardock saw the symbol on the breastplate of his armor. And Bardock's pupils shrank to the size of pinpricks. These were _NOT_ Frieza's men.

Down in the quarry, the pink guy shook his head and studied the pictures on this tablet in his hand. "Crazy to think about, eh Kumquat? That some random gutter trash could just roll up and off Frieza like that..."

Kumquat shook his head. "I'm not paid to think about it, Pompom. You should learn to adopt that mindset, you'll live longer. We aren't here to speculate on how Lord Frieza was killed, we're just here to gather information on his killers."

Pompom cocked his head, turning to face his older companion. The older gent turned away to check on the drone. "But, it's just weird to imagine what'll happen next. Things are gonna heat up quick. There'll probably be a draft and an invasion and a war."

Kumquat shook his head. "No. The King will most likely not be pleased by all of this. I imagine that the response to this problem will not take that long to carry out."

Suddenly, a loud snap echoed out behind Kumquat. He turned just in time to see Pompom's corpse fly into the side of the ship. And then, lightning quick, he was seized by a Saiyan in severely damaged armor.

Bardock drew his fist back, coating it in energy, and snarled at Kumquat. "Who in the hell are you?!"

Kumquat saw the fear in Bardock's eyes and chuckled. "Going by that look, you already know who I am. Or, at the very least, what I represent. Do you not?"

Before Bardock could respond, the drone sounded from its place on the side of the ship. " **IMAGE UPLOAD COMPLETE.** "

Kumquat chuckled again. "And, it would appear that you are too late."

Bardock snarled. And then, screaming in frustration, he threw his fist forward.

 _Back at the Capsule Ship..._

Suddenly, the happy family dinner was interrupted by the shocking sight of two corpses slamming onto the table. Pompom and Kumquat's dead eyes stared up at the lot of them and Chi-Chi shrieked in shock. Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Piccolo all turned their attention to the grand return of Bardock. Goku instantly stood up. "H-hey Dad! What happened?"

Bulma, reacting to both the return of Bardock and the corpses on the table, shouted at the top of her lungs. " _What the hell is wrong with you?!_ "

Bardock blew Bulma off. "We have a problem! _A really serious problem_!"

Piccolo turned his attention from Bardock and towards the corpses he had returned with. And, when he did, the Namekian was met by the sights of shock and horror, respectively, on Vegeta and Raditz's faces. Piccolo glanced from them and down to the corpses of Kumquat and Pompom again. "What's the matter? Who are these two?"

Bardock shook his head. "Names don't matter. I don't know who they are."

The older Saiyan picked up Kumquat and pointed to the crest that adorned the breastplate of his armor. "This symbol is the problem!"

Gohan was confused. "That symbol? Wh-What does that symbol mean?"

Raditz's mouth and throat were dry, but he spoke. "Th-That is... the symbol of House Cold. House Cold is led by..."

Raditz swallowed. "King Cold. And King Cold is... _Frieza's father_..."

As Raditz trembled, Bardock and Vegeta both looked as if they were going to crumble right then and there. They had defeated Frieza! He was gone! But now... NOW THIS?!

Bardock took a deep breath and then spoke bluntly. "This is, somehow, even worse than having to deal with Frieza. King Cold knows we're here. He knows what we've done. He knows where Namek is and it wouldn't take him long to track us back to Earth."

Goku chuckled. "Is that it? That isn't so bad! When he shows up to Earth, we can defeat him just like we did with Frieza!"

Vegeta finally spoke up. "No, Kakarot. It's not that simple."

Everyone turned to Vegeta and the Prince spoke. "Frieza is an out-and-out sadist. He always wanted to have a hand in killing people that defy him. Cold is a sadist as well, but he's also a business-first type of person."

Chi-Chi spoke up. "So, what does that mean?"

Bardock interjected. "That means that this planet and the Earth could both be blown into pieces from a distance and we would never know until it's too late."

With that comment, everyone started freaking out. Raditz, Bulma, and Chi-Chi started to panic. Gohan was scared. Dende, Talus, and Elder Tsuno was horrified. Even Piccolo and Vegeta seemed incredibly unnerved. But, as everyone panicked around him, Goku remained calm. The Saiyan from Earth stood with a smile. "Guys! Why are you all panicking?"

All eyes turned to Goku and Goku nodded at his friends. "If the problem is that this Cold guy is going to come to Namek and Earth, then we don't we just prevent that from happening and go to him instead?"

Everyone's jaws dropped. Goku chuckled and folded his arms behind his head. "We can go there and try to work things out with him. And, of that doesn't work, we can just kick his butt like we did with Frieza!"

Silence fell over the group for a few moments, but then Vegeta spoke up. "Y-You want to go to King Cold's home and take care of things right then and there?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah!"

It took Vegeta a moment to process that Goku was being serious. But then, the Prince quickly adopted a smile. "Kakarot...I like that idea. I like that idea a lot, actually!"

Bulma gasped. "Wh-What?! You can't be-"

Bardock cut her off. "This is a really stupid idea. But... I was about to suggest it myself. We need to make sure the Earth and Namek are safe and we cannot leave anything to chance. If the two of you are up for it, then we should all rest up and head out as soon as possible."

Goku and Vegeta both nodded in agreement. Vegeta smirked. "Well, welcome back Bardock!"

Bulma spoke up again. "H-How do you plan to even go there in the first place?"

Goku pointed over to the Ginyu Force Pods. "You fixed up those four ships, we'll just have to borrow three of them if you don't mind~"

Bulma was speechless. Goku turned from her to Gohan and Chi-Chi. "You guys will be okay while I'm gone, right?"

Gohan nodded. "Yeah Dad! We'll be fine!"

Chi-Chi rolled her eyes and sighed. "I swear, this is going to be the rest of my life, isn't it?"

The wife shook her head, but then she smiled. "But I know that we don't really have a choice. So, go ahead and go, Goku. Just, promise me that you'll come home in one piece, okay?"

Goku quickly nodded and Chi-Chi let loose a small chuckle. She walked up to her husband and kissed him on the cheek. "Well then, you and Bardock and Vegeta go and rest up. And, while you're doing that, Bulma and I will repair your clothes. Can't have you going to overthrow an evil king in rags, now can we?"

Goku and the others agreed and they led the way back into the ship. They were quickly followed by Gohan, Piccolo, and the other Namekians. Bulma was the last to follow, sighing in exasperation. "This is all just crazy..."

And, with all of them gone, Raditz was left standing there, a plaintive look spread across his face.

 _Several hours later..._

After a long rest and another meal, Goku, Vegeta, and Bardock all stood next to their Battle Pods. With their newly repaired outfits (orange gi, blue and white battle armor, and black and green battle armor respectively), the three Saiyans were saying their final goodbyes before heading off to the next battle.

Goku stepped up to Piccolo and offered a handshake. "Piccolo, I know that we still have our differences, but can I trust you to watch over Earth while we're gone?"

Piccolo hesitated just a bit, but he nodded and shook his rival's hand. "Of course. But, the second you return I plan to be strong enough to settle this rivalry once and for all."

Goku smiled. "Looking forward to it."

Goku walked away from Piccolo and over to Gohan and Chi-Chi. Goku picked up his son and chuckled. "You're getting so big!"

Chi-Chi stepped up to her husband and wrapped her arms around him. "You promise to come home in one piece, right?"

Goku responded by wrapping his tail around Chi-Chi. He pulled her close and the two of them shared a kiss. "Yeah! Of course, I promise~"

Chi-Chi blushed and smiled, burying her head in her husband's chest. "Oh Goku~"

As Goku enjoyed a few moments with his family, his brother, dressed in his brown and teal gi and chest armor, came walking up to them. Goku smiled and offered a handshake. "Raditz! You'll help Piccolo defend the Earth, right?"

Raditz frowned at his brother. Goku cocked his head. "Is something wrong?"

Raditz slapped Goku's hand away and spoke. "This is crazy! Suicidal even! King Cold is the most vicious monster that this universe has ever faced!"

Goku nodded. "I know. Dad and Vegeta told me all about him while we were eating! That doesn't mean he's unbeatable though!"

Raditz clenched his teeth. "So...my Dad, my little brother, and my former boss just plan to waltz up to his front door and put a stop to him all on their lonesome?"

Goku nodded. "We should be able to! At least, that's what I think!"

Raditz snapped. "Well you know what I think, Kakarot?!"

Goku flinched. Raditz gripped his fists tight. "I think that...I think that I'm scared. And that the thought of facing King Cold makes me want to throw up. But...I think it would be shameful for me to stand to the side while the three of you do this. There are four Battle Pods, four full-blooded Saiyans present... and, as much as I hate it, I will not be the only one to not contribute..."

Goku smiled. He reached out his hand and put it on his brother's shoulder. "We're happy to have you with us, Raditz! Let's go and finish this together!"

And so, Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock walked up to their pods. Vegeta chuckled. "Nice to have you along, Raditz. You can be Cold's punching bag while the rest of us fight him."

Bardock was calm, almost too calm. "Shut up, Vegeta."

The four of them got into their Battle Pods and took to the air. Goku waved by to everyone on the ground and then, the four Battle Pods flew into the stratosphere.

On the ground, Tsuno and Talus both stared into the sky with concern clear on their faces. Talus spoke up. "Do you think they're going to be okay? Chasing after a bigger monster than Frieza seems risky..."

But, in spite of Talus's doubts, not a single person from Earth had any fear in their hearts. They knew that they would see those four again.

 _In space..._

Bardock got onto the radio and spoke to the other three. "I got the coordinates to Planet Cold before I blew up those guy's ship. This isn't going to be a short trip, so it would probably be for the best to go into artificial hibernation until we get there."

The other three agreed. And, after explaining to Goku how artificial hibernation worked, all four of them went down. They all knew that, next time they woke up, they would be in for an even greater challenge than ever before.

 _And so..._

After Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock left, another month seemed to pass like it was nothing. After that short time, Grand Elder Tsuno's adjustments to the Dragon Balls were finished. Together, the group from Earth and the Namekians summoned the great Eternal Dragon, Porunga.

As thanks for all they had done to save Planet Namek from Frieza, the Earthlings were given the first wish. Using the newly powered-up abilities of Porunga, they wished for all of the damage that had been done in the Saiyan Invasion of Earth and the Frieza Force invasion to be undone.

Porunga granted this wish with ease and began to implement his power. First, on Earth, the entirety of East City reappeared in a flash. All of the damage that Nappa had done when he and Vegeta appeared on Earth was undone and every single slain life was restored.

And then, several silhouettes appeared in the glowing surge of power beneath Porunga. From this flaring power, Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu, and Krillin all emerged.

And then, adding on to this joyous occasion, Gine came walking out of the nearby Capsule Ship. The Saiyan mother stared in awe at Porunga, being caught off-guard when Gohan and Chi-Chi ran up to her for a hug. Once that shock had worn off, Gine looked around. "Where's Bardock? I need to talk to him..."

As Gohan and Chi-Chi explained what was happening to Gine, Piccolo spoke to Grand Elder Tsuno. "Okay, our problems are taken care of. Now, for yours. You need to find somewhere the move this planet to. Somewhere where Frieza's organization will never find it again."

Elder Tsuno nodded. "I agree."

And so, the second wish was made on Porunga. Grand Elder Tsuno requested the dragon to find a place to relocate Planet Namek to. A safe place where vicious beings such as Frieza would never find them again. Porunga was able to quickly fulfill this desire and located a new place. Once that was done, the time finally came for goodbyes.

The Namekian people all faced their allies from Earth and expressed undying gratitude for all that they had done. The Earthlings returned this gratitude with gratitude of their own. Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all thanked the Namekians for giving them a second chance at life.

Gohan and Krillin shared on final moment with Dende, the three of them declaring an unbreakable friendship with one another. Dende seemed close to tears, but he swore to his friends that they would all meet again someday.

The Earthlings boarded their Capsule Ship and took off, so that they would not be lost from their home once Namek was moved. The Namekians watched as their new friends finally left to go home, and then Grand Elder Tsuno made the final wish.

From space, the Earthlings watched as Planet Namek vanished in an instant, leaving an empty spot in the solar system where it once stood.

Once again, in spite of missing a few people, everything was looking up for the Z-Fighters. And so, as they traveled back to Earth, the martial artists all trained together, using the gravity chamber that Goku and Raditz had used on the trip to Namek.

Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu, Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan (when he wasn't studying) all came to the same conclusion. They were not just going to let defending the Earth from threats become the "Saiyans-only" show. They would all become stronger!

As the men trained, pushing themselves to their limits, Bulma and Chi-Chi gathered up in one of the side rooms. Chi-Chi passed her time by coming up with new study lessons for Gohan, and Bulma was more than happy to help with that when she wasn't fiddling with what little technology she was able to salvage from Frieza's stuff.

As the two of them kept themselves busy, however, Gine sat off to the side. What Gohan and Chi-Chi had told her didn't sit well with the Saiyan mother. And so, for most of the trip back to Earth, she found herself staring out the window into space. She didn't doubt Kakarot, Vegeta, Raditz, or Bardock's strength. She counted on them to be able to handle matters with King Cold... but she was still forlorn when it came to thinking of her husband. Gine stared out into space, her face glazed with worry for Bardock.

Something in the back of Gine's head told her that the greatest hardships had yet to come.

 _Meanwhile, elsewhere..._

A small fireplace crackled in a dimly lit room. All that was visible was a single, yellow alien and a massive chair containing a much larger life-form. The alien stood there, gripping onto a massive bottle of wine and staring up at his master. After a long silence, the larger figure spoke. "I take it, by the look on your face, a development has occurred Kikono?"

Kikono flinched. "I... I am sorry to report, My Liege, but... we have lost contact with Kumquat and his subordinate..."

The larger figure leaned back, the rich leather chair he was in creaking. "Oh, yes. I expected no less... Ginyu's report was rather thorough."

He glared down at the tablet in his lap and cycled through the pictures of Frieza's killers on it. He traced his finger over the brown lump of fur coming out of one of their waists. " _Saiyans..._ "

He lowered his hand down, an empty goblet sitting in his grip. Kikono shrieked and immediately opened the bottle in his hand. "F-Forgive me, Your Excellency!"

As Kikono filled the goblet, he jumped in fear when his master whipped the tablet into the fireplace. The larger being spoke in a tired voice. " _How ridiculous..._ "

He raised his goblet and took a sip, watching as the flames licked his tablet and melted the picture of the Saiyan in orange. The Saiyans face distorted and shifted in the flames. He lowered his wine and stared at his reflection in it, seeing an evil, aged gaze staring back at him.

He stared into the fire again, watching as the orange Saiyan melted into nothing.

And then King Cold smiled and laughed.

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	41. Chapter 41: Planet Cold

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Hey guys! This is one of two chapters that I kinda wrote at the same time. They were originally going to be one chapter, but it was way too long for my tastes by the time I was done. Too much to digest all at once and I wouldn't wanna overwhelm people with too many details at the same time. So, enjoy this! And be expecting Chapter 42 sometime within the next 2-3 days. Maybe even tomorrow if I can help it. :)_

 **Chapter 41: Planet Cold**

 _Somewhere in Deep Space..._

The lights clicked on in Goku's Battle Pod and the Saiyan from Earth awoke to a light, hissing noise. Goku was groggy as he stared out his window, observing a massive, red planet directly in front of him. Reaching forward and clicking the button to activate the radio, Goku groaned out. "So, I guess we're here, eh?"

Goku was answered by Raditz. "Yeah...this is the Core Galaxy, Kakarot. And the planet you see is Planet Cold, the home planet of Frieza and his family. It might've taken nine months...but we're here _for better or for worse_..."

Goku cocked his head. "I really just slept nine months of my life away, huh? I... don't know how I feel about that..."

Bardock quickly chimed in. "Get over it. We have more important things to worry about. We're neck deep in the shit now, Kakarot. We have to stay focused."

The four Battle Pods pierced the atmosphere of Planet Cold and crashed down towards a wasteland. They were here now; it was time for action.

 _In the wasteland of Planet Cold..._

The door to the Battle Pod opened and Goku stood up, having a good stretch. He looked over and saw Raditz and Vegeta emerging as well, neither of them seemed quite as stiff as he was. Goku called over to them. "How did you two travel around like that for so long? My back is _so stiff_!"

Raditz shrugged. "You get used to it after a while, I guess."

Vegeta chuckled. "It probably doesn't help that you took _Guldo's_ pod either. You basically just spent nine months in a seat meant for your brat."

As the other three discussed their travel arrangements, Bardock stepped up to a nearby peak and stared out towards the distant capital. The older Saiyan turned and barked at his three companions. "Hey! We don't have time for small talk!"

Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz all stared up at Bardock and Bardock shook his head. "We need to move. And move quickly, at that. And we have to be stealthy about it while we're at it!"

Bardock summoned a small energy blast and fired it at his Battle Pod, reducing it to nothing but a burn mark on the ground. "Destroy your pods and come on, we gotta get moving and we can't let anyone from the Cold Force see us."

And then, Bardock turned without a word and went sprinting across the wasteland. Vegeta smirked. "I like this attitude~"

The Prince destroyed his pod and went running after Bardock. Goku and Raditz, meanwhile, turned to one another and shared a worried look. And then, they destroyed their pods as well and went sprinting after Vegeta and Bardock.

The four Saiyans ran for a good way, ducking behind cover whenever a contingent of Cold Force soldiers flew overhead. Once they got closer to the city however, and the coast was clear, the four of them climbed to the top of a nearby ledge and took in the full splendor of the capital city in front of them. Thousands upon thousands of building stood erect, looking like mere ants compared to the massive palace in the center of it all. Castle Cold was truly a mountain among pebbles, a constructed point-of-reference in how Cold's power and influence put him above everyone else.

Bardock grunted under his breath and then wrapped his tail around his waist. "Well, come on! We're never gonna get this done if we don't get to it."

Raditz and Vegeta did the same, tucking them away tight and making their tails appear as little more than furry belts. Goku leapt down after them, eager for the adventure to come. But, the Saiyan from Earth did not disguise his tail as the others did.

 _Within the Capital City..._

As the four Saiyan made their way through the crowds of the Capital City, Goku stared in awe at all of the sights that he observed. The Saiyan had explored West City and even East City in his time on Earth, but neither of them came closer to comparing to the sheer scope of this place.

Raditz, meanwhile, noticed a much different sight to behold within this massive metropolis: the sheer disparity of the two classes of people. It was easy to see where people stood within the society of Planet Cold, the rich were visibly rich, resplendent in their dress and their stride and the poor were visibly poor, clad in rags and with a posture that avoided even an accidental gaze on their societal betters.

The four of them shuffled deeper and deeper in the crowd until they observed an alley off to the side. Wordlessly, Bardock motioned for the three of them to follow him and all four of the Saiyans slinked into their private hideaway.

Bardock leaned against the wall, folding his arms over his chest. "Okay then, now that we've made it into the city, we need to discuss our plan. Here's what I had in-"

Bardock was cut off by a thunderous grumble. He and Vegeta and Raditz turned their attention to Goku, who was standing there clutching his stomach. "S-Sorry guys, I'm super hungry..."

Bardock sighed, observing his goofball of a younger son, clutching his stomach with his tail swaying around freely. "Kakarot-"

Another thunderous grumble. Bardock turned to Raditz, who blushed and averted his gaze. And then another. He turned his attention to Vegeta, who was standing with his back to the group. Bardock sighed. "You have got to be kidding me..."

And then, a thunderous grumble erupted from Bardock himself. The older Saiyan sighed and wordlessly glanced out of the alley, to a restaurant that stood on a lower-level street. Bardock rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Fine. We can eat first. But we gotta make it quick."

The four Saiyans all nodded in agreement and then they began to march towards the restaurant. As they did, however, Bardock stopped in his tracks and gave his son a rather harsh nudge with his elbow. "We're trying to be stealthy, Kakarot. Wrap your damned tail up!"

Goku nervously chuckled and scratched the back of his head as Bardock started walking again. "Sorry Dad..."

Goku wrapped his tail around his waist. And then, the four Saiyan made their way across the street and entered the restaurant.

 _Inside the restaurant..._

Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock were all sat at a table, waiting for someone to come and take their order. As the four of them say, they watched a further display of the class inequality of Planet Cold. Poor aliens, clad in little more than rags, were rushing around as fast as they could, serving food to the ungrateful, rich bastards that served as customers.

Goku watched as a vaguely person-shaped ball of lard threw his drink into a poor, tired-looking woman's face. Goku frowned. "Someone should teach that guy some manners..."

Raditz quickly intervened on this. "Keep calm, Kakarot. We aren't here to solve civil issues or make a scene. Try to remember that, okay..."

Goku didn't say a word back, looking rather angry instead. But this angry disposition was quickly interrupted by their waitress finally showing up. "Hello, may I take your order?"

Goku flinched, looking around for who had just spoken. Vegeta spoke up. "Kakarot, look down."

Goku looked down and chuckled. "Oh, I see!"

Down below, standing at a height that was shorter than the table itself, was their waitress for the evening. A blue-skinned little girl with messy hair and a bright smile. "Thank you for choosing to dine with us, may I take your order?"

Goku smiled. "Sure! Let's see...uh..."

Bardock interrupted. "Just bring us a feast. Doesn't matter what's in it."

Goku chuckled. "What he said!"

The little girl nodded, jotting the order into her notepad and nodding. "Yes sir! Thank you very much! It'll be out shortly!"

With a skip in her step, the little one ran towards the doors to the kitchen. Along the way, just a bit carelessly, she accidentally tripped over another customer's foot. "S-Sorry! Please forgive my rudeness!"

Quickly, she stood back up and ran to the kitchen. And then, the person who's shoe she tripped over pressed his four palms against the table, pushing his wide frame up. He stood and lumbered after the girl, leaving two women clad in chains sitting at the table with sullen expressions on their faces.

Sitting and waiting for their meal, the four Saiyans began to whisper the strategy to one another. Bardock mumbled as quietly as he could. "This might take a while. We need to find a way to get Cold by his lonesome, so we need to figure out his schedule..."

Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz all nodded. Bardock continued. "Even twenty years ago, Cold basically bowed out of the spotlight the moment he split his army and gave it away. When Frieza took over, the old bastard basically retired. So, we'll probably have to spend at least a couple of weeks learning the ins and outs of his schedule on this planet and then-"

Suddenly, Bardock was cut off by a piercing shriek coming from the kitchen. He and Vegeta jerked around in their seats and the four Saiyans watched as the doors to the kitchen flew open. The same tired-looking woman from before came crashing out and landed on the ground hard. But, rather than cringe at the massive scrape she had on her arm, she immediately bowed her head. "No! Please! Forgiveness, please!"

As the four of them watched this scene play out, Goku flinched in shock as the four-armed, fat alien from before came lumbering out of the kitchen, gripping their waitress by the throat. Before the fat bastard could speak, a bearded man came rushing from the kitchen. "Gooda!"

The fat alien shoved him to the ground, next to the woman. The two of them stared up with fear at their assailant and then the both slammed their foreheads to the ground. The man spoke. "P-Please, my poor Gooda is just a little girl. She did not mean to offend you, sir!"

The girl hung limp from the fat bastard's grip, a gash on her forehead trickling blood. "D-Daddy..."

Finally, the rotund alien planted two of his fists into his sides and spoke. "You scum dare seek forgiveness for scuffing the great _Count Bologna's_ shoe?! Do you realize who I am?! I'm an up-and-coming mover and shaker in society and you've dared to make me unpresentable before my first Cold Gala this evening?! You think I can just let that slide?!"

The fat bastard reached down, picking up the father's meat cleaver with his free hand. He slammed Gooda against the wall and held the cleaver aloft. "This little brat is going to pay for damaging my shoe with her foot! That will teach her to be more careful in the future!"

He drew the cleaver back, a sadistic smirk on his face. "This should teach you a lesson, wretch!"

However, the cleaver was never allowed to swing forward. Try as he might, Bologna could not make his arm move. The haughty alien turned to glare at whatever was impeding him. His glare was an attempt to be cutting and fierce, but Goku's glare was much harsher. Bologna sneered. "Who do you think _you_ are?!"

Goku ignored his question, speaking seriously. "Put her down. Now!"

Bologna was having none of this. Taking one of his extra arms, he balled up his fist and tossed it towards Goku's face. " _HOW DARE YOU TRY TO ORDER ME AROUND?!_ "

Goku easily dodged the attempt at a punch and then responded with one of his own. He slammed his fist into Bologna's stomach and knocked all of the wind out of the fat bastard's gut. Bologna's grip on Gooda loosened and Goku caught her from the air as Bologna fell to his knees.

After a few moments of coughing and choking, Bologna shakily stood back up. Goku, cradling Gooda in his arm, looked pissed. His tail unfurled and he sneered. "You should leave, right now!"

Off to the side, Raditz, Bardock, and Vegeta could only watch in horror as Goku blew their cover not even a full day after arriving on the planet. Bologna glared at Goku, but Goku stood firm. He looked ready to beat the utter hell out of Bologna. Goku took a small step forward and Bologna stumbled back, landing on his butt. "Y-You..."

He stood and grabbed the chain leashes of the two women he was seated with. "You'll pay for this, I swear it!"

He jerked on the chain, nearly choking out the two attached to it, and then he fled from the restaurant as fast as he could. Once he had made his leave, the other patrons quickly filed out as well, clearly fearing some form of retribution. Soon, the only people left in the restaurant were the four Saiyans and the family. Bardock stood from his seat with a start, marching up to Goku and grabbing him by the collar. "Dammit Kakarot! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Goku held up his hands. "Come on! I couldn't just sit by and let that happen! She's just a little girl, and-"

Bardock cut him off. "Look, I get that you want to be altruistic and help people out, but-"

"E-Excuse me..."

Bardock and Goku both turned to see the tired-looking woman clutching Gooda tight against her chest. For the first time since the Saiyans had entered the restaurant, she had a small smile on her face. "Thank you...so much...for saving our daughter."

She immediately teared up, clutching Gooda tight. The man stood with a smile on his face. "Genuinely, thank you so much. We...we can't offer much, but we can at least provide you with a free meal."

Bardock took a deep breath and sighed, unable to find the same anger he once would have over this. He let Goku's shirt go and shook his head. "Fine..."

Once everything settled down, Gooda and her family went back into their kitchen and brought the Saiyans their feast. After the standard introductions, the meal began. As the four of them ate, Raditz spoke up. "So...that four-armed prick said that he was headed to a 'Cold Gala'. Does that mean that King Cold is throwing a party or something?"

Gooda's father, Munster, nodded. "Indeed. It was announced a couple of weeks ago. Pretty off time for one of his galas...he usually sticks to a schedule..."

Her mother, Swis, sighed as she twirled a lock of her daughter's hair around her finger. "From what I've heard some of our guests say today, it's an announcement gala. Apparently, King Cold is going to declare a personally lead invasion of a defiant planet. I feel so sorry for whoever made him angry enough to want to go to war like this..."

Raditz swallowed hard. Bardock and Vegeta both realized what that meant as well. Goku nervously chuckled. "I guess he's going to announce he's invading Earth, huh?"

Bardock stood. "Yep. And that means that we gotta act quick. Come on! Let's move!"

Bardock immediately made for the exit. Raditz and Vegeta were right on his tail. Goku smiled at his new friends. "Um, about payment..."

Munster waved him off. "Free. As a thank you for your kindness..."

Goku smiled wide and he and Munster shook hands. And then, after one more pat on Gooda's head, he turned and followed his fellow Saiyans out. Munster smiled, and tiredly sighed. "I must say, it's nice to see there are still good people in the Universe...let alone a good _Saiyan_."

Bardock, Raditz, Vegeta, and Goku all stopped dead in their tracks. They all turned and noticed that, once again, Goku's tail was unwound. Not knowing what to say, Munster reassured them. "Our lips are sealed. Once more...thank you for saving my daughter, Son Goku."

Goku smiled and waved bye and then the four Saiyans quickly made their way out of the restaurant.

 _A few blocks down the street..._

Raditz scolded as he and the others walked through the back alleys of the Capital City. "Kakarot, please. For goodness sake, wrap your tail around your waist! Saiyans aren't exactly a common sight, especially on a planet like this! We don't want the full force of the Cold Force on our heads!"

Goku smirked. "Are you sure? That sounds like it could be a fun fight~!"

Raditz shuddered. "You're out of your damned mind..."

Vegeta interjected. "No, he's a Saiyan, Raditz. Saiyans are always seeking a better fight!"

Goku chuckled. "Hah! See?"

Vegeta turned to Goku. "But, Raditz is right! Take care of your damned tail, Kakarot! That's your symbol of pride as a Saiyan! You need to make sure that you present it properly!"

Goku cocked his head. Raditz sighed. "Give it a rest, Vegeta. Nobody ever bought into that crap, not when your father said it and not now..."

As the three others bickered behind him, Bardock receded back into his own mind once more. What Munster said, about good Saiyans, made him think of her again. Throughout the entire nine months of hibernation, Bardock dreamt. He dreamt of Gine and her gentle nature and his failure. The second chance that she was overjoyed to have after so long...and Bardock allowed the exact same monster he had failed to stop before take it from her again.

The thought of the Dragon Balls having restored her did nothing for Bardock. It was the principle. Gine had bared her soul to Bardock, made him promise her that everything would be alright and that they would make it out. And he promised her. And then he failed. As Bardock thought about all of that, he began to slip into an even darker place than before.

 _ **He would never be able to face her again.**_

But, suddenly, Bardock was snapped out of his thoughts by a chipper voice. "Hey, Dad!"

Bardock jolted. He looked over to see that Goku was right next to him. Father and Son stared at one another for a short time, Raditz and Vegeta snapping at one another in the background. Goku eventually spoke again. "So, what's on your mind? You seem all distracted and stuff."

Bardock shook his head. "N-Nothing. It's nothing important..."

Goku nodded, folding his arms behind his head. "Okay. So... we're talking about nothing important then..."

He smiled. "Well, I wouldn't say this is unimportant, but it's not really important to what we're doing right now~"

Bardock grunted. Goku spoke. "When I landed on Earth, after you sent me there...the first person to find me was Grandpa Gohan."

Bardock seemed confused. " _Gohan_...?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. I named my son to honor him. And...in hope that Gohan would grow up to be as kind and strong as he was. He was always patient, even before I hit my head and lost all of my Saiyan memories."

Bardock nodded. "I see."

Goku smiled. "Yeah. He went missing one day. I had no idea what happened to him for the longest time. I met him again one day but...he wasn't able to stick around. It wasn't until recently that I learned what happened: I must have looked at the full moon and transformed into a Great Ape. And then..."

Bardock nodded. "You stepped on him, probably."

Goku sighed. "Yeah. And, I felt really guilty about that. Ya know? While I was laying in the hospital, I thought about it though. I've met Grandpa Gohan since then. He didn't seem mad at me that time. He was just his usual, kind self. He...didn't hold it against me, I guess. Because it was something that I couldn't control..."

Bardock's shoulders sagged. Goku smiled. "I still plan to apologize. Like, the day when my time comes and I'm well and truly finished. But I know that he's already forgiven me. Cuz he loved me and cared about me. So, when I see him again...I guess we can just have a laugh about it and move on from there. Know what I mean?"

Bardock was silent. Goku nodded. "I'll just give you some time to think about that. But I'd like to hear what you think later. Okay?"

Goku fell back, joining Raditz and Vegeta in their bickering. As the three of them went back to grumbling at one another, Bardock fell back into deep thought. And so, the four of them continued on, getting closer and closer to Castle Cold.

 _In an alleyway, near the gates to Castle Cold..._

Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock peered out from the nearby alley, and towards the main gates to Castle Cold. They watched as droves of the super-rich filed towards the gate, showing their invitations to the gala and passing by the security detail at the front.

Goku nodded. "Okay...so...we could just go up and say we forgot our invitations..."

Raditz sighed. " _That is the dumbest idea that I have ever heard._ "

Goku puffed out his cheeks. "Come on. Don't be mean. They might let us in if-"

Bardock pointed to the gate. "Kakarot."

Goku looked back and saw, to his surprise, the guards pulling a small party of invitationless rich folk to the side and shooting them dead with no hesitation. Goku blinked a few times. "... _oh_."

Bardock shook his head. "Those blasters won't do shit to us. But it would be foolish to make a scene like that. We don't want Cold to know that we're coming."

Raditz nodded. "We should try to sneak in. But...how should we go about that? I imagine that every other entrance is guarded just as heavily as this one is."

A loud clatter made Goku, Raditz, and Bardock jump in shock. They turned to see Vegeta, with an "I'm a genius" shit-eating grin on his face. The Prince was standing over a, now grateless, entrance into the sewers of Planet Cold. "They might have all of the entrances guarded, but I bet there are a couple of exits they don't have a security detail on."

Bardock and his sons all walked over to the "entrance" that Vegeta had found. Raditz held his nose, but Goku chuckled. "Way to think out of the box Vegeta!"

Goku then leapt into the sewer without a second thought. " _Geronimo!_ "

Bardock sighed. "He's..."

Vegeta finished with snark. "An idiot?"

Raditz finished with disgust. " _Way_ too excited about jumping into a sewer?"

Bardock shook his head. "He's certainly... _one of my sons_ , that's for sure."

The older Saiyan leapt into the sewer next. Raditz clamped his hand over his mouth and did the same. And the Vegeta followed, shrugging and pulling the grate back over the hole.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	42. Chapter 42: A History of Evil

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Hey everybody! Quick note! I have posted this Chapter and Chapter 41 back-to-back. So, if you have not read Chapter 41, make sure you read it too. Thank you so much and I hope you enjoy! :)_

 **Chapter 42: A History of Evil**

 _Castle Cold – Soldier Medical Facility #12..._

Cranberry, an Elite Lieutenant in the Cold Force, stared down at the little terrarium he had been handed so long ago. Ever since that advanced scouting vessel had returned with Captain Ginyu in it, in his brother Raspberry's body no less, both Cranberry and his new "pet" had been in a funk.

The frog, his brother Raspberry, laid in the little pool of water that kept his skin moist with his eyes closed. He was utterly depressed at his current situation. Cranberry stood there, his blood simmering beneath his skin. Suddenly, a hand clamped down on Cranberry's shoulder. He turned to see the freshly restored, purple gaze of Captain Ginyu. Ginyu chuckled. "So, how's he doing?"

Cranberry was subtly sarcastic in his response. "Oh, you know, he's hopping~"

Cranberry looked his brother's former body up and down. The facial structure, the muscle, even the height...all that once was his brother had been totally overhauled from this physical form. Cranberry gritted his teeth. "I'm sure it would make Raspberry happy to know that you've, more or less, deleted him from existence."

Ginyu frowned and sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. Okay? But desperate times called for desperate measures. I needed a body to get to the nearest outpost fast enough to get an express ride here so that I could inform King Cold of the problem. And now, now that we're going to invade the home planet of that Saiyan filth and wipe them out, I need a body to participate! I have to avenge Lord Frieza!"

As Ginyu rambled on it the background about pride and honor and youth and all of that hokey crap, Cranberry typed a few chemical formulas into a synthesizer and watched as the machine began to construct amphibian health supplements.

Ginyu gave Cranberry a hearty slap on the back and shouted. " _AND THE BEST PART IS, I HAVE MADE THIS BODY STRONGER THAN RASPBERRY COULD EVER HAVE HOPED TO! I'VE REACHED DEEP DOWN AND FOUND A LEVEL OF POTENTIAL THAT YOUR BROTHER WAS TOO LAZY TO REALIZE!_ "

Cranberry turned to him with a tired sneer on his face. "That's great, Ginyu. Just... _just great_."

Ginyu struck a pose and laughed out loud. "You're damn right it is! Now, I must go train more! The invasion is nigh and I will not allow those Saiyans to go without a lashing from the great Captain Ginyu!"

Ginyu ran from the medical bay, shouting with true excitement. "Vengeance for Lord Frieza and the Ginyu Force is nigh!"

Once the door sealed shut, Cranberry shook his head. " _Asshole_."

He grabbed the newly constructed bottle of amphibian supplements and then hefted up the terrarium. "Come on Raspberry. Let's go and get you fed before I start my shift."

Cranberry and his frog-brother went out of the other door, towards the soldier barracks. After a few moments, all fell silent in the medical bay. And then, a thin ki blade began to saw out the floor under the nearby shower stalls.

The floor fell in, with a massive splash, and then Bardock, Vegeta, Goku, and Raditz all climbed out. Raditz was practically gagging as he struggled out of the hole into the sewer. "Thanks, Vegeta...such... _such a fantastic smell you've helped us discover_..."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and walked over to the nearby chemical cleansing stall. "You act like we were crawling through someone's intestines. Like that would ever happen..."

Vegeta took his turn in the chemical cleanser, deleting the smell of the sewer from his clothes. Goku and Bardock did the same, and then so did Raditz. As Raditz took his chemical cleansing, Bardock went to the nearby desktop module and searched around for a map of the castle. He nodded. "Okay...it looks like the main hall, where the gala is being held, connects directly to this hallway and the unlabeled room. Probably our best bet to sneak in..."

Once Raditz exited the shower, Bardock motioned for the three of them to follow him. They all exited out the same door that Ginyu had.

 _Further into the castle..._

Bardock, Vegeta, Raditz, and Goku sneaked further and further into the castle with very little effort. With Bardock leading the way and Raditz and Vegeta keeping watch for soldiers, it was easy for the four Saiyans to make their way deeper and deeper into the heart of Castle Cold.

Soon enough, they came upon the door that Bardock had discovered on the digital map. It was an ornate number, nothing too grand or too flashy, just a subtle but charming metal door with a simple, but ornate design carved into it. The four Saiyans, hidden behind tapestries that hung down from the ceiling above, stared at the door. Raditz commented. "So, that's it huh? For an unlabeled room...that is a much fancier door than any we've seen so far..."

Bardock nodded. "Yeah, we're definitely getting closer to the heart of this place, alright..."

Vegeta smirked. "We could sneak in there and lay in wait. I bet that's where Cold retreats to when he's tired of hosting. We could catch him off-guard and kill him if we hide in there."

Goku frowned, scratching his cheek with his tail. "I dunno. That doesn't sound like it would be very fair..."

Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock all whisper yelled at the exact same time. " _Shut up, Kakarot._ "

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Seriously, who gives a damn about a fair fight when it comes to a member of Frieza's race..."

The four Saiyans continued their sneaking march towards the door, using the tapestries as cover from the guards on the other end of the hall. However...

 _On the other end of the hall..._

The two guards on the other end of the hall looked tired. Both of them were in one of the most boring points in all of Castle Cold. The one on the left, Cherry, could barely keep her eyes open and the one on the right, Mato, let loose a massive yawn.

As the two of them both fought against the urge to sleep on their post, however, a very familiar and annoying voice met their ears. "What's with those sleepy looks?! Look alive, you mooks!"

Cherry's eyes rolled back and she let loose a silent groan. Mato sighed and scratched his feathered head. The two of them both prepared for the worst as Captain Ginyu came marching up to them from a side corridor. Ever since this purple nuisance had returned to Planet Cold, things had been like this. All of their peaceful jobs had been made so much more annoying because the overly pepped-up and excitable Ginyu was constantly on their asses. He was on them for lunches and smoke breaks and rest hours and down time. He never, _EVER_ stopped.

And, honestly the only reason he was able to get away with it because he could kick all of their asses and King Cold liked him so much.

Cherry sighed and scratched the back of her head. "S-Sorry Captain!"

Mato held up his hands in defense. "It's just...this isn't an area that anyone comes through. We're really bored!"

Ginyu struck a pose. "If you're bored, then you aren't working hard enough! Do some exercises! Go over some reports on your Scouters! Learn to strike an epic pose! You have to keep busy, no matter what! Because you are part of the army that will avenge Lord Frieza's death!"

Cherry and Mato both slumped over. They couldn't admit this, because Captain Ginyu would kill both of them on the spot, but neither of them cared about Frieza. Neither of them had even met Frieza before. Ginyu turned, tears in his eyes, and began to talk about how much Lord Frieza meant to him and to all of the Frieza Force. As he did that, Cherry looked at the time on her Scouter and then silently nudged Mato. Lunch was in 10 minutes, so once Ginyu was done and gone, they could sneak off.

Ginyu continued his ranting however. The poor guy did seem truly distraught at what had happened to his Lord. "Lord Frieza was always so caring of the needs of me and my men! He valued us! We were going to help him take control of this entire Universe, help him achieve his dreams, and then...and... then..."

Ginyu's near-sobbing tone was quickly replaced with one of analytical wonder. He stared down the hall, at the tapestries that hung from the ceiling. And he saw...no... _it couldn't be_...

Ginyu pointed back to the other two and whispered. "Cherry, Mato...call in a support squad at once..."

Mato cocked his head in confusion. "S-Sir...?"

But, Ginyu was already tip-toeing down the hall towards a very familiar, hairy object sticking out from behind a tapestry.

 _Back on the other end of the hall..._

The four Saiyans made their way closer and closer to the door. They were totally out of sight from the guards on the other end of the hall and they were right there. They just had to open the door and slip in unnoticed and then they would be home free. But right as they were all about to exit cover, a mighty groan shocked Raditz, Vegeta, and Bardock.

The three Saiyans turned to see that Goku was slumping over, one of his eyes squeezed shut in pain. The Saiyan from Earth fell to his knees and groaned. "D-Dammit...I'm still not used to...people grabbing it like that..."

The fluttering tapestry eventually settled back to the wall and revealed Goku's assailant, a mighty pissed off looking Captain Ginyu. The Captain glared at the four Saiyans, a vein bulging from his forehead. "You! The four of you! How dare..."

Ginyu's rage was quickly joined by nearly 50 troops rushing in from the side hallway, led by Cherry and Mato. The two door guards both flinched back in shock. Cherry shouted. "Wh-Whoa! Saiyans?! There are still living Saiyans?!"

Mato's beak dropped open. "Holy shit!"

Ginyu snapped at the Saiyans. "How dare the four of you show your faces here after what you've done?!"

Ginyu dropped Goku's tail and then booted him at Bardock, Vegeta, and Raditz. He struck a pose and then he shouted. "Lord Frieza shall be avenged! I will do so now; with the power I have trained to achieve in the months since his death!"

Ginyu shouted and motioned the squad of soldiers behind him. " _ **MEN! ATTACK!**_ "

As the guards all rushed towards them, Goku regained his bearings. He looked to Raditz, Vegeta, and Bardock with a nervous smile and chuckled. "W-Wow...that's a lot of guards, huh?"

Goku's tail nervously waved around and his allies all shot him a look that said they were getting really tired of his shit.

 _Within the Castle Cold Study..._

The door blew open with a massive explosion and a rain of dead soldiers came flying in. They all landed in a heap across the rich carpet, one of them even smashing into the bookshelves and knocking over what appeared to be quite the old vase.

Captain Ginyu was not dead, but he was quite severely beaten. Cherry and Mato were both somehow still alive as well, but they were in no condition to fight.

Their opponents quickly made their way into the room, totally undamaged and seemingly distracted by another matter entirely. Vegeta was practically frothing at the mouth as he forcibly wrapped Goku's tail around his waist, even going so far as to tie a loose knot in it. "You and this damned tail! Learn to control it or I'll tear it off myself!"

Raditz was visibly horrified, scared that they might have alerted a much bigger threat to their presence. "Guys! Come on! Quiet down!"

Bardock, meanwhile, was exasperated. As Vegeta yelled at Kakarot and Raditz yelled at Vegeta, the older Saiyan looked around at the splendor of the room before him. "This is... a lot of books..."

Goku, standing between the bickering Raditz and Vegeta, nodded in agreement with his Dad. "Yeah! They have places like this on Earth. Chi-Chi made me take Gohan to one once...it's uh...you borrow books from it and... uh... _what's it called again_...?"

Bardock glanced from the books and down at Cherry and Mato, both of whom were frozen with utter fear. "What are you losers looking at?"

Suddenly, a very deep voice spoke from behind the four Saiyans. "To answer your questions in order: the place you are thinking of is a _library_. This, however, is a study. A place of _quiet_ reflection and a storage of a private collection. And, _I suppose_ , those two would be looking at _me_."

The deep voice made all of the Saiyans jump, their eyes wide. The four of them slowly turned and, to their horror, the saw who was speaking. A truly massive individual sat in a grand, leather chair behind them. Clad in a rich robe, a woodsy cigar in hand, and a book in the other, a being that looked very much like Frieza sat. His horns raised high into the air, the fire from his fireplace reflecting off of their ebony shine.

Raditz was visibly trembling. Vegeta and Bardock both took a serious fighting stance. Goku, however, posed a question in an innocent, and curious tone of voice. "Oh! I guess you're Frieza's dad, huh?"

The being chuckled, taking one last puff of his cigar before throwing the rest of it into the fireplace. He breath the smoke through his nose and took a sip of a nearby chalice of wine. "Indeed, young man. I am King Cold."

He stood, making Vegeta, Bardock, and Raditz flinch. King Cold stood at, at least, twenty feet tall. He towered over the Saiyans. "So, I see that you gentlemen were desperate enough for an audience with me to kill a rather large contingent of my men."

He chuckled. "Respectable."

The King walked behind a changing screen and quickly removed his robe. "You two. I cannot be bothered to remember your names..."

Cherry and Mato, in spite of the beating that they just took, as well as Mato's broken leg, stood up straight and saluted, speaking in unison. " _ **YES SIR, KING COLD?!**_ "

King Cold spoke from behind the screen, his shadow appearing to be putting on a suit of armor. "Dear Ginyu appears to have been injured in his outstanding service to me once again. Pick him up and take him to a healing chamber, post haste. If he dies, _I cannot imagine your futures will be too bright_..."

Cherry and Mato both swallowed hard and immediately got to work. They grabbed Captain Ginyu and both of them limped out of the room as fast as their beaten bodies would carry them.

Once they were gone, King Cold stepped out from behind the changing screen, clasping his flowing cape onto his armor. "Well...I suppose I have a few more minutes before the gala is to begin. Might I offer you gents a tour of my castle?"

The Saiyans were confused at this perplexingly civil behavior. But Cold maintained his demeanor. He motioned to them with his left hand. "Come along now. Do keep up. I do not wish to have to repeat myself to any stragglers within the tour group..."

The four Saiyans looked at each other, all of them stunned. Goku shrugged and the other three did not have any response. None of them saw this coming. So, with a bit of hesitation, the four of them simply followed King Cold's lead.

 _Within the Grand Golden Historical Hall..._

After a short walk, King Cold came to a stop. He pointed to a massive portrait hanging on the wall. It was a simplistic, oil painting in the vague shape of a person, with a rich, golden frame covered in jewels. "This, gentlemen, is a painting of the First King."

Goku cocked his head in confusion. "W-Wait...what?"

Cold gently pressed his hand on the frame. "The First King. The first king of my race. No one remembers his name or even what he looked like all that well. This painting was actually made from the single historical text that we have describing him! But his existence is an important moment in the history of my glorious species~"

Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock all stared up at the painting: a red and purple being, vaguely human shaped, with a pair of curved horns sticking from the top of his head.

Cold quickly motioned them along. "Come now! Don't dawdle! We have many more interesting portraits to view~"

The Saiyans all took one more, long look at the vague portrait, and then they followed along. A bit more walking eventually led the tour group to a portrait five spaces down. Cold stopped again with a sigh, rolling his eyes, and rapped his knuckle against the frame. "This one is the Sixth King. Unlike the first, we do know his name. He was known as Arcos..."

Goku cocked his head again. "Arcos, eh? He doesn't look that strong..."

The Saiyans stared up at the portrait of a lanky Frieza clad in robes, his 18 horns forming a crown of thorns around his head. Cold nodded. "That's a fair deduction. By all historical record, King Arcos was exceptionally weak. But he made up for this by starting a cult in his name that still worships him as a Messiah to this day. You might have heard of them? The... _Arcosians_..."

That word alone summoned a mixture of annoyed and angry groans from Bardock, Vegeta, and Raditz. Raditz snarled. " _Damned lying bastards!_ "

Vegeta sneered. " _Skittering vermin._ "

Bardock grunted under his breath. "I hate the goddamned Arcosians. Always trying to act like they represented the Cold Force, getting us in trouble. After the Gamma IX incident, King Vegeta thought you were gonna kill him over what they did, at least those are the rumors I was hearing at the time..."

King Cold shook his head. "No no. Trust me, I understand. I _disdain_ the Arcosians. And yet, every time I think they're all dead, more of them crop up out from the festering depths..."

With that matter thoroughly discussed, King Cold motioned for the Saiyans to follow him again. The eventually arrived at the portrait of King Arcturus. "This man is King Arcturus, the Regent. He did very little of importance, but we must recognize him as the first man to have established a monarchy. Thereby, from a certain point-of-view, making him the actual 'first king', as it were."

The Saiyans looked up at the portrait, a green Frieza with purple chest armor. His single horn sticking from the front of his forehead like a unicorn. King Cold spoke again. "Oh, another interesting fact, the Arcturus star-cluster is named after him! He was the one who discovered it in the night sky!"

Goku nodded with a smile. "Neat!"

The tour continued down to another portrait, a shorter Frieza, bluish-purple skin and a bright orange jumpsuit. King Cold spoke. "This is King Chilled. He is known as The Resurgence among our race. He was the first one known for doing quite a few things. He was the first to attempt expansion of the Empire, he was the first to come in contact with the Saiyan race..."

King Cold turned to the Saiyans and smiled. "Were it not for him, this conversation might not even be happening right now~"

Raditz's shoulders slumped. "Oh...well then, I guess we owe him a big thank you, huh?"

King Cold chuckled. "Dear boy, sarcasm is an ugly look..."

Cold pointed to Chilled's horns. "Interesting fact, the shape of Chilled's horns often made his detractors refer to him with an attempted derogitory: _The Frost Demon_. Chilled seemed to enjoy the epithet, however."

But, Cold continued on regardless of Raditz's attitude. He marched down a bit more until he reached a portrait of a tall, gaunt man. His skin and his armor were both bluish-white and he had piercing blue eyes. He was also surrounded by sixteen other members of his race and holding a small, seventeenth member in his hands. His short horns all shot upwards from his head like a crown.

Cold motioned to the painting. "This is my Father. King Winterfell – The Nightwalker. He was a man of power and presence. The founder of the Planet Trade Organization, which would eventually become my Cold Force. He was always a stern man, expecting the most from me, my fifteen brothers, and our sister..."

Goku looked up at the picture, seeing the benign smile on Cold's face, his arm around his King Winterfell's shoulder. Goku smiled. "You and your dad must have been really close if he picked you over everyone else to take over for him."

King Cold thought back, the sounds of panicked screaming echoing in his head. " _YOU BASTARD! EVEN YOUR YOUNGEST BROTHER?! I SHOULD NEVER HA_ _ **AAAAAAGGH!**_ "

Cold opened his eyes and spoke to Goku. "Something like that, yes."

King Cold walked just a bit further down the hallway and eventually stopping at the final portrait in the hall. "And this is the end of lineage so far. Myself and my offspring~"

The Saiyans looked upon the massive portrait. Cold, sat in his chair, with a pink, baby Frieza sitting on his knee. In the background, partially obscurred by a curtain, was another purple-skinned individual. Cold chuckled. "My Frieza. My pride and joy. My overwhelmingly strong, youngest child..."

Goku cocked his head. "Oh...uh...yeah. Well...what about the other one? The guy in the back there?"

Cold nodded. "Yes. He exists as well."

And then, without another word, Cold moved on, finally reaching the massive chamber doors at the end of the hall. "And that is the tour! Thank you all so kindly for following along. It might seem...superfluous, but I do love giving a tour of this dusty, old hall~"

Cold reached into his armor, producing four sealed envelopes and handing them to each of the Saiyans. "Please, feel free to attend the gala. I am sure that you will enjoy yourselves, there is a banquet and entertainment for the whole evening. And I am positive that the main event of the evening will interest you as well."

And with that, and a friendly wave goodbye, King Cold exited the Saiyans presence, entering through the massive chamber doors and heading to his gala. With the King gone, the Saiyans were finally left to discuss their plans. Vegeta spoke up first. "This is a damned trap."

Raditz nodded. "I'm with Vegeta, this is a trap."

Goku scratched the back of his head. "I... I gotta agree. He seemed nice, but there's _a lot_ of evil inside that guy."

Bardock fell silent, crossing his arms and drumming his finger against his bicep as he thought. "Trap or not...it's still a way in. Cold my try to pull a fast one, but it would be better for us to be facing it up front than turning our back on it..."

He looked to Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz individually. "So... we're gonna play this by ear. That sound good, boys?"

Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz each nodded, and then Bardock nodded as well. Then, the four Saiyans walked into the same door that King Cold had beforehand.

 _Castle Cold – Main Gala Hall..._

The four Saiyans that walked into the Main Gala Hall and were met by quite the sight. A rich ballroom covered in an abundance of wealth sat before them. Everything in the hall was draped in finery: gold and jewels and ivory and plush cloth covered everything as the various wealthy and aristocratic members of King Cold's court murmured amongst themselves.

Vegeta was visibly taken aback, looking at the abundance and the splendor that surrounded him. "All of this...it all...this makes the Saiyan Royal Palace..."

Bardock finished the sentence bluntly. "Look like crap. It makes the Saiyan Royal Palace look like a rickety shack in the middle of nowhere."

Vegeta's face soured. He glared at Bardock and Bardock shrugged. "What? I'm not telling you anything you didn't know, Vegeta. King Cold basically owned your Dad, of course his house is better than King Vegeta's."

As Bardock and Vegeta held their discussion, Raditz trailed behind Goku. The older brother was freaking out as his younger sibling rudely pushed past people to get at the food. "Kakarot! Will you please calm down? Please?!"

Goku seemed to blow Raditz off. Instead, he finally made it to the table and stared at all of the delicious food in front of him. "It all looks so tasty! I've never even some of this bef-"

" _YOU!_ "

Goku turned to the source of the voice and saw, to his disgust, the same fat bastard from before. "What are you doing here?!"

Count Bologna sneered at Goku, his two slave girls cowering at the table behind him, alongside two other confused, older 4-armed aliens. Count Bologna evilly grinned. "Well, now you've sealed your fate you gutter scum hick!"

Bologna turned on his heel and went rushing through the crowd towards the center of the hall. In the center, King Cold sat in his throne. He held his chalice to his mouth and took a sip, before allowing Kikono to fill it to the brim once more. Bologna pushed past the guards, stepping up to Cold's throne without permission, and then he shouted. " _KING COLD! I FEEL THE NEED TO INFORM YOU THAT A COMMONER HAS INFILTRATED YOUR GALA! YOU SHOULD EXECUTE THIS POST HASTE!_ "

Everyone in attendance paused to observe the audacity of Bologna daring to approach King Cold without permission. Bologna didn't seem to notice. He turned to glare at Goku, expecting the Saiyan to be instantly shot dead. Bologna was surprised, however, when a beam fired through his stomach. The rotund noble fell to the ground, sputtering blood, and King Cold, finger still smoking, simply took another sip of his wine.

Bologna's parents quickly ran up, their faces horrified. His father spoke. "K-King Cold! Please, Majesty, forgive my son's impertinence!"

They both fell to their knees and the mother spoke. "He is but a boy, Excellency! This is his first gala! He knows not of the etiquette required of him in your presence!"

Cold sipped his wine again...and then he executed all three of them, a beam through the forehead each, with no hesitation. Cold chuckled and raised his chalice into the air. "His first gala, and his last~"

The rest of the super-rich all burst into furious laughter. Cold watched as his men swept away the corpses and then sipped again. "Now, let the gala continue!"

The deaths of Count Bologna and his family were quickly forgotten. The Saiyans joined the rest of the attendees and found a table to sit at. Bardock and the others, their appetites being somewhat subdued, watched as Goku pigged out. Bardock grunted. "I had a thought..."

Vegeta turned to him. "And that would be?"

Bardock sighed. "It's stupid...but I do remember King Cold always being a respectful handshake type of guy. A bastard through-and-through...but still willing to do business. Maybe...we could find some sort of deal to make with him that would allow us to avoid an all-out fight."

Raditz sighed. "It's...a hope. That's for sure..."

Vegeta shook his head. "Seems like it's a bit too hopeful. We did end his "precious" son, after all. I don't imagine he'd just let that slide."

Bardock shrugged. "I mean, he still has Cool-"

Before Bardock could finish, two Cold Force soldiers walked up. In their custody were the two former slave girls that Count Bologna was pulling around with him. One of the soldiers spoke in a very formal tone. "King Cold has decreed that the property of the now deceased, nameless aristocrat shall henceforth be handed unto the custody of you, the good sir in orange."

Goku put his bowl down, speaking with his mouth full. "Whuh...?"

The soldier pressed the chain connected to the girls' collars into Goku's hand. "These things belong to you now."

After the two soldiers left, Goku looked down at the chain in his hand and then up at the two, frightened-looking girls. The two of them plastered on half-hearted smiles, and then they spoke. The taller one struck an attempted sexy pose and tried her best to sound seductive. "I am Genoa~"

The shorter one spoke next, her voice wavering. "A-And I am Salam~"

They both bowed. "How may we serve you, Master?"

Goku looked to Raditz, Bardock, and Vegeta. All three of them responded with confused shrugs. The Saiyan from Earth looked down at all of the food on the table and then up at the hungry look in Genoa and Salam's eyes. And then, gently, he reached up and snapped the collars from around their necks. The two of them looked confused, standing there as Goku finished with their collars and then removed their shackles as well. Once he was done, Goku smiled and motioned to for them to sit. "Why don't you both join me and we eat together?"

Genoa stammered, staring at Goku and his goofy smile. "A-Are you...?"

Raditz spoke up, smiling a little himself. "Yes, he's serious."

Vegeta sighed. "He's so annoying gentle..."

Genoa and Salam looked at one another, and then back to Goku. And then they both sat down. They each grabbed a small piece of food from Goku's pile, nibbling at it with politeness and decorum...and then hunger took over and they joined Goku in demolishing the heap of food as quickly as they could.

Genoa had tears in her eyes as she spoke. "Th-Thank you, Master!"

Salam was sobbing as she ate. "Thank you so much, Master!"

Goku nervously chuckled and shook his head. "Cut it out with that 'Master' stuff. My name is Goku, okay?"

The both nodded as they ate more and more, seemingly for the first time in ages. "Thank you so much, Master Goku!"

A few hours passed of eating and merriment. Various entertainers made their way into and out of the gala, doing their acts and providing spectacle to the crowd. The entire time, the Saiyans sat there in waiting and Cold sat bored in his throne. Soon though, the final entertainers cleared out and Cold spoke up. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Thank you all for so kindly attending my gala for the evening!"

Cold stood and raised his chalice in the air. "A toast to everyone in attendance!"

Everyone cheered and clinked their knives against their glasses. Cold spoke again. "I have heard the rumors being spread amongst you here, this evening, and I will now confirm some of your suspicions! Yes, this banquet was announced to declare the invasion of a certain, detestable planet of rebels in the Northern Galaxy!"

The Saiyans all tensed up at that. This was it; this was the moment they had all feared. Cold chuckled. "But first, one more piece of entertainment for you all!"

Cold clapped his hands and the main doors to the gala hall swung open. Three groups of soldiers marched in, and with them they had three groupings of prisoners, all chained and hooded. The attendants of the gala all cheered as they knew what was about to occur. Goku reacted in confusion. "What's going on?"

Cold turned to the short, yellow alien next to him. "Kikono, if you would kindly relay the first charges to the audience."

Kikono nodded and stood. "The first accused for the evening are a contingent of soldiers that dared to commit a grave offense. They allowed the Flag of the Cold Force to fall into the mud and the symbol of King Cold himself was besmirched as a result."

A rumble made its way through the crowd. The hooded soldiers cowered as King Cold sinisterly chuckled. Kikono spoke again. "King Cold has gone over this incident and has come to a decision. Their fate has been decided to be..."

King Cold raised his finger. "Death."

And then, he fired a beam through each of the twenty soldiers' chests, killing them one at a time as the others screamed. Their bodies dropped to the ground and they were quickly swept away. Goku gasped at the brutality. Vegeta, Bardock, Raditz, Genoa, and Salam did not seem surprised. They merely looked grim as the bodies were brutishly swept away to be disposed of.

Next, a similarly hooded grouping of three was brought forth: a man, a woman, and a child. Kikono spoke. "This man is a teacher at a small university on a border planet. He and his family stand accused of spreading anti-Cold rhetoric to his students. The students have all already been sent to a re-education center, but these three now face the judgment of His Majesty, King Cold."

Cold raised his finger. But, before he could speak, the man fell to his knees and shouted. "P-Please! King Cold! I... I know what it about to happen but, please...my wife and child are innocent in this situation. Please...do not make them listen to my death..."

Kikono frowned. "How dare you speak without permission you-"

King Cold waved his hand and Kikono fell silent. The King chuckled and spoke. "Dear sir, I am afraid that a lesson must be taught here. Your defiance of my regime is something that I can just not allow. You must realize that..."

The man trembled. "P-Please..."

But then, something truly horrific occurred. As the man started to beg, a feminine scream cried out directly behind him. A body fell to the ground right next to him and he screamed. "No! M-My wife! No! No, King Cold! Please!"

Another scream, this time of the young boy standing next to the man. As the smaller body fell to the ground, King Cold chuckled. "I hope this has been a lesson learned, dear sir."

Cold waved to the guards surrounding him. "He is now to be taken to Labor Colony 85. Work him until he dies."

The guards nodded and seized the hysterically weeping man, forcing him to his feet and making him walk away from his, now deceased, family. The rest of the crowd laughed out loud at this miserable display, finding enjoyment in the man's pain. Goku, meanwhile, was totally enraged by all of this. Raditz tried his best to get his brother to remain calm, grabbing his tail and giving it a squeeze. But Goku just didn't seem to care. His rage was flaring. He looked down at the bodies as they were swept away and instantly his mind went to Gohan and Chi-Chi. He couldn't just sit by and let that monster get away with this.

Finally, the final prisoner was forced to step forward. It was a single person, a hooded and chained woman with blue-furred skin and a rather professional attire. Kikono spoke. "This is Faline Phars. She is a rather troublesome investigative journalist from the Southern Galaxy who dared to try and meddle in the affairs of King Cold himself. Her sentence will now be carried out."

King Cold raised his finger and smirked. "I disappeared from the public eye for a reason, young lady. And, just because you come from a galaxy my lesser son controls does not mean you are free to poke around in my private business. Your punishment is... _Death_!"

King Cold fired his Death Beam forward, right at the center of the journalist's chest. However, before the beam could hit, it was swiftly deflected right back at Cold. The King caught the attack, with a moderate chuckle, and dispelled it with his grip.

Standing there, in front of the journalist, surrounded by confused guards, was Goku. The Saiyan from Earth looked angry, and he stared defiantly right at King Cold. Cold chuckled in dark amusement. From the sidelines, a gruff voice called out. "Damn it, Kakarot!"

Bardock leapt from the crowd and landed next to his son. "Can you stow the damned altruism for five minutes?!"

Goku and Bardock were quickly joined by Vegeta, a fearful Raditz, and Genoa and Salam, both of whom were trembling. Kikono shouted at the lot of them. "Who the devil are you people... _Prince Vegeta_?!"

Vegeta smirked. "Do I know you, insect?"

King Cold smiled wide, his power suddenly raging and his silver energy flaring out. Using his telekinetic power, King Cold reached out and pulled a sword from a nearby wall into his hand. "Ladies and gents, I suppose now is the time for my main announcement. The reason for this invasion. You see, we will be undertaking a mission of vengeance against a planet to the North: Planet Earth!"

Cold swung his sword to the ground, splitting the stone in front of his feet. "And the reason for this invasion? Because creatures from that planet, the very creatures currently standing defiantly before you..."

Cold raised his sword and pointed it at the center of Goku's chest. "These interlopers are responsible for the death of my successor! My son! Your once future Lord! _These beasts are responsible for the death of Frieza!_ "

As shocked, desperate gasp filled the room. Standing behind Raditz, Genoa and Salam's jaws dropped. And the reporter, Faline Phars, cried out from underneath her hood. " _EXCUSE ME?! DID I JUST HEAR THAT RIGHT?!_ "

King Cold chuckled. "Yes. It is quite unfortunate. But...this invasion will make up for that. The main problem has presented itself to me, so it shall be dealt with immediately. And then, the planet that I had once planned to destroy shall instead become a slave colony in honor of my fallen son!"

King Cold's silver energy flared again and he smiled. "Your execution shall be done by my own hand, _Saiyan scum_!"


	43. Chapter 43: The Dignified King Cold

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 43: The Dignified King Cold**

 _Castle Cold – Main Gala Hall..._

With a callous serenity and supreme grace, King Cold lifted his sword high into the air. He took a deep breath, and the Saiyans assumed their defensive stances, and then Cold launched a flying slash of pure, silver energy at the four of them. Goku, Bardock, Vegeta, and Raditz were quick to react, each shooting a powerful ki blast at the slash and causing a small explosion. A smoky wall billowed between the two opposing sides, but Cold quickly breached that wall with a smile on his face.

The swordplay was rapid and brutal as slices and jabs and slashes were levied at the four Saiyans. Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock were each competent enough to evade this rudimentary swordplay, but they were soon besieged in a different way. From every entrance to the Main Gala Hall, hundreds of Cold Force soldiers poured in. And they quickly swarmed the Saiyans like a hoard of angry wasps.

Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock were all forced to split away from the main event by the hoard of troops, leaving Goku by himself to face off against King Cold's onslaught. Cold is able to match with Goku fairly quickly, inflicting a minor cut to the Saiyans cheek. Goku smirks and wipes the blood, Cold smirks and licks the blood from his blade, and then the two charge at one another.

Bardock and Vegeta were forced far off from Goku, denying their assistance to the Saiyan from Earth. However, the troops were only able to force them away because of numbers. No matter how the Cold Force approached the Saiyan Soldier or the Prince, they were quickly and near effortlessly dispatched.

And they weren't fairing much better against Raditz either. The elder brother seemed more annoyed by the Cold Force's persistent attacks than he was affected. With Genoa and Salam under one arm and the reporter under the other, Raditz could only respond to the various attempts on his life with kicks. But every kick was a near instant kill on the soldier that dared get close enough. Raditz landed near an exit, tossing his charges to the ground, and then turned and shouted at his approaching foes. "Vacation Delete!"

Raditz launched a wave attack towards the group of Cold Force soldiers and reduced the lot of them to nothing more than cinders. And then, he turned to the two former slave girls and the bound-up reporter. "Leave! Now! Things are going to hell here and you'll all die if you don't get going!"

From her position, still hooded on the ground, Faline Phars shouted at Raditz. "Are you kidding me?! This is the new story of the century! Get this hood off of me so I can catch the scoop, you jerk!"

Genoa and Salam, although significantly less excited than Miss Phars, didn't want to leave either. Genoa cried out. "W-We can't just leave Master Goku! Not after how nice he was to us! It wouldn't be right!"

Salam nodded. "We have to stick by his side, he's the first person to show that much care for us! How could we be so callous to abandon him?!"

Another Cold Force landed behind Raditz, aiming his blaster. "Die, scum!"

Raditz sighed and caught the blaster bolt, turning around and overhand tossing it into the soldier's face, killing him. "If you want to repay Kakarot so badly, then just live! That's all that the cheerful fool would want from you! Don't sacrifice yourselves, just get out of here and enjoy your lives!"

The two sisters bowed their heads, looking sad. Phars cried out from under the bag on her head. "Uh, hello?! Is anyone listening to me?!"

Genoa stood, grabbing Faline and tossing her over her shoulder. "We'll do as Master Goku would want then! Come on Sis, let's go!"

Salam stood. "Right! For Master Goku!"

Despite the reporter's protests, the two former slaves did as they were commanded, running out the exit as fast as they could. Raditz sighed. "Good. Now that that's dealt with..."

The elder brother turned and thrust his hands at the crowd of soldiers flying towards him. " _DOUBLE SUNDAY!_ "

As that massive explosion went off to their left, Vegeta and Bardock continued to fight as well. A soldier stabbed at Vegeta with a spear, but Vegeta leapt over him and then pretty effortlessly snapped his neck. Bardock rammed his fist through a soldier's gut and then blasted the six men behind him. "This shit is irritating to all hell! We need to finish this so we can focus on Cold!"

As a miniature war waged in front of them, Goku and Cold continued their heated duel. Goku was showing his skill off in full display, his expert martial arts prowess allowing him to deftly dodge most of the sword swings. Keyword being _MOST_.

Cold, himself, was no slouch. His experience with his blade allowing him to not only block most of Goku's return strikes, but also allow him to land the occasional damage as well. The first major blow came when Goku attempted to land a hefty strike to Cold's face, Cold feinted back slightly, but then lunged forward and sank his blade into Goku's shoulder. Goku cried out in pain and leapt back, clenching his wound. Cold chuckled. "I must say, sir, this is quite the exercise."

Goku smirked. "Yeah. Reminds me of when I was a kid. I missed having fights like this. It's...it's a shame you're not that great of a guy, otherwise I could see you becoming a rival..."

Cold smiled and shrugged. "Sorry to be a disappointment. I might be evil, Mr. Goku, but I shall not say that I am unfair. Perhaps, to make this contest more even, you would like a weapon as well?"

Goku scratched the back of his head and chuckled. "I don't exactly have my weapon of choice here...and I don't think you'd have a Power Pole on hand that I could use..."

Cold rubbed his chin. He looked around the room and then, using his telekinesis, he pulled a polearm from a nearby suit of armor. Cold twirled the bladed staff in his hand and then tossed it to Goku. "Does that fit the bill?"

Goku examined the weapon, turning the blade side downward and then snapping the blade off against the ground. Goku flooded his energy into his new staff and then held it tight in both hands. "Thanks! I think this'll work!"

Goku leapt into the air with a battle cry and struck his new weapon downward. Cold blocked the strike with his sword and the duel started fresh. With a familiar weapon in hand to counter Cold's swordplay, Goku was able to match the King much more easily. He planted his staff into the ground and then used it to pole vault into the air. Goku kicked Cold hard, landing a heavy strike onto the King's neck before sliding down the pole and landing a second kick into Cold's chest. Cold went sliding back and slashed at Goku. Goku leapt into the air, landing feet first on the side of the blade before leaping again and bashing Cold across the face with his staff. Goku used the staff to force himself into the air before trying to land another overhead strike.

Cold smirked with wicked glee as, instead of swinging his sword, he launched himself up towards Goku to gore the Saiyan with his massive horns. Goku panicked in the air as his massive opponent came charging towards him. " _Oh shoot!_ "

Cold's horns nearly met their mark, but the fatal attack was blocked at the last moment. Four Cold Force soldiers came flying between Goku and Cold, each of them getting skewered in Goku's place and allowing Goku to be cushions from Cold's attack. Cold was stunned, but was quickly set upon when Bardock tackled into his side, cloaking in energy. " _Tyrant Lancer!_ "

Cold was sent flying into his throne and crushed the regal chair as he crashed into the ground. Bardock and Goku landed. Goku chuckled. "Thanks Dad!"

Bardock sneered. "Whatever! Focus up! He's not dead yet!"

This was immediately proven true. Cold stood up, unfazed, and started removing dead troops from his horns. He tossed each aside, with not a single regard for any of them, and chuckled. "Things certainly are getting hectic~"

A sudden purple flash burst above head and Cold looked up to see an entire score of his troops screaming as they were reduced to ash. "Gamma Flash!"

As ashes and broken bits of armor fell to the ground at his feet, Cold glared towards the culprits. Vegeta and Raditz both rejoined Goku and Bardock, Vegeta with a satisfied smirk on his face. Cold sighed and shook his head. "There is no such thing as a strong army these days, is there?"

Vegeta shouted at the top of his lungs. "Let's finish this!"

The Prince and Bardock both wasted no time, charging towards Cold and ready to fight. Cold waited until they were right in front of him and then he quickly leapt over them. The King ignored Bardock and Vegeta and charged straight at Goku and Raditz. Goku instantly prepared an attack. "Kamehame-"

Cold's tail shot forward and wrapped around Goku's wrists, yanking the Saiyan from Earth into the air. Goku cried out at Cold whipped him around. " _Hah?!_ "

Raditz went for a punch, but Cold dodged the elder brother. The King smirked and slapped Raditz across the face, sending him flying at the approaching Vegeta and Bardock. With those three momentarily stunned, Cold hefted Goku into the air and then smashed him into the ground below. He raised his sword above Goku's chest and chuckled, and then went to impale the hapless Saiyan. But, to Cold's surprise, the other three managed to recover far more quickly than he had anticipated. In one smooth motion: Bardock blocked the sword strike by grabbing Cold's forearms, Raditz slid in and snatched Goku from the grip of Cold's tail, and Vegeta leapt in with a devastating kick to the face.

Cold quickly flipped backwards, putting space between him and his foes. But, once the King had recovered, he was met with the sight of Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock all charging massive ki blasts. Cold sneered at this. Meanwhile Kikono, who was standing right next to King Cold, screamed in terror and rushed behind his master for protection.

Cold grunted in annoyance and then raised his hand up, summoning a massive blast of his own. The two sides each fired their attacks and, once the blasts clashed, a massive explosion erupted out that engulfed the entire room.

 _In the city, far from the action..._

Genoa, Salam, and their complaining captive cargo had made it quite far from the castle. The two sisters, in spite of their years in chains, were still quite fast when ordered to be. Salam had a worried frown on her face. "Do you think Master Goku will be okay?"

Genoa sighed. "We were told not to worry about that! We just have to escape with our lives, Sis. That's it!"

Salam sadly sighed, but then she adopted a little smile. "He would rather us live happy than die with him. To think, such a nice person would care for us like that..."

As the two of them ran, Faline Phars shouted to both of them. "Look! That's all well and good, I'm glad you're happy! But put me down! I have a job to do! Someone has to let the people know what's happening here!"

Genoa annoyedly sighed. "You know, for someone who was nearly executed for sticking her nose into things it didn't belong in, you sure seem eager to run your mouth about the guy who was gonna kill you..."

Miss Phars shouted. "It's my God-given right to run my damned mouth! And it's the people's God-given right to know things! Now put me down!"

Both sisters ignored her and continued to run. Salam glanced in the distance to a nearby spaceport. "Maybe we could sneak in and steal a small ship?"

Genoa cocked her head. "Neither of us know how to fly one of those, so we'd have to take a pilot hostage and-"

Suddenly, a massive explosion rocked the entire planet, sending shockwaves through the city and nearly knocking the two sisters off of their feet. Faline Phars shouted out. " _What the heck was that?!_ "

Genoa and Salam both stood and looked up. And then the two screamed in terror as they saw a giant piece of burning rubble was about to crush the three of them. Genoa was quick, she grabbed her sister and Faline Phars and leaped into a nearby store window. The glass shattered and the three of them evaded danger in the nick of time. Genoa and Salam recovered after a moment, both of them sitting up with minor cuts and bruises and glancing back towards the castle. And their jaws both dropped at the sight of Castle Cold having been reduced to a burning heap.

As the two of them speechlessly gawked, Faline grabbed a sizeable piece of broken glass from the ground. She cut her wrists free and then pull the hood from her head. The journalist pulled her glasses from her pocket and put them on, and then stared at the sight of the burning castle. Her eyes widened, and then began to sparkle, and Miss Phars smiled. " _Holy shit! Hoooooooly shit! Story of the friggin' year! Hell nice!_ "

Phars hungrily stared at her perfect scoop and then looked around and saw that the sisters had crashed her into the perfect place: a tech store. She raced forward, grabbed Genoa and Salam by the shoulders and pulling them with her. "You two have just been upgraded from slaves to emergency camera crew! Now come on!"

It took but a minute for the journalist to prepare herself. She grabbed a laptop and accessed her GalacTV broadcast account. After handing that to Genoa, she grabbed a Camera Scouter and forced it onto Salam's ear. "Now then, ladies, I like your idea to take a pilot hostage! Let's go do that and report along the way, okay?"

Genoa and Salam didn't know what to say. Neither of them was assertive enough to refuse Faline's request, so they simply went along with it, running after the reporter as she started running backwards towards the spaceport. As they ran, Faline silently counted to three and then motioned for Genoa to start the broadcast on the laptop. And then, staring directly at Salam, Faline Phars did what she did best. " _What is up, GalacTV nation! It's your host, Faline Phars, with a special GalacTV broadcast of the realest, most unvarnished scoops for your waiting eyes! And today, we have an event that's going rock the entire Universe to its very core! I'm here on Planet Cold, home of our lovely dictator King Cold, and it appears the sweet scent of rebellion is rising in the air like the smoke of a burning castle!_ "

Faline twirled her finger and Salam turned to have a glance at the ruins of Castle Cold. Salam looked back and Faline continued. " _Please, dear public, stick with me as I continue to report this unfolding situation live from the scene! This is a once in a lifetime event, folks!_ "

 _Back in the ruins of Castle Cold..._

As the smoke of the previous attacks billowed into the air, King Cold surveyed the damage around him. Physically unhurt by the explosion, Cold took in the sight of his own singed armor and then surveyed over the ruins of his former, lavish home. King Cold sighed and shook his head. "Slowly. I will kill them all _slowly_ for this..."

Behind Cold, Kikono was crouched down and whimpering in fear. Cold turned and saw this pathetic display, and then growled from the bottom of his throat. "Kikono..."

Kikono flinched and looked up to his King. "S-Sire...?"

Cold was blunt. "If you have no contribution here other than sniveling behind me like a pathetic toddler hanging onto my cape, I would suggest you leave before I decide to _kill you myself_."

Kikono swallowed a comet-sized lump in his throat and then immediately complied, getting to his feet and rushing towards the nearest door as fast as he could. King Cold noticed, as his attendant fled, a small wet trail left in his wake and buried his face in his hand. " _Heaven help me_...my kingdom for a competent servant..."

As the smoke cleared more, King Cold glanced towards his main problem. The smoke cleared away and the four Saiyans were revealed to still be standing as well. Their clothes were also quite damaged from the previous explosion, but they all still stood firm. Goku was back on his feet as well. King Cold faced them and swung his sword at his feet, stepping forward with an evil smirk. "So, gentlemen, where do we go from here?"

Goku, Vegeta, and Bardock all responded with a mighty shout as they rushed King Cold in unison. Cold smirked and thrust his sword in the ground before meeting the three of them in a massive, hand-to-hand brawl. Each Saiyan came at Cold with a different, raging style of their own and Cold met all three of these styles with quick reflexes and mighty strikes. Their numbers and technique were able to match Cold's resilience and power blows for blow, trading damage with their intimidating foe as they fought against his overwhelming might.

Vegeta and Bardock both when for an energy-laden punch and swung on Cold, but the King quickly ducked and went for another surprise gore. Bardock dropped to avoid and Vegeta, reacting quickly, grabbed the horn nearest to himself. Goku leapt in and grabbed the other horn tightly. He and Vegeta held King Cold firm and Bardock slid underneath him with a blast in hand. Bardock launched the attack into Cold's face, but the King was quick to block it with his arms. In the brief moment between the Saiyans attacks, Cold quickly seized the advantage. He wrapped his tail around Bardock's waist and flung him into a nearby stone wall, reducing the wall to little more than a pile of rubble and taking Bardock out of the equation.

And then, coating his own fists in a veil of energy, Cold sank a punch in Goku and Vegeta's respective stomachs and drilled each of them into the stone floor below. Having pinned them down, Cold observed each of the Saiyans. "So, you are the ones that ended Frieza according to Ginyu's report, correct? Well...if my son died to this, then perhaps I was wrong to place _all_ of my faith into him..."

That sentence instantly caught the ire of Goku and Vegeta. The two of them roar in defiant response and used the force of their power to push King Cold off of them. The King was sent sliding back from the sheer, overwhelming force and was nearly knocked off of his feet and Goku and Vegeta quickly took advantage. The two Saiyans charged at Cold and showed the results of their two months of continuous training together.

Vegeta was quick like a flash, charging towards King Cold and ducking a punch from the titan. At Cold's back, Vegeta reached down and grabbed a hold of his tail and used the momentum of his slide to pull the King backwards. Cold's balance was quickly taken out, but he had no time to attack Vegeta as Goku descended upon him. Goku threw a punch and Cold blocked, and then Cold threw a punch of his own. Goku and the King got into a massive fist fight, Goku's martial skill and advantage given Cold's lack of balance countered perfectly by the King's raw strength. The blows were shattering, breathtaking, and enough to cause sonic booms as they struck into their target.

Vegeta held onto Cold's tail like a vice, knowing two things: he needed to hold onto Cold's tail in order for Kakarot to maintain the slight edge he had, _and_ he needed to join the fight soon in order for them to make any progress. There was no telling how much stamina Cold actually had, so they needed to start wearing on that pretty quickly.

Luckily, another advantage soon jumped in. Waiting until Cold was completely distracted by Goku, Raditz leapt from the shadow with a new weapon in hand: King Cold's own sword! The elder brother leapt into the sky, sword pointed directly beneath him, and skewered the center of King Cold's tail, pinning it to the ground. Cold hissed in pain and turned to glare at Vegeta and Raditz. Vegeta smirked and then gave a friendly, if not a bit too harsh, punch in the arm. "Smart thinking, Raditz."

Raditz nodded, rubbing his arm, and then he and Vegeta charged at Cold once more.

Cold seethed as he defended against Raditz and Vegeta's strikes. Vegeta was all too happy to get into Cold's face and start weighing in with physical strikes. Raditz, menawhile, forewent the physical attacks in favor of close range ki attacks. This onslaught was soon joined by Goku, who also went with the physical route.

Cold deflected as many of Goku and Vegeta's strikes as he could, but the numbers game soon caught up to him. Punch after punch, in addition to the blasts, collided into him and caused much more superficial damage to Cold than he had seen at any point in the past century. Cold sneered as he caught a punch from Goku, only for Vegeta to kick him in the back of the head. "I must say..."

Cold smirked and used Goku like a bat, knocking Vegeta out of the air. Both Saiyans fell to the ground, but quickly recovered and lunged at Cold again. Cold's smirk did not fade. "If this is how you defeated Frieza, through a strategy and teamwork, I cannot help but be impressed. Saiyan ingenuity is quite the thing~"

Raditz appeared behind Cold, peppering the King's back with several blasts. Cold's smirk quickly faded. " _But I must stress how wrong you are to assume the same thing will work on me._ "

Cold turned on a dime, ripping the entirety of his tail off of the blade and splitting it straight down the middle. With his bifurcated appendage now free, Cold reared his arm back and slammed his hard, armored forearm into Raditz's side. A sickening snap rang out and then Raditz spat up a gush of blood and went crashing into the floor. Goku and Vegeta charged Cold from behind, but the King leapt into the air and landed behind them. Using his right hand, Cold slammed his fist into Vegeta's left arm and snapped it in half. And, using his left foot, Cold stomped onto Goku's right leg and broke it as well.

Goku and Vegeta went sliding forward and Cold chuckled, watching as the Saiyans nursed their freshly broken bones. "I respect your skill, but I am still quite physically stronger than you."

Cold examined his tail and sighed. And then, the King marched forward.

Goku and Vegeta both stood, Goku cringing at putting weight on his right leg. The two Saiyans turned to each other and gave one another a knowing look. They had to pull out the big guns for this. As King Cold drew closer, the two Saiyans both began to shout, drawing up their power. King Cold was unimpressed. He continued his march unabated. But then, to the King's shock, Goku and Vegeta both swelled and their power burst forth. Waves of gold radiated into King Cold's silver and the evil ruler stopped in his tracks. "Oh! I... I see..."

Goku and Vegeta's Super Saiyan power burst forth in ripples, each little flare causing the rubble on the floor to rise up and then fall. The two Saiyan gave each other a knowing look, and then they began their attack!

The two of them were fast as they began to run circles around King Cold, firing spates of ki blasts into the monarch at nearly supersonic speeds. Goku's leg was plagued with sharp pains as he ran. Vegeta's arm was twitching involuntarily as he fired, but the two of them continued on regardless. They continued to soldier through the pain until they had fired nearly one thousand ki blasts at Cold, and then both of them leapt into the air. It was unknown to either of them whether their little light show had injured Cold or not, but that wasn't the point. They had stunned him and left him stranded in a sea of dark smoke. Cold was unaware and utterly blind.

Goku and Vegeta both drew their arms to their sides and prepared their signature Kamehameha and Galick Gun respectively. They sensed right where their target was; they were prepared to fire. But right as they both started to call their attacks, a shock came from within the smoke. Two sets of eye beams, one after the other, shot out. Goku and Vegeta were both shocked and tried to evade, but the attacks were too fast. Goku's attempt dodge netted him a shot in his back and Vegeta, too caught off-guard to even attempt dodging, was struck directly in the stomach.

Both Saiyan's cringed and their opponent, a damaged and rather angry King Cold, emerged from his smoky prison. His armor was cracked and broken, and his cape was in burnt tatters. The King wiped a trickle of blood from his lower lip and shook his head. "I can see how Frieza would have failed to you. He probably had no clue just how outmatched he was. My little darling never put much thought into mental refinement..."

Cold splayed out all ten of his fingers, pointing one hand at Goku and the other at Vegeta. "I stressed to him as he was growing that he should learn basic concepts such as power level detection, but he always swore high and low that Scouters negated the need for such a skill. Such a lazy child..."

Cold smirked and, with a crackle from each hand, fired two massive waves of yellow and black lightning at Goku and Vegeta. The currents hit both of their targets and the two of them were instantly racked with pain and agony. The lightning pulsed through their bodies and made their muscles painfully contract. When the attack was over, Goku and Vegeta were both smoking and they each fell to the ground like a stone. Cold chuckled, and then he fired a second round at them. The pain hit them like a truck and the sheer force of the attack made the smoke dispel completely.

As Goku and Vegeta screamed, Cold snarled. The King was visibly furious as he shouted at his two convulsing foes. "Did you ignorant Saiyans really come here expecting me to be as green as my youngest son was?! Frieza had not even seen 30 years yet, I am 150! Did you expect me to just be a carbon-copy of a snot-nosed, cocky brat?! That I wouldn't have a skill as basic as power sensation?! What kind of man who would dare to call himself a King would be that pathetic?!"

With one final pulse of the lightning, King Cold sent Goku and Vegeta both tumbling backward. The both crashed into a crumbling, stone pillar and laid still for a moment. Cold glared at them as they shakily stood. The moment both Saiyans glared upon him once more, King Cold chuckled. "My Gravity Bolts. Not just mere electricity, but electricity with the pressure of gravity itself! A shock, but with the added fun of severe compression thanks to my telekinetic prowess!"

Cold sighed. "As I've made clear, dear Frieza was a rather uncreative child. He thought that power alone was enough to force his rule. He had yet to come to the realization that creativity with said power is vital!"

Cold held up his hands. "If I were to just try and kill you in a simple manner, you Saiyans might actually succeed in besting me. But I refuse to just allow that~!"

Cold fired the Gravity Bolts again, but this time Goku and Vegeta were able to fire back. Their attacks collided with the lightning and created a beam struggle of epic proportions. The world itself seemed to shake as power met with power and the gravitational effect of Cold's attack burst out in all directions. Stuck at a stalemate again, Goku tiredly chuckled. "Damn...so what do we do now...?"

Vegeta snarled and pushed even more power into his attack. "I refuse to be killed like this! I did not achieve the Legend just to have my light snuffed out in my second usage of it!"

Goku nodded. "Yeah...I know what you mean. I have so much I want to do with this power too. But...we're kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place..."

On his side, King Cold was confident. His Gravity Bolts were an incredibly powerful ability. Barring a miracle, this would be where these two Saiyans would die. And, while what happened next wouldn't exactly be classified as a miracle, it was a lucky break.

" _ **KAIOKEN TIMES TEN!**_ "

King Cold recoiled in pain, his entire body shuddering. He looked down, feeling a pain in his gut, and saw a glowing, red blade sticking out and covered in purple blood. In this brief moment, Cold's lightning stopped and the beam struggle ended. Goku and Vegeta's attacks collided into Cold at full force and the King was forced to endure the brunt of the blasts. He didn't budge, not at all, but the blasts did their damage and exploded in his face.

Once the smoke cleared, King Cold was still standing. But his anger was no longer focused on Goku and Vegeta. Instead, Cold turned and glared at the impudent fool that had dared stab him from behind: a Kaioken-embued Raditz.

Raditz didn't regard Cold, though. Instead, he looked past the King and shouted to Goku and Vegeta. "Retreat and recover, dammit! We'll never finish this if he manages to kill you! I'll distract him, so go!"

Goku and Vegeta seemed hesitant, but they knew that Raditz's words rang true. Reluctantly, the two Saiyans nodded to their third brother-in-arms and leapt into the air, flying away. Meanwhile, Raditz ripped Cold's blade from the King's back and then leapt back. Cold snarled at Raditz and Raditz snarled back. And then, he leapt forward with the sword drawn. The first swing that Raditz tried missed wildly, as Cold dodged to the side. The King sneered. "What in the hell do you think you are doing?!"

Raditz grumbled to himself. Honestly, he knew that he was only buying time. But he couldn't let Cold know that! Raditz shouted at the King. "I'm acting like a Saiyan! And, in acting like a Saiyan, I refuse to just sit by and let Kakarot and Vegeta be the only ones to try and take your head!"

Raditz's Kaioken power was flaring. He lunged at Cold again and took another swing, missing again because of Cold's superior speed. Cold glared down at Raditz, regarding the weaker Saiyan as little more than a fly...and then he swatted him just as easily. A single, full-force punch to the side of the head rattled Raditz from head-to-toe and then sent him flying away at whistling speeds. Raditz crashed into a wall, impacting before landing on his head and then splatting flat onto the ground. Cold reached down to where Raditz once stood and grabbed his blade that the Saiyan had dropped.

The King shook his head. "Pathetic. Too pathetic to kill. _Low-class Saiyan loser_..."

And then King Cold took to the sky after his real opponents, unaware of a different person stirring beneath a nearby pile of rubble.

 _Within Bardock's mind..._

 **Nearly 40 years ago...**

Gine sighed as she walked with the rest of her crewmates, fresh off another mission. She turned to her allies and stared at Bardock. "What do you plan to do after all of this?"

Bardock took a break from drinking from his canteen. "What do you mean?"

Gine sighed. "What do you mean what do I mean? What do you plan to do when you are unable to be a soldier anymore?"

Fasha chuckled and slugged Bardock in the arm, before wrapping her own arm over Gine's shoulder. "Are you kidding, Gigi? Bardock's a lifer if I've ever seen one! His plans for when he stops being a soldier are probably burning in Hell~"

Panbukin and Totepo both chuckled. Gine glanced down to the ground. "Do none of you find that sad at all?"

Toma sighed, wiping his face with his armband before tying it back over his bicep. "Will y'all quit picking on poor Gine? She's trying to make conversation! At least humor her."

Fasha puffed out her cheeks. "I'm not picking on her. I'm joking with my best friend, ya friggin' wet blanket!"

Fasha turned to Gine and poked her cheek. "You know that, right Gigi?"

Gine sighed. "I-I know that. It's just..."

Bardock spoke up. "I tell ya this much..."

Everyone turned to look at Bardock, Bardock took one more canteen sip and then sighed. "I have no idea what I plan to do after I can't fight anymore. The only thing I know for sure is that I know when it'll be...when I'm done being a soldier, I mean..."

Gine's face lit up a bit. "Oh...really?"

Bardock nodded and summoned his signature blast into his hand. "This is my Riot Javelin. I actually created this attack on the first day of my first mission. So, I've always imagined that the time I'm done being a soldier is when I fire my final Riot Javelin, I guess..."

Gine's face lit up in a blush. That was, more poetic than anything she had ever heard Bardock say before. However, that moment was quickly broken up by Toma. "Jeez Bardock! That's the lamest, cheesiest shit I've ever heard you say, dude!"

Bardock rolled his eyes and, hearing the click of a rifle, threw his blast into a nearby cave and blasted several concealed soldiers. "Shut the hell up, Toma!"

 **Recently...**

Several thoughts from recent times flooded through Bardock's mind after that memory. The same memories from before, of Gine and her wish for a peaceful life, streamed through his head like a rushing river.

And, alongside these memories, the recent memories of Kakarot talking about that Grandpa Gohan flowed as well. All of these thoughts, from his wife and his child, welled into Bardock's head. And then...

 _In the ruins of Castle Cold..._

Bardock's eyes snapped open and he sat up from the rubble, his head aching and bleeding. The older Saiyan glared up to the sky and say the ever-shrinking form of King Cold flying into the distance. Bardock looked around, trying to get his bearings, and saw the stilled form of Raditz lying in the distance. "Dammit...! Raditz!"

Bardock shakily stood and ran over to the prostrate form of his eldest son. He knelt next to Raditz and flipped him over, seeing that Raditz's eyes were completely glazed over. Bardock gave his unconscious son and light shake. "Raditz!"

He shook a bit harder. "Raditz! Come on, boy! You can't be dead!"

Bardock shook him harder. " _Raditz!_ "

Still no response. Desperate, Bardock coated his fist in energy and slammed it into Raditz's chest. "Wake up, son!"

Raditz coughed, wheezing in a painful breath before settling for forced heaving. Raditz's eyes focused a bit and he looked up at his father. "D-Dad...?"

Bardock fell silent for a moment, staring down at his eldest boy before squeezing his right hand over his eyes. "Dammit, Raditz. Don't scare me like that..."

Raditz shakily sat up. "S-Sorry..."

Bardock growled and quickly readopted his gruffer exterior. "You can't die yet. Vegeta is busy fighting Cold, so you're the only one who can make our trump card!"

Raditz rubbed his aching head. "Wait...can...can you seriously not...?"

Bardock blushed and snarled. "No, dammit, I cannot make a friggin' Power Ball!"

Raditz's shoulders slumped. "But, didn't Uncle T-"

Bardock rolled his eyes. "Yes, Raditz, _my brother_ invented the damned technique! He was a brilliant scientist! And I never bother to learn the damned thing because I was never sent to a planet with a moon! But that's irrelevant! We need to make one and throw it into the air, cuz Cold is a lot stronger than any of us thought he'd be!"

 _Meanwhile, in the Capital City..._

Goku and Vegeta both sat in the alleyway that they had chosen to hide in and took a breather. Goku's leg was still broken, Vegeta's arm was still broken, but they couldn't let that affect them right now. The two Saiyans maintained their Super Saiyan forms, pushing their power as low as they could muster, in an attempt to hide out. But they knew it wouldn't take King Cold long to find them. Goku turned to Vegeta. "We need to sneak a bit farther away. My power hasn't fully returned yet..."

Vegeta nodded. "I need a bit more time to regenerate as well..."

The Prince pointed to the fleeing crowd of nobles and rich-folk. "We should try to sneak away in that crowd. All of their energy signatures will muddle ours from Cold's view."

Goku nodded. "I... I don't like using other people as a shield...but it's probably the smarter choice this time around..."

Goku and Vegeta both stood and ran into the crowd, unnoticed by the terrified noble snobs as they used the crowd to sneak further and further away from the ever-approaching Cold.

Up in the air, Cold glared down at the fleeing hordes of his terrified subjects. He could tell that the Saiyans were hidden somewhere in there, but he couldn't pinpoint them. Cold chuckled to himself. "Smart..."

His smile faded. "But they seem to forget who the king of this world is..."

And, with that, Cold descended down. The King landed with a solid boom onto the ground below and shouted as the entire crowd turned to him. "Writhing populace, _**BOW TO YOUR KING**_!"

And every one of them immediately did, falling to one knee and instantly screaming praises for King Cold. With all of them down, only Goku and Vegeta were left standing. The stared at Cold, shocked, and Cold stared back with a smarmy look on his face. "Found you~"

Goku and Vegeta scoffed. They still needed more time to recover from their last "shock treatment". The two Saiyans went running in the opposite direction, knowing that with the amount of distance between themselves and Cold, they would have a better chance at avoiding his Gravity Bolts. Cold was quick to pick up on this as well. "Maintaining a distance. Very smart. You Saiyans have been worthy adversaries."

Cold held out his fingers. "However, allow me to instruct you on something you might not know, gentlemen: _electricity conducts_!"

Cold fired his Gravity Bolts. But this time he didn't aim for Goku and Vegeta. Instead, his fired the attack at his kneeling subjects. The effect was instantaneous, the lightning hitting the first row of them before hopping to the next and the next. It picked up speed as it went, blasting from person to person and eventually reaching the fleeing Saiyans. And this time, the attack hit even harder. Having had hundreds of people to goes through to pick up speed and strength, the Gravity Bolts hit Vegeta and Goku hard, the force pulling inward on their bodies and sending waves of electrical current through every fiber of their beings.

Goku and Vegeta screamed in pain, but it only lasted a moment. Soon, the noble subjects of King Cold all fried up and fell dead in the street and the current that King Cold created disconnected. Goku and Vegeta both looked at this display, Goku feeling absolutely terrible about what he had allowed Cold to do, and then they both took to the sky.

Cold watched as his enemies fled into the air with mild amusement on his face. The King's eyes began to glow and he thrust his right hand to his side. "The open air won't save you!"

Goku and Vegeta turned to face Cold as he shouted at them. With enough distance between them and the King, the two Saiyans thought to blast at him. But they were quickly shocked to see King Cold's next callous move. With a flick of his wrist and a wave of his arm, King Cold caused a wave of screaming to come flying towards Goku and Vegeta. The two Saiyans looked to their left and were horrified to see hundreds of King Cold's subjects flying through the air like mere toys. Goku realized what was about to happen and immediately shouted down to King Cold. "NO! STOP!"

But it was too late. Cold held his hands up high and fired more of his Gravity Bolts. The electric attack hit and fried many of the innocent civilians and shot through them all like a miserable spider web. The attack reached Goku and Vegeta in a flash and hit them even harder this time. Both Saiyans cried out in pain and, to Vegeta's horror, Goku briefly lost consciousness. "Kakarot!"

As the attack ended and the burnt corpses of the noble class rained down from the sky, Goku fell along with them. It was only after about 20 feet of free fall that Goku snapped back into and stopped himself. He watched, from his position in the sky, as all of those people splattered against the ground. He glared down at King Cold and King Cold wickedly smiled back at him.

Goku's Super Saiyan power flared back up and he rose back up to join Vegeta. "Vegeta!"

Vegeta smirked over to his ally. "I take it playtime is over, Kakarot?"

Goku drew his hands to the side. "Let's destroy this guy!"

Vegeta smirked and drew his hands to the side as well. Each Saiyan began to charge a truly massive attack: Goku readied a Super Kamehameha and Vegeta readied a Galick Meteora.

On the ground, Cold cocked his head. "Well, that will not do at all. How about...we try this one then~"

Cold extended a single palm towards the sky and smiled wide. And then, the King fired out an ethereal, blue fog made from his energy.

Up in the sky, Goku and Vegeta watched as this cloud flew towards them. They braced for the impact as Cold's attack was suddenly on top of them...but then no damage occurred. Goku and Vegeta both floated there for a moment, confused as to what Cold had done. Neither of them could quite process it, but then the true effect of the attack hit them. Their blasts dispersed and Goku and Vegeta both clenched their throats as, suddenly, neither of them could breathe!

 _ **What the hell had King Cold just done?!**_

They had no time to think of an answer for this question as, moving like a flash, Cold appeared above the two Saiyans. "Hello there~"

The monarch gripped his massive feet onto Goku and Vegeta's faces, squeezing harshly, and then began to rapidly descend to the ground. With Goku and Vegeta unable to do anything, other than suddenly breathe once more, King Cold slammed feet first into the ground with the force of a bomb.

The blast radius of Cold's landing shot out through the entire city. Nearby buildings buckled and fell over like a house of cards, farther out buildings creaked and their windows shattered. Once again, the force of one of Cold's attacks was enough to make the entire planet shudder.

At the epicenter, Cold glanced down at the dazed Saiyans still in the grips of his feet. He smiled and chuckled, and then charged a blast into each. He kicked Vegeta away first, sending him sailing through a pile of building to the left. And then he kicked Goku away, in a similar manner, to the right. Goku and Vegeta both laid there, beaten into submission, and their Super Saiyan power dispersed.

Cold stumbled forward, more damaged than he would care to let on. But he couldn't say that he cared. In his head, the King was satisfied to have beaten these cretins completely. And, best of all, he was not forced to transform to do it. Cold grabbed a piece of rebar from some nearby rubble and straightened it out. He walked up to Goku and heaved the metal beam above his head, preparing to run the Saiyan through.

But then, Cold noticed something was off. He stared down at Goku, who was perfectly conscious, but noticed that the Saiyan was paying him no mind. He seemed to be in some sort of trance, his pupils having turned completely pink. Concerned with what he might be staring at, Cold turned and followed Goku's line of sight and eventually came upon a sight hovering above the ruins of his own castle: a Saiyan Power Ball. Cold sighed. "You must be joking..."

The King heard a shifting of rubble behind him and turned to see that, indeed, this was not a joke. Goku was suddenly looming above King Cold, having quadrupled in height and growing still. The Saiyan grew taller and taller, his tattered orange outfit stretching with him as he did. After a moment, Goku became a full Oozaru and roared in utter fury.

Cold leapt away to a nearby toppled building and observed the situation all around him. In the distance, Vegeta had become an Oozaru as well. And, up at his castle, those other two Saiyans had also transformed.

Cold glared as Bardock and Raditz both leapt down from the castle, landing a few hundred few away and glaring right at him. He turned around and saw that Goku and Vegeta were approaching from the opposite side. And then, on top of that, the fur of their Oozaru forms suddenly erupted with golden light as they stomped forward. King Cold was besieged from all sides by four, angry Great Apes. And those four apes let loose a combined roar that let Cold know exactly who they were coming for.

Cold sneered at his radical turn of events. " _Simply ridiculous..._ "

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	44. Chapter 44: Pleasure

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 44: "Pleasure"**

 _Cold Capital City – The wrecked Affluent District..._

Cold looked towards each of his advancing, ape foes as they drew closer to him. He looked utterly unimpressed. Filthy, Saiyan apes walking freely on his soil and trampling the ruins of his once mighty city. Cold had seen hundreds of these disgusting, hairy apes before. Four of them ganging up on him, in his eyes, was the height of insults.

The only notable thing about the four of them, in King Cold's eyes, was the state of those two he was fighting before: Goku and Vegeta. Somehow, those two had managed to combine their Oozaru forms with that golden form they had adopted before. And, although Cold refused to allow the mindset of defeat to enter his thoughts, he was well aware that at their current powers, those two might actually be able to injure him. Maybe even kill him if he were to slip up.

King Cold sighed...and then he whipped around as fast as he could and fired two Death Cannons at the Power Ball. Bardock, reacting quickly with his rapid Oozaru reflexes, leapt between the two blasts and the Power Ball. The Death Cannons crashed into the center of Bardock's chest and sent him falling backwards.

The attacks hurt, they hurt a lot, but Bardock's increased mass served as a cushion for him. He landed and did a backflip, and then he lunged forward. Bardock let loose a cacophonous roar and slammed his fist into the building that Cold was standing atop of.

Cold leapt away, dodging the attack with relative ease. But the King was shocked to see that the other three Oozaru were already behind him. Each of them threw a punch and Cold just barely managed to weave through each without getting hit. These apes were faster than they looked. He had to be careful.

A quick regrouping later and all four Oozaru were coming at him at once. The bloodlust that the form gave each of them was apparent in their massive, red eyes. Goku swiped and Vegeta swung and Raditz lunged and Bardock stomped. And each time, Cold got just a little closer to actually being hit. Cold paused, aiming his finger at Raditz's heart. He hoped to kill the weakling first. But, in that split second, Vegeta managed to get the first hit in.

The Saiyan Prince's massive fist slammed into Cold and sent him flying backward. Cold slammed into the shattered side of a once prominent building and the sheer force of his impact caused it to topple over. He tried to recover, but Goku was already above him. The orange clad Saiyans massive boot smashed into Cold and drove him through the wreckage of them building. With a massive crash and a rumble, Cold was impacted into the ground.

As the King tried to recover, Bardock and Raditz came rushing in for another attack. Goku leapt back and the other two Saiyans got to work. Raditz dragged his fingers through the ground and ripped Cold high into the air, leaving the King as a target for Bardock's attack.

The older Saiyan had prepared a Riot Javelin in each hand. He waited until Cold was in position, and then with a smirk he fired both Riot Javelins as well as a powerful Mouth Cannon. All three blasts shot towards Cold, spiraling around one another, until they crashed into the King with a massive explosion.

Cold fell from the sky as all four Saiyans watched on. He came within inches of the ground before, in a massive surprise, catching himself midair and instantly summoning two Death Balls. With a devastating attack in each hand, Cold rocketed towards the four Oozaru. He threw both Death Balls and then followed them up with his Gravity Bolts. Cold smirked, thinking that this maneuver would take out at least the two non-Golden apes. But he was quickly surprised when Goku, Vegeta, Bardock, and Raditz all roared at the top of their lungs and then fired four, simultaneous Mouth Cannons. Cold's attacks were all swallowed up and the King had no time to react as the four beams all crashed into him.

King Cold was swallowed up by the searing blue light of the Mouth Cannons and sent flying back into a large, wrecked portion of his once mighty city. The attacks exploded in a brilliant display and left little more than rubble and smoke in their wake.

The four Saiyans stood confident. They knew that Cold was not dead, not from an attack like that, but they took quite major advantage in this battle. They had evened the playing field. Vegeta chuckled and turned to speak to his less-than-Elite comrades. "Is everyone doing okay? Have you all managed to keep your wits about you?"

Bardock nodded. "This ain't my first time in the saddle Vegeta. I'm fine."

Raditz was clutching his head, as if he was in the middle of a migraine. "Me... am...fine. Still...here..."

Vegeta turned to Goku. "Kakarot. What about-"

Goku was a much different case from Bardock and Raditz, however. While the two of them appeared to be holding it together reasonably, Goku was already off in the distance throwing buildings and smashing anything that got in his way. Vegeta sighed. " _Goddammit..._ "

 _Meanwhile, hovering up in the stratosphere..._

In his small scouting ship, a Cold Force soldier had tears in his eyes. He sat at the controls to his vessel and mumbled to himself. "D-Dammit... King Cold is going kill me..."

He gripped the controls to the ship tightly and sniveled to himself as he followed the path that his kidnappers had set out for him. "I... I swear...I going to kill all three of these-"

The barrel to his own blaster pressed into the side of his face and the soldier instantly began to whimper. The person threatening him, Genoa, placed her thumb on the trigger. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

He shook his head, nervously chuckling. "N-N-Nothing, m-ma'am~!"

As Genoa threatened that hapless fools' life, Faline Phars and Salam, wearing her Camera Scouter, stood nearer to the viewing screen of the ship. Phars motioned to the window, showing a full panoramic of the situation below, and continued to give her report. "You're seeing it here live, folks. The state of Planet Cold is in flux as it would appear that four Saiyan insurgents have taken the planet by storm! Cold's reign appears to be, ironically enough, coming to a bitterly frigid end as these four rebels have left his castle and his army in ruins!"

Phars adjusted her glasses. "The long-thought-extinct race has come back with a vengeance, going against their former boss. A boss who, as the documents that I leaked in one of my more recent posts revealed, allowed his son to destroy the Saiyan race so many years ago. That callous act has paid dividends as it would appear that the sins of the son are now reflected on the fath-"

A stray Mouth Cannon shot by the ship and made the entire thing shake midair. Phars, Genoa, Salam, and the soldier all screamed in fear, but the soldier quickly got the vessel back on course. Phars stood up and brushed her hair out of her face. "What the hell was that?!"

She and Salam both looked out from the viewing screen and came upon a truly interesting sight. Phars spoke again. "Well...ladies and gentlemen...it would appear as if the Saiyans, formerly a seemingly uniform fighting force have...turned on each other..."

She scratched the back of her head. "Uhm... _stay tuned, I guess_..."

 _Back on the ground..._

With a burst of energy, King Cold exhumed himself from his tomb of rubble. The King creaked and cracked as he stood up, dismayed at his current condition. Cold examined all of his fresh, if superficial wounds and the state of his once pristine armor. The chest plate was almost totally gone and his cape was little more than tatters. Unwilling to step back out looking a fool, Cold simply pulled his armor away and tossed it aside.

He snarled at the state of himself, his dignified form being so scuffed and bruised and burnt. His prominent tail split down the very center and his pierced stomach still leaking his noble blood onto the ground. Cold picked up his sword and stepped from behind his hiding spot, ready to rain vengeance upon his foes. But, to his shock, the King did not find the four Oozaru waiting to continue their brawl. Instead, he found the sight of the four of them wrestling with one another.

Goku roared in confusion and frustration as Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock all pinned him to the ground. Not in his right mind, the Saiyan from Earth roared in anger and frustration and fired his Mouth Cannon wildly. Vegeta jerked his head out of the way of the devastating attack and then gave Goku as shake. "Kakarot! Get a hold of yourself!"

It was an unfortunate situation, Goku had worked himself to the point of exhaustion as Vegeta tried to teach him how to maintain one-hundred percent control in his Oozaru form. But the technique to learning self-control was something that took both skill and time. Maintaining his consciousness against the overwhelming pull of his wild instincts was quite difficult for him.

As Vegeta held Goku down, his father and brother tried their best to calm him. Raditz spoke soothingly, in his rudimentary way of speech, trying to get Goku to regain his senses. "K-Kakarot...stay...calm. You...are...Saiyan...and..."

Raditz's attempt at a heartwarming speech was quickly cut off as Goku snatched his hand away from Vegeta and punched his brother directly in the face with it. This sudden attack jarred Raditz and, also being a low-class with little Oozaru training, Raditz immediately lost his sense of rationality and began to rampage as well.

Infuriated and targeting one another specifically, Goku and Raditz began to batter each other as hard as they could. The back-and-forth clash lasted only moments before Goku managed to get the upper hand, throwing Raditz to the ground and pounding on him with his massive fists. Bardock sighed in frustration, quickly stepping in and separating his two sons. He grabbed Goku by the back of his tattered shirt and heaved his son off of him and across the ruined city. And then he knelt down and began to try and talk some sense into his older son.

Goku had already recovered behind the two. He opened his mouth and began to charge a Mouth Cannon to fire at Raditz and Bardock, but Vegeta quickly stepped in to prevent that. Vegeta grabbed Goku by the throat and choke-slammed him to the ground. Vegeta got on top of Goku and held him down as Bardock continued to talk to Raditz.

Bardock spoke into his older son's ear. "Raditz! Come on! We need to stay focused and keep things together so that we can get back to your mother! Gine is counting on us to all come back alive, so we can't have you and Kakarot trying to kill each other! Not again!"

Raditz snarled and snorted, but Bardock's words eventually worked. Soon, relaxing a bit, Raditz came back into consciousness. "R-Right...I'm...so...rry..."

Bardock stood his eldest up and gave him a hearty slap on the back. Meanwhile, Vegeta was still trying to get Goku to snap out of it. "Kakarot! We've trained for this! I trained you for two months to handle this! You need to conduct yourself with dignity and pride! This form is the culmination of everything that the Saiyan race ever strived for!"

Goku roared in Vegeta face and Vegeta responded with a punch. "Get it together, Kakarot! _Or I will personally rip your tail off_!"

With that punch, Goku seemed to calm down a bit. The Saiyan from Earth snarled and growled, but his consciousness slowly returned to him. Goku sighed out and shook his head, and then he cracked a small smile. "Th-Thanks...Vegeta..."

Vegeta got off of Goku and allowed the Saiyan to stand up. Goku scratched the back of his head and chuckled. "I'm sorry...still...kinda hard..."

Vegeta shook his head. "You need to learn to conduct yourself better. You represent the entire Saiyan race in this form. Don't embarrass us, Kakarot!"

Goku pointed to his clothes, made from Frieza Force materials by Bulma and Chi-Chi for when he transformed. "At least...not...naked~"

Vegeta slapped his hand onto his face. "Is the new standard for dignity really that you aren't naked?"

And then, Vegeta cringed, realizing that he had just used his broken arm to facepalm. Vegeta clenched his fist tight as a wave of pain passed. The Prince snarled. "We need to focus up. Cold is still alive. We need to kill him quickly!"

The others were all quick to nod in agreement. Bardock spoke up. "We should split up and cover the area. He's smaller than us, so he's probably hiding somewhere in the rubble. We flush him out and then swarm him!"

Raditz and Vegeta both nodded in agreement. Bardock turned to his younger son. "Kakarot! Think you can do that?"

Goku nodded. "Y-Yeah, I think-"

Suddenly, Goku's entire body was enveloped in a thin, white light and he was forced to stand up as straight as a rail. Goku's face cringed and he instantly looked confused. Raditz, Bardock, and Vegeta all flinched back, but then they caught on to what was happening as three massive Death Beams came shooting towards Goku's chest.

Vegeta acted quickly, jumping in and kicking Goku out of the path of the beams and saving his life in the process. The beams flew further and further into the distance, over the ruins of the castle, and hit a tower in the distance. The tower exploded in short order and the burning debris rained down onto the town below.

Goku struggled to stand, having landed badly on his already broken leg. He limped over to Vegeta and bowed his head. "Th-Thanks..."

Vegeta sneered. "I was only returning the favor for you saving me from Frieza's disc attack back on Namek."

The four Saiyan all turned towards the source of the attack and seethed at the attack. King Cold was floating there, totally naked and gripping his sword. He had a look of cold fury on his face. "You Saiyans seem too comfortable. You should know that I am nowhere near dead yet."

Cold wasted no time. He thrust his hand out and fired his Gravity Bolts once more. Vegeta roared in response to this and charged right at them. To Cold's surprise and dismay, the Bolts did not seem to affect Vegeta all that badly. The Prince's larger frame seemed to absorb most of the impact of the attack, allowing him to charge through and deliver a mighty punch to Cold. "That petty little technique won't work anymore, Cold!"

King Cold went spiraling into the air. He caught himself after flying a little way and sneered down at Vegeta. "I suppose it's a good thing I am not a one-trick pony then!"

Cold held up his hand and produced more of that same toxic, blue fog from before. Rather than just shoot it at Vegeta, however, Cold coated his blade with it. He thrust his sword high into the air, and then Cold swung it downward. As he did that, the area around the blue fog sparked and resulted in a burning, flying slash launched directly at Vegeta.

The slash hit the Prince dead on and cleaved a burning wound into his chest. Vegeta fell onto his back and Cold smirked. "Allow me to introduce another technique of mine: my Vacuum Mist! Another brilliant combination of my own extraordinary spiritual and psychic powers and the skills I have accrued over such a long life!"

Cold gently placed his blade over the opposite shoulder and smirked. "Normally, my mist is only used to destroy oxygen. But when applied to an object and swung at a high enough speed to create friction. Well..."

Cold chuckled. "I have no need to breathe, but I do keep this planet oxygenated for a reason~"

The King swung his blade yet again and created another giant, burning arc with his sword. This slicing flame went flying down towards the still recovering Vegeta, crashing into the Prince's chest again and smashing him into the ground. Vegeta roared in pain and his other comrades quickly rushed over to help him.

Goku and Raditz leapt up into the air and began to swing wildly on King Cold. Cold weaved through their attacks, occasionally being clipped by the side of a fist or the edge of a boot, but managing to stay mostly unharmed in the exchange. Cold summoned a small blast in his hand and allowed it to explode once Goku and Raditz drew close. Both Oozaru were momentarily stunned and Cold dropped. He fired off two more burning slashes at the Saiyans...but this time he had a specific target in mind. Both burning crescents were aimed squarely at Goku and Raditz's tails!

The two brothers were dumbfounded. They were both still slightly stunned and stuck in the non-maneuverable airspace. At this point, they were both doomed to lose their Oozaru forms and be at the mercy of Cold on the ground. However, salvation came from a very unlikely source. As the slashes nearly hit their tails, Goku and Raditz were both suddenly engulfed in a massive energy blast. This attack might have hit both of them head on, but it also completely dispelled the burning slashes.

Goku and Raditz both smashed into the ground and Cold turned to glare at the one that had ruined his plan. Bardock stood there, smoke curling from his mouth and a smile on his face. He reached down and yanked Vegeta back onto his feet. Goku and Raditz both quickly recovered as well. They were a bit damaged, but still safely in their Oozaru forms.

Wordlessly all four Saiyans charged at Cold, coming from all sides. And another great struggle broke out between the four of them and their one mighty enemy. Cold weaved between their attacks, eventually rising above them with a confident smirk. "Big or small, simple apes are simple apes~"

And then, the King fired another errant blast towards the Power Ball. Bardock was quick to react, rushing over to Cold's blast and slapping it out of the air. Cold raced over to Bardock, trying to remove the older Saiyans tail with his blade, but Raditz and Vegeta stepped into with a punch and a kick.

Cold was sent flying by Vegeta's kick, but caught himself and launched another slash at the Power Ball. Goku leapt in and blocked the slash with a Mouth Cannon before falling from the sky and trying to body slam Cold. Cold managed to get out of the way and slash Goku across his left flank, only for a surprise punch from Bardock to send him flying once again.

It was pandemonium and chaos as the King and the four Oozaru held each other at a stalemate. Each upper hand that the Saiyans gained was distracted by Cold launching an attack on the Power Ball or on one of their tails and damage was inevitably dealt to them in their distraction. But, each attack on the Power Ball or the tails left Cold open to absorb more punishment as well.

Vegeta stomped Cold into the ground, but Cold slashed at his tail in response. Vegeta cartwheeled out of the way of the attack, but then Cold aimed for the Power Ball. Raditz leapt up and blocked the attempt on the Power Ball with his body, injuring himself but giving Bardock the opportunity to rush in and attack once more. Cold sneered and froze Bardock in place with his telekinesis before firing a Death Beam right towards the Saiyans heart, but Goku leapt in and shoved his father out of the way at the last second. Vegeta took that advantage and caught Cold by surprise with a Mouth Cannon blast, sending Cold flying away and resulting in a massive explosion.

This confusing brawl continued on and on for quite a while, but eventually fatigue began to set in on both sides. Another Mouth Cannon from Raditz was easily dodged and Cold flew high into the air again. He was getting so very tired of all of this. Cold aimed for the Power Ball again, but he was forced to evade by four Mouth Cannons firing up at him. He avoided each of the cannons like nighttime searchlights and snarled to him. "Cease this pointless rampaging! I am so desperately sick of this fight!"

Cold raised his hand above his head and his eyes began to glow. Using his powers, Cold summoned a massive, icy blue blast above his head. "This is the end, you dirty little Saiyans!"

In a flash, Cold threw his hand downward and launched the blast. However, it was not aimed at a single one of the Oozaru beneath him. Rather, it was aimed at the surface of the planet itself! All four of the Saiyans instantly realized what that meant: Cold was pulling a Frieza! He was trying to destroy the planet, knowing that the vacuum of space would kill the four of them for him!

In a panic, all four of them dived towards the blast and intercepted the blast. And Cold responded by chuckling at their foolishness. "Freezing Death Ball~"

None of the Saiyans made it in time. The blast hit the ground full force, but the planet was not reduced to ashes as the Saiyans thought it would be. Instead, the ball burst and released a massive cloud of frigid energy for miles around the impact zone. The fallout of the attack settled on the ground after a while and Cold admired his work: four perfectly frozen Oozaru statues in the middle of a wintery wasteland. Cold smiled. "My third and final secret technique. The Frigid Waves~!"

Cold splayed his hands out to his sides and laughed out loud. "With my Gravity Bolts, my Vacuum Mist, and my Frigid Waves, I am truly the ultimate, dominating force in the Universe! Not just powerful, but a living natural disaster! A sentient antithesis towards the concept of life itself!"

Cold stared down at his captive foes and sneered. "I must say now...I truly despise the four of you. You took my Frieza... _my beautiful, supremely talented Frieza_...and you killed him..."

Cold gripped his fists tightly. "And I was so close...I had developed my skills. I had managed to create the ultimate offspring. I had managed to establish a massive army and forced over 80 percent of the Universe to supplant itself to my family. I even managed to install my own personal base of operations here in the Core Galaxy. I was so close..."

The King raised his hands into the air and his power surged. " _My goal of supplanting the Gods of this Universe and replacing them with my own, magnificent rule was so close! I could feel it! I could taste it! And you Saiyans ruined everything! How dare you rob me of my ultimate weapon to establish myself as God?!_ "

Cold glared down at the frozen Saiyans, and then he smirked. "Oh well...it's not like I can't just make a another. I've lived for so long, I took so long to make Frieza just right...I can wait a little longer, I suppose..."

Cold turned away from the Saiyans. "I will just ensure that this one is made with some common sense. Constructed to be powerful and intelligent and loyal. I will not make the same mistake for a _third_ time."

The King's attention turned toward the Power Ball, still glowing in the sky, and sighed. "My my, I think I have waxed lyrical on my goals for long enough. I think it is time to end this little Saiyan rebellion for good."

Cold drew his sword to his side and smirked. "I will destroy your hope, break your bodies, kill the four of you...and then I will raze your precious little Earth into ash!"

And, with that, Cold rocketed towards the Power Ball. However, as he set about crushing the Saiyans hopes up close and personal, he began to hear something. It started out low and nearly silent...but then it began to get louder.

" _Ka...Me...Ha...Me..._ "

Cold turned and looked down to a sight he had not expected. Goku, in his Oozaru form, was still frozen solid. But he was frozen in a position where his mouth was wide open, and he was staring right next to the Power Ball, right where Cold currently was. And, beneath the ice encasing him, Cold saw a glowing force within Goku's mouth. Cold realized his error, and he realized it was too late to avoid what was coming. " _Conniving Saiyan bastard..._ "

" _ **HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!**_ "

The beam fired from Goku's mouth, reducing the ice that encased him to nothing. It smashed directly into King Cold and missed the Power Ball by merely a hair. The wicked King was sent flying into the sky, taking the full force of the explosion that the Kamehameha Mouth Cannon caused.

Goku, meanwhile, stood and roared as loud as he could. The flaring power from his Golden Great Ape form echoed out in waves, colliding with his fellow Saiyans and rapidly melting away the ice encasing them. Vegeta, Bardock, and Raditz all stood up, now freed. The four Oozaru glanced at one another and Bardock eventually spoke up. "How in the hell did you manage that?!"

Goku chuckled. "I... saw opening...when saw blast was freezing us...realized Cold would go for Power Ball...so looked to it to...catch Cold off guard."

Vegeta cracked his neck and chuckled. "Well done, Kakarot. If you keep up doing things like this, I might not be able to call you an idiot for much longer."

Goku chuckled. "We need to...get serious..."

Raditz nodded. "This is...our...chance..."

Bardock punched his fist into his open palm. "Let's finish this!"

In the distance, Cold had just managed to recover from Goku's devastating attack. In the aftermath of such a heavy blow, Cold was indeed quite heavily injured. He pushed himself up and snarled. "Accursed Saiyans. I will make you all pay for these continued offenses against me. Against my well-laid plans. I will pay vengeance upon every single person you collectively care for..."

Cold summoned another Death Ball into his hand. "You will-"

King Cold gasped as he laid eyes upon his foes. Not in the distance, as he had thought they would be, but right on top of him. Cold was injured. Too injured to dodge as he had before. And, as a result of this, he was left at the mercy of the vicious Oozaru.

Multiple blows rained down upon Cold. Punches and kicks and swipes sent him flying from ape to ape in some twisted game of pinball. The evil King was being rag-dolled by his foes. Cold snarled as he was sent flying into the distance and levied his sword at the Saiyans once again, launching a series of burning slashes towards Goku and Vegeta. He was disdained, however, to see that these no longer did the trick. Goku bodied the burning slashes, taking the damage from them but taking it in stride. Goku ducked down out of the way and Cold was then met with an even more unnerving sight.

Vegeta was standing there, Galick Gun charged in his hands and Mouth Cannon charged in his gaping maw. He fired them both at the same time. While both blasts surged towards Cold, the King erected a powerful barrier to block the oncoming assault. Vegeta smirked. His Mouth Cannon hit, full force, against the shield, but his Galick Gun shifted upwards. Vegeta directed the attack past Cold and around to the King's back. The Galick Gun struck against the wicked monarch and forced him to drop his shield, allowing the Mouth Cannon to crash into him with full force.

The end result of this assault was an even more damaged Cold. The King was in pain and his sword had been obliterated by the attack. He couldn't even react as Bardock came lunging from behind. The older Saiyan grabbed ahold of the mad king and forced him into his mouth, and then he fired Cold away with a mighty Mouth Cannon. Cold was stuck on the end of the blast, unable to escape until another Mouth Cannon from Raditz struck him from the side. The sudden change in direction disoriented the King, so much so that he did not notice until the last moment that Goku and Vegeta were waiting. The two Saiyan both reared back their fists and punched forward at the same time, catching Cold between them and crushing him between their knuckles.

As he was held there, between the pressure of the two apes' fists, Cold's temper broke. Cold's last gasp came out and he fought back against his feral foes one last time. He roared in utter fury and the force of his power sent Goku and Vegeta stumbling back. "This nonsense ends here! I will kill you all!"

Bardock and Raditz wasted no time, both of them came rushing in to assault Cold from the front, but the King responded with a massive cloud of Vacuum Mist. The devastating cloud spread out from all sides around Cold, destroying any and all oxygen around him and rendering the entire area without an atmosphere. Unable to breathe, both of the Saiyans were forced to retreat. They each fired a blast at King Cold, but Cold responded with a force of his own. The blasts cancelled each other out, and then Cold immediately started spamming Death Beams at Bardock and Raditz.

Unfortunately for him, Vegeta had already recovered. The Saiyan Prince took a deep breath and then, with a mighty gust, he forced all of the air out of his lungs. Vegeta closed his eyes tight and then, with his lungs empty, Vegeta charged into the atmosphere bereft area and sent Cold flying out of it with a massive punch. Cold was thrown off guard and barreled forward in the air, leaving him open to an attack from Goku. Goku came launching forward and stomped Cold into the side of a building. This was followed up with Raditz rushing in. The elder brother ripped the entire building from the ground and fired all of his ki into it, and then he threw it as hard as he could.

Cold could not move. His stamina had given out and the pressure of Raditz's energy was holding him still. Raditz's throw sent Cold and the entire building he was trapped in flying into the distance, all the way back to the ruins of his very own castle. The building crashed into the foundation of the castle and exploded with a mighty burst. The rubble settled down and smoke rose from it, but that was all blown away with a massive surge of power.

Cold was left standing there and shaking. He was weakened and he had reached his limits in this form of his. "Okay then...I suppose that my hand has been forced. Now...I will transform and give you a sight of _true hell_!"

Cold's power began to swell. It was clear what was happening. The mad King was trying to transform. But this transformation was immediately cut off by Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock raining down from the sky. Cold glanced up at his enemies and saw each of their mouths wide open. Four Mouth Cannons shined down upon Cold: Kamehameha, Galick Beam Cannon, Weekend, and Ravage Cannon respectively. All four Saiyans glared down at Cold...and then they fired!

The four mighty beams crashed into Cold and drove him into the ground with total power. The mad King was driven into the bedrock of his own castle and, after being forced far, far into the ground, a magnificent explosion erupted. The four Saiyans leapt back as their own energy and lava and flames spewed from the ground. The stared as the magma spread out, engulfing all of what used to be Cold's throne room and melting it into nothing.

And, with that, the Saiyans began to celebrate. They were victorious! They couldn't sense Cold's power anymore! _They had won!_

The four Oozaru began to celebrate. But their celebration was incredibly short-lived. Before the four of them could even start to discuss their next move, a deep and sinister laugh began to echo out. Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock all stared back up at the flaming Hell that Castle Cold had become. They still couldn't sense any power level, but what they were hearing was unmistakably that of King Cold!

Cold chuckled again and spoke, his voice now much deeper than it was before. "Congratulations, gentlemen...you have certainly pushed me quite far..."

A low growl began to emerge from the hole that Cold had been forced into. " **I must ask...did you make Frieza transform before you killed him?** _You had to have, yes?_ "

Raditz flinched back. "Oh no... Cold...did...did he...?"

Bardock sneered. "We can't act like we didn't see this coming. Cold looks exactly like Frieza when he was in his second form. It's easy to assume that he was probably in his second form as well..."

The older Saiyan clenched his fists tight. "It was stupid to think that we would be lucky enough to just kill him without _something_ going awry..."

Cold let loose a dark, echoing laugh. " **Indeed**. _Indeed_. Indeed...it was quite foolish~"

And then, suddenly and without warning, a massive spiked appendage burst from the ground like a missile smashed into Raditz's side. The weakest of the four Saiyans gurgled in pain and went flying high into the air. The appendage, what appeared to be a tentacle covered in spikes at the very tip, quickly sank back into the ground.

And then, to the other Saiyans horror, a second tentacle came shooting from the burning hole. It shot through the air and wrapped around Raditz, catching him as he was falling. It wrapped around the elder brother tight, and then yanked him into the burning hole.

Raditz's bloodcurdling, pained screams rang out from the hole, making his three comrades flinch in shock and disgust. Cold, meanwhile, continued to speak calmly. Too calmly. "Let me tell you Saiyans one more time. I am nothing like my children. I am quite comfortable in utilizing my own power. And, in that comfort, I have shed the need for the numerous frivolous forms that Frieza required to meter his strength."

Cold chuckled. "As such, I only have two forms. Each of which is tailored to suit my personal comforts. There is the first one, the one you are familiar with, which I have dubbed my "Business" form. And then there is my second form..."

A massive, silver and white and navy blue, serpentine head rose from the depths of the flaming pit. Its hideous maw spread wide, from end to end into a vicious smile, and it spoke in a deep, devilish voice. "Pleasure."

A second head, identical to the first, rose from the pit. It had a furious scowl on its face and blood running from between its teeth as it chewed something. " **Pleasure.** "

A third head rose with a playful glint in its eye. This one had a large tuft of brown fur stuck in its teeth. " _Pleasure~_ "

Goku, Bardock, and Vegeta all took a step back as these three massive heads loomed over them. A pair of massive wings soon rose from the pit as well, wreathed in flames. They delivered a single flap and sent clouds of toxic smoke and burning ash rushing down into the city all around.

Cold flew from his burning pit and landed atop the last remaining tower from his ruined castle. His massive legs and spiky tails were wrapped around something large as he landed. Bardock got a close look and gasped: it was Raditz!

The elder brother was in bad shape. His body was singed and burnt, and he had massive chunks of flesh missing from his right shoulder and the left side of his neck. He appeared to be totally unconscious.

Cold's three heads all pointed to the sky and then they let loose a massive roar, causing the entire planet to tremble uncontrollably. The Saiyans all took fighting stances, ready to fight this new threat as best they could, but Cold merely chuckled. The two side heads both stared down at the Saiyans, one hateful and one playful. The middle head smiled at them sinisterly.

Bardock realized what was happening. He leapt as fast as he could to prevent it. " _Nooooooooo!_ "

But it was too late. To Goku, Bardock, and Vegeta's horror, Cold's center head stretched upwards and snapped its jaws down, swallowing the Power Ball in one mighty gulp.

Vegeta cried out. "No!"

Goku flinched. "Dammit!"

Bardock sneered and immediately started charging a Mouth Cannon, Cold's left head quickly whipped through the air and smashed the older Saiyan to the ground. He, Vegeta, and Goku could only dismay and despair as the power granted to them by the Blutz Waves rapidly went away.

Goku, Bardock, and Vegeta all shrank back to their normal forms and were left standing there, right under Cold. The monster loomed over them, all three of his heads glaring right down at them. His power was tremendously high, even higher than Frieza's at 100 percent!

Cold's three heads all let loose a chuckle. And then, they opened their mouths and rained attacks down: the left head spat fire, the right head spat ice, and the center head spat lightning. Goku, Vegeta, and Bardock had no time to dodge. They could only stand there and brace for impact as all three attacks came rushing right at them!

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	45. Chapter 45: The Empire Falls

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 45: The Empire Falls**

 _Hovering above the ruins of Planet Cold..._

" _Hard to starboard! Hard to starboard!_ "

Faline Phars screamed in fear as their captive pilot swerved the ship in the middle of the air. The four of them were in some deep trouble as massive columns of lightning shot through the sky around them. Across the skyline, Phars and Salam watched with horror as escape ship after escape ship was struck by the wicked, dark lighting and sent crashing to the ground in flames.

On the ground below, Salam had her Camera Scouter trained directly on King Cold. The wicked monarch had become an actual monster. A massive, hydra-like being that seemed to be lashing out at random towards whatever he saw.

Another rail of lightning shot by the ship and caused it to wildly rattle about. This rumbling caused everyone in the ship to topple over. Phars and Salam smashed into the window and fell over. Genoa went flying across the ship and smashed her back against a console.

Their pilot gasped, and then he immediately rushed from his seat. He sprinted over to the fallen Genoa, retrieved his stolen blaster, and then booted Genoa in Salam and Phars. He levied his blaster at them and laughed out loud. "Oh my, how the tables have turned! Prepare to die, you ra-"

A massive Gravity Bolt ripped through the center of the ship, incinerating the pilot into nothing but ash. The three women all breathed a sigh of relief...until they realized that their ship was ruined and the only person who knew how to pilot it was dead.

Genoa and Salam both gripped each other tight, tears in their eyes, and screamed. Faline, meanwhile, grabbed away Salam's Camera Scouter and pointed it right at Cold. As their ship crashed towards the ground, she desperately reported everything that she could. "You've seen it here, folks! King Cold is little more than a monster! A savage monster that would kill anything and everything to maintain his public image! Do not let this information not be acted upon! Rise up! Fight the oppression! Even if the Saiyans cannot combat this reign of terror, we as a people can still-"

The ship crashed into the ground with an explosive crunch and the broadcast cut off.

 _The Ruins of the Cold Capital City..._

Cold's three heads shrieked in unison as they continued their rampage through the ruined hellscape that Planet Cold had become. In his less restrained "Pleasure" Form, Cold's bloodlust was truly unchecked. He was running wild throughout what was once his kingdom, smashing and destroying all in his sights.

Goku and Vegeta were dodging with some difficulty. Their Super Saiyan power enhanced their speed, strength, and reflexes, allowing them to avoid the massive, swinging strikes from the serpentine head they had chosen to fight. They might have lost their Oozaru forms, but the Saiyans weren't out of this fight just yet!

Bardock, however, was facing his own troubles unique to his younger counterparts. Rubble came flying at him from all directions and the older Saiyan was dodging or destroying it fairly handily. However, distraction was plaguing Bardock. One unusual detail weighed on Bardock's mind whenever he saw it out of the corner of his eye: Raditz. Bardock looked towards his distressed son every chance he could and each time the same question ran through his mind. Why in the hell was Raditz still in his Oozaru form?!

Cold had eaten the Power Ball and, as a result, Bardock, Goku, and Vegeta had all lost their Oozaru forms. So why did Raditz still have his? What the hell was going on?!

 _On the Eastern side of the Capital City..._

Vegeta was getting annoyed at all of this nonsense. He refused to stand for the insult that this battle was to himself and his Super Saiyan power. King Cold was large. King Cold had a stock of strange powers and abilities. But, from what Vegeta could sense, Cold's power was not any higher than 250,000,000! That power level, after all of the training he and Kakarot had done, was no insurmountable task. It was simply a challenge! A challenge to be overcome!

Vegeta roared. "You'll die if you continue to act as if you're invincible, freak!"

The Prince's power was not quite at the lofty height of 250,000,000. He was close, but not quite there. However, he could easily produce blasts that could match that power. Vegeta slammed his wrists together and charged a purple beam between his fingers. " _SUPER FINAL CRASH!_ "

The attack screamed from Vegeta's hands, barreling towards the right head of King Cold. It crashed right into the hissing serpent's face and, in a flash, it reduced the sentient extremity to little more than gibs and burnt flesh. The bleeding nub of a neck crashed about, spurting purple blood everywhere and thrashing like a dying fish.

Vegeta smirked. "How does that feel, fool?!"

Unfortunately, Vegeta's boost in confidence was quickly dashed. The neck stopped thrashing and swelled at the end...and then two new heads grew in its place and both roared in Vegeta's face. Vegeta snarled. " _Goddammit!_ "

Both heads on the right side launched at Vegeta simultaneously. The Prince growled in frustration as he now had to avoid two sets of snapping jaws. And, in addition to that annoyance, both of them began to fire off blasts of frozen air. Vegeta launched blasts at the frozen energy and dispelled it before landing on a nearby rooftop. Both of the heads glared down at Vegeta and seethed at the Prince. And then the newer head smirked.

It opened its mouth again and summoned more frozen energy in its throat. And then, instead of spitting a massive wave, the head focused all of the attack into a single, quick beam. Vegeta leapt out of the way, but watched in shock at the building he had been standing on was split completely in half, like a knife through butter. Vegeta's brief distraction was enough time for the other head to get the jump on him. The serpentine appendage cracked into Vegeta like a massive whip and ruined the Prince's sense of orientation. The other head took advantage of this, firing its ice ribbon beam again. Vegeta managed to regain enough of his senses in time to see the deadly attack barreling right towards him. He was barely able to move in time, avoiding a mortal blow but suffering a debilitating slash through his left shoulder.

Vegeta gripped his injured shoulder with his opposite hand, cursing to himself before launching a blast from his left hand to propel himself out of the thick of it.

With some space between himself and the snapping beasts, Vegeta was able to take stock of his new injury. His chest was warm and wet from the geyser of blood pouring down his chest, but the gash itself was ice cold. Vegeta snarled and cringed at the pain, feeling his entire upper left side become pins-and-needles numb. "This is insane. Damned monster..."

 _On the Western side of the Capital City..._

Goku was faring no better than his rival while facing the left head of King Cold. The Saiyan from Earth was truly feeling the heat as he raced around in the air, avoiding massive jets of red-hot flames that would surely cook him alive if he took them unprepared. The throbbing pain from his shattered leg was doing Goku absolutely no favors as he avoided the attacks of Cold's flame-spewing appendage. Every agonizing pulse of pain sent an electric shock throughout his entire body and impaired Goku's concentration.

With one particularly harsh pulse, Goku couldn't help but stop moving. And that was the opening the head needed. It opened its mouth wide and spewed a cloud of intense fire. Goku's eyes widened and, not having enough time to dodge, the Saiyan shouted and flared his power as hard as he could. The resulting energy created a pseudo-cocoon that enveloped Goku. It did not protect him from the full effects of the flames, but it did allow him to keep his skin.

The flames dispersed and Goku was left standing there. The last remnants of his shirt were totally gone and Goku glared down at Cold. The head he was facing started to snicker. Goku cocked his head. "What are you laughing at?!"

Suddenly, to Goku's shock, he smelt a somewhat familiar smell: burning...hair?

Goku looked up at, to his surprise and horror, he saw the source of the smell. " _Agh! Oh jeez!_ "

The Saiyan from Earth began to panic, thrashing around in the sky and desperately patting out the flames that were raging on the top of his head. The left head wickedly chuckled at Goku's plight, watching as he thrashed about in the sky with good humor. But then, instead of attacking the Saiyan, the left head was distracted.

Feeling a sense of hunger, the serpent monstrosity glanced down to the city below, watching as fleeing citizens attempted to escape from the war between Cold and the Saiyans. The head hissed, and then it struck down to the streets below. Racing through the wide-open street like a train, the head opened its jaw wide and began to scoop various terrified people into its open maw. Once enough confused and horrified citizens were scooped up, the left head snapped its mouth shut. Blood burst through its teeth like a fountain and the left head chewed and swallowed.

And then it went back for seconds.

Having patted out the flames, Goku observed this horrific display and was instantly enraged. "Hey! _Stop that right now!_ "

The head paid no heed, biting down and swallow another mouthful of confused poor folk. Goku sneered, and then he launched a volley of ki blasts into the serpent's eye. The beast hissed in frustration and rose into the air. But then, once it had recovered, it launched itself directly at Goku.

Goku feinted back, avoiding several snaps of the hungry jaws. But the beast was unwilling to let him escape. As quick as lightning, the monster snaked around behind Goku and tried to wrap around him. Unwilling to let his bones be crushed like that for second time in his life, Goku acted quickly. He turned and lined up his sight with the auditory canal on the beast. And then, charging a lot of ki into his lungs, Goku screamed as loud as he could.

The beast recoiled in pain and Goku took advantage. He drew his hand to his side and summoned an incredibly useful, borrowed attack. "Thanks, Krillin~"

Goku levied his fresh Destructo-Disc above his head, and then he reared back and tossed it as hard as he could. The attack did its job, slicing halfway through the neck of the left head. Not wasting any time, Goku pulled his arms to his sides and charged his signature move. "Kamehameha!"

The beam shot forward from Goku's hands and crashed into the neck injury, flowing into the open wound and then exploded, blowing the head clean off. Goku pumped his fist. " _Yes!_ "

And then, two heads grew in the place of the original one. Goku's eyes widened. " _Crap!_ "

Both heads tried to lunge at Goku, but he was able to dodge back. The Saiyan from Earth watched as the two heads headbutted into one another and growled to himself. Being perfectly honest, Goku was shocked to see the two heads grow in place of the first, but he was not surprised. This development actually served to prove a little theory he had. "I knew it! Those things are nowhere near as smart as Cold actually is. They...they aren't really heads! They're just kind of intelligent limbs!"

Goku flipped away from the snapping jaws of one of the new heads. "This is just like Tien's Shiryoken!"

As he thought to himself, Goku watched the two heads in front of him begin to formulate a plan. They both looked towards one another, hissing and roaring, and then they smiled and nodded. One of them darted for the ground. Goku watched with curiosity as it moved towards the dead, severed head on the ground. And then, he watched as that severed head was lit aflame and grabbed into the living head's mouth.

Goku observed. "Oh, I see! That head is dead...but it's still covered in razor-sharp scales and spikes...so, that means..."

Lightning fast, the head shot forward towards Goku and tried to use its new burning club to bat Goku out of the sky. Goku dodged and flew towards the ground. "I gotta put some distance between me and that thing..."

The burning club head smashed into a close-by section of town and utterly flattened the entirety of it. Goku shielded his face from the ensuing rush of hot wind and embers. Once he was able to put his arms down, the Saiyan from Earth looked to the sky and saw the other head looming above him, a practical sea of flames raging in its mouth. Realizing what was about to happen, Goku thought on his feet. Seeing a nearby sewer grate, Goku blasted it away and then leapt into the sewers once more as the flames came raining down upon him.

 _At the crumbled remains of Castle Cold..._

At the ruins of Cold's former mighty castle, Bardock was trying his best to find a way to contend with Cold's center head. The older Saiyan glanced over to Goku's side of the fight, and then to Vegeta's side of the fight, and then back at the center head...and something seemed very off.

The other heads were displaying some form of focus, for sure. But this center one seemed especially focused on its task. Unlike the other heads, this was not savagely attacking and attempting to kill Bardock. Other than the occasional stray Gravity Bolt crashing down towards him, Bardock was not even sure if Cold realized he was there.

Bardock looked into the air and saw Cold's attacks strike into various ships, blowing them out of the sky and sending them crashing and burning to the ground below. Bardock nodded. If Cold was distracted blowing those things to Hell, then Bardock could get in a surprise hit on the beast.

And so, he did. The older Saiyan waited until Cold's latest electric attack ceased and then he leapt from behind cover. Bardock charged a truly massive amount of ki into his hand and then he tossed it as hard as he could towards Cold. " _RIOT JAVELIN!_ "

The bolt of ki shot towards Cold's center head like a missile, eventually crashing into the wicked King's lower jaw and exploding upon impact. Bardock landed, looking up to survey the damage he had done. But, once the smoke cleared, Bardock was left to despair. Nothing. Barely even a scratch.

The center serpent took a small respite from firing its attacks as ships and glowered down at Bardock on the pathway below. "Oh, _you_. I forgot about you..."

A vein bulged from Bardock's forehead. "Forgot about me?! How dare you, you overgrown garden snake!"

Cold chuckled as that insult, taking Bardock's harsh words in good humor. "Forgive me, sir. I simply have more important matters at the moment than attempting to wash away a single speck of bacteria."

Cold took a deep breath and fired another Gravity Bolt towards a cluster of fleeing ships. The bolt hit the closest ship and then branched through it to several others. All of them blew up in unison and their wreckage crashed to the ground below. Bardock watched this grizzly display and then turned back to Cold. "What...What the hell are you even doing, you psychotic bastard?!"

The King cackled with a twisted, grim glee. "My dear Saiyan. I know you have not evolved much farther than painting pictures on the wall with your own feces. But surely you much understand the concept of maintaining a powerful image, yes? How can I maintain my stranglehold on the galaxy if any of those foolish people were to run their mouths?"

Cold fired another Gravity Bolt and another score of ships exploded and crashed. "Everyone on this planet dies! That is the only way to ensure my image remains intact! And then, I will execute all four of you scum that caused this mess in the first place!"

Cold hissed and spread a toothy grin at Bardock. "And then...darkness shall descend upon the Earth. A darkness that shall never be lifted~"

Bardock snarled at Cold. " _Like Hell!_ "

The older Saiyan wrapped himself in a thick aura of energy and shot towards Cold like a missile. "Tyrant Lancer!"

As Bardock flew towards Cold, going fast enough to make the sound barrier tremble, he thought to everything that was on Earth. He thought of Gohan and Chi-Chi, all of Kakarot's comrades, and... he thought of her. Gine's smiled flashed through Bardock's mind. He remembered her desire for peace, for happiness. He knew that she was alive again at this point. After so long, she had probably already been on the Earth for a good while.

She was waiting, waiting for them to return. Raditz and Kakarot, her two beloved sons. Vegeta, a person that she chose to never give up on, even until the very end. And...

Bardock gripped his fists tight. Gine needed them to be there to live the life she had wanted.

As he barreled closer to the monster, Cold responded by charging a Gravity Bolt in his mouth. Meanwhile, Bardock regressed deeper into his own mind. He thought about the epiphany he had had so long ago. He just...wanted to do something right in his life. That was why he and Gine worked together to make sure that Kakarot and Raditz would live on, even if they didn't. Bardock thought to everything and everyone he had lost in the process of trying to do something right: Toma, Fasha, Totepo, Panbukin, Leek, all of his former, longtime peers...and _her_.

One of the things that Bardock was always secretly thankful for the first-time death came to him was that he didn't have to watch Gine die as well. His attempts to kill Frieza rendered him too far away to have to see that. But with everything that had happened on Namek, that changed. She was so cold...pale...after everything he had said to her, all of his big talk and promises and guarantees...she died anyway.

And he wasn't there to help her. _**In the back of Bardock's mind, a small, wicked laugh began to echo out.**_

And now, to make matters worse, everything both he and her had given their lives to protect was currently in jeopardy. Kakarot and Raditz and even Vegeta, their third "son" to some extent, were fighting for their lives. Struggling to be able to make it away from all of this. Struggling to live free of this madness. _**The laugh began to get louder and clearer.**_

As Bardock continued to barrel towards Cold, he was suddenly overtaken. His head felt hot, like it was going to explode, and a vision of a certain future came to him. The Earth was burning. Everything was eerily silent. And, in the distance, Cold's monstrous form hovered above it all, raining down elemental death upon the already ruined hellscape. _**The laugh became even louder and it was finally given a form. Frieza, in his First Form, appeared in front of Bardock and laughed right in his face. Even from beyond the grave, Frieza mocked him. The Saiyans, the Earth, they all died painful deaths. And everything that Bardock and Gine had tried to do was rendered meaningless.**_

Bardock's eyes snapped open to a deadly silent world. Directly in front of him, he saw Cold's Gravity Bolt. The attack threatened to overtake him and kill him right there. Bardock clenched his teeth. He felt anger and rage overcome him. His hair stood on end and his eyes went blank. He refused to let it end like this...

As the Gravity Bolt shredded into the ground below, Cold began to chuckle. But then a massive energy attack struck him in the back of the head. Cold snarled and turned to see that Bardock was still alive!

The older Saiyan hovered above Cold with an angry glower in his eyes. As Cold observed him closer, he appeared to be glowing. Glowing with a harsh light. _A harsh, red light!_

In his rage and with a desire to survive into the future, Bardock had reached deep within and pulled out a power that had once seemed beyond him. He could feel his muscles straining under the pressure, but he didn't care. He needed this. Bardock sneered. " _Kaioken Times 10._ "

Cold sneered. " _Kaio?_ A technique of the Gods? Where and how did a simpleton like you learn that?!"

Bardock gripped his fist. "I learned this technique when I died. I spent years in Hell just to get the chance to learn this technique..."

Cold cocked his head. " _Pardon me?!_ "

Bardock roared at the top of his lungs. "Maybe if I send you to Hell you'll luck out and learn it too!"

And then, before Cold could react, Bardock summoned a new blast in his hand. A combination of his energy and his burning aura focused into a single point. Bardock splayed his hand out wide and fired it directly at Cold. " _BLAZING SAIYAN HEAT!_ "

The attack barreled directly at Cold's face. The King hissed and tried to move out of the way, but Bardock was too quick on the draw. The attack crashed into the side of Cold's face and the King let out a mighty, pained shriek.

Smoke billowed from the side of Cold's face and Bardock smirked. "How does that feel, bastard?!"

It took a moment, but then Cold responded. "How does it feel? H-Honestly..."

Cold whipped his head around, dispelling the smoke. Bardock flinched back. That attack...at his currently level, that attack was the best he could muster. _And all it did was blow out one of Cold's eyes?!_

Cold hissed and lapped his tongue over the trickle of purple blood leaking from his damaged eye socket. "I am quite upset to have lost my eye. But it is fully replaceable. _**I think I am going to kill all three of you now.**_ "

Bardock gasped and, in a flash, the end of Cold's left tail struck him from behind. Bardock was sent tumbling forward and the right tail smashed into him from the front. Stunned and badly damaged midair, Bardock was helpless as Cold gave a mighty flap of his wings. The wind pressure sent Cold, alongside Raditz's carcass, propelling into the air and smashed Bardock hard into the crumbling base of Castle Cold. Bardock coughed up a jet of blood as he settled into the rubble, but he was given no time to rest. Cold shrieked at the top of his lungs and then fired off a massive Gravity Bolt, striking Bardock dead center and scorching him into the ground. Smoke rose as Bardock laid there, motionless. And then Cold turned his attention to his right side.

 _On the Eastern Side of the Capital City..._

As Vegeta struggled with his injured shoulder and his two, ice-spewing opponents, the Prince was caught off-guard by a sudden attack from behind. A Gravity Bolt struck Vegeta directly in the back, causing the already haggard Prince even more grief. He turned to see the center head shooting right towards him and barely dodged. "Damn it! Now there are three of them?!"

Vegeta snarled and summoned another ki blast into his right hand. He aimed it at the center head, ready to blow it to pieces, but was caught unprepared by another attack from the side. A blast of frozen energy washed over Vegeta's entire right side, freezing it solid and cancelling out his attack. Vegeta turned his eyes bloodshot, and saw one of the right most heads glowering at him.

A shadow suddenly overtook Vegeta and he looked up to find the sight of the other right head coming down right at him. Barely able to move, Vegeta was forced to watch as the massive, serpentine head slammed down on him, smashing him harshly into the ground. Vegeta laid crippled in the impact crater that Cold had forced him into and all three of the serpentine heads hissed at him. Vegeta shakily attempted to push himself up, but the three Cold heads responded with force. Two blasts of frozen power and one blast of lightning hammered into Vegeta over and over, blasting the Prince until they felt his life energy reduce to nearly nothing. Vegeta's was buried deep in the crater, beneath a massive block of ice. And, with him taken care of, these three heads of Cold were now free to join the other two.

 _On the Western Side of the City..._

Goku was rushing through the various nooks and crannies of the city, desperately trying to avoid being roasted alive. The Saiyan from Earth was so busy, he had failed to notice what had become of Vegeta and Bardock. Goku leapt into an alleyway as a massive column came shooting down the abandoned street. He heard a breathy chuckle from the two Cold head and couldn't help but chuckle himself. "At least they're having fun..."

But, Goku didn't have a single moment to breathe. The second head came crashing into the side of the buildings that formed the alleyway he was in. Goku and the beast glared at one another for a moment, and then the head turned and charged a fireball into its mouth.

Goku went running from the alleyway with a massive stream of fire right on his tail. Goku ran across the street and wrapped his tail around a streetlight, using his momentum to swing himself away from the flames and down the street. Both heads were on his tail in an instant, but Goku was counting on that. He turned around midair and winked at the two stupid beasts, and then he fanned his fingers in front of his face and shouted. "SOLAR FLARE!"

Both heads screeched in pain as they were blinded and Goku took the chance to put some distance between himself and them. He got onto the rooftop and charged an energy blast into his hand. "Maybe slicing those heads away isn't an option, but I bet I could damage them pretty well!"

Goku launched his first massive ki blast and then threw a second one immediately after. Both of the heads were still stunned and Goku looked confident, but then a bolt of lightning came shooting in from the side. The Saiyan from Earth turned and glared towards the source of the attack. Cold center head, alongside two right heads apparently, came slithering up. And they had brought their entire body with them!

The massive creature loomed over Goku, all five of Cold's heads curled up their massive, long necks up and all five of them stared at Goku. Goku stood there, finally have a free moment to feel the situation out. Vegeta was down. His father was down. And Raditz, still as an Oozaru, was hanging limp in Cold's grip. Goku was all alone, and all five of King Cold's heads were bearing down upon him. Goku enjoyed another chuckle. "Well...that's just great..."

And then Goku took a fighting stance and his Super Saiyan power flared. "Alright then! Bring it!"

And bring it the Cold heads did. With a massive, shrieking roar, all five of them were suddenly bearing down on top of him, ready to kill. Goku, for his part, knew that trying to dodge all five of them would be pointless, so he jumped headfirst into the action. Needing to deal some damage to his foe, Goku immediately started throwing every technique he could think to throw. Tien's Tri-Beam, Yamcha's Spirit Ball, the Kamehameha, and even the Turtle School Last Resort. And while each attack managed to repel Cold back, none of them did much in the way of actual damage.

As he leapt back to prepare another attack, Goku was struck from the left by Cold's tail and knocked a few streets over. He leapt back to his feet and immediately cringed, his broken leg sending jolts up his entire body. "D-Damn..."

Goku chuckled. "Well, this is...this is something all right. He's really strong and really skilled. Might not win this one... _heh heh_..."

He pulled his hands to his side and began to charge a Super Kamehameha. " _ **Ka! Me! Ha! Me!**_ "

Cold came flying in and with an almighty roar. He glared down at Goku with a sinister grin. "Such spirit! I must admit, you are my favorite out of all of you! That look on your face..."

Cold's five heads began to charge their attacks. "...I will make sure to remember it. Both before and after the flesh has been roasted from it~"

As both sides charged their attacks, Goku prepared to take the brunt of it on his end. But then, as he prepared to fire, a familiar voice cried out and robbed Goku's attention. " _Mr. Goku?!_ "

Goku turned and his eyes widened in shock. That same girl from before, Gooda, was standing in the broken window of her family's restaurant with her mother and father, Swis and Munster, desperately trying to pull her back into hiding. Time seemed to slow to a standstill. Goku glanced up as the five blasts began to leave Cold's mouths and then he glanced back to the family right in the path of the devastating blasts.

And then Goku abandoned his Kamehameha and leapt at the three of them, summoning an energy shield around all four of them as the lightning, fire, and ice came raining down.

 _Back at the ruins of Castle Cold..._

Cold did one last joyous victory loop over the rubble that was once his castle before landing with an ear-piercing roar. The sinister hydra looked over the results of all of his efforts. The planet was on fire, most of his subjects were dead, but the ends certainly justified the means in his eyes.

To his left, Prince Vegeta laid unconscious beneath a layer of frost and ice. To his right, Son Goku was crumpled beneath a mass of rubble, a family of peasants tearfully begging him to wake up. And beneath him, still wrapped in Cold's lengthy tails, was the massive, simian form of Raditz. Cold's four lesser heads were all down there, observing the Saiyan. They were all eager to begin their next meal.

Cold let loose a mighty roar, firing out one last spate of Gravity Bolt and blowing the last of the escape ships out of the sky. As their ruined husks feel from the sky, Cold screamed at the top of his voice. The sheer volume of his shrieks made the very planet itself shake. " _I AM THE GOD OF THIS ENTIRE UNIVERSE!_ "

The left-side heads shot fire from their mouths. " _IT IS I WHO DECIDES WHO LIVES AND WHO DIES!_ "

The right-side heads shot ice from their mouths. " _ALL LIVING THINGS IN THIS UNIVERSE ARE MERE PLAYTHINGS TO ME!_ "

All of the heads shot out their elemental beams. " _NO MORTAL BEING CAN MATCH MY POWER AND CUNNING!_ "

And then, from behind, a single blast struck Cold in the back of his head. Cold's ranting was interrupted and he turned with utter venom in his voice. " _ **What?!**_ "

All of Cold's heads turned and saw the exact same sight. Standing there, blood leaking from his burnt body like a sieve, was Bardock. The older Saiyan was wobbly on his feet, his energy barely a flicker, and his consciousness fading in and out. Bardock took a step forward and all of Cold's heads hissed at him with utter fury. And that vision from what seemed like so long ago flashed into his mind again.

 _Three golden warriors stood in the darkness._

Bardock took another step, nearly capsizing merely from his own weight.

 _One silver beast stood across from them, opposing them from the opposite end. They all turned and started to look at him..._

Bardock punched himself in the side of the head. He didn't have time for obscure visions of the future. The present was where his problem is and they were out of chances. Cold was within inches of winning this entire thing. " _C-Can't die yet...have to...make it back to...G-Gine..._ "

Cold narrowed his eyes. "Gine...that's a Saiyan name. A feminine one, I believe."

Bardock continued to shakily walk forward, his vision foggy. " _Gotta...apologize. G-Gotta...gotta...make it all up to you...gotta keep my...promise..._ "

Cold chuckled. "What foolishness. This Gine...is she important to you? Perhaps a sibling? Or a _mate_ , maybe?"

Bardock stumbled forward a bit more, his foot getting caught onto a piece of rubble and tripping him to his knees. Cold's savage heads all reared back, as if they were all eager to strike at Bardock. The center head, however, ordered them all to heel. "This is my kill. Still yourselves."

Bardock glared up at Cold, his eyes half-lidded. He was running on fumes. "I... I won't let you down...Gine..."

Cold chuckled a deep, throaty chuckle. He hissed under his breath and spoke to Bardock. "This Gine that you do not wish to let down. I am afraid, sir, that you will not be keeping your 'promise' to her. But, worry not. I am a fair person!"

King Cold smiled. "I will make sure to hunt her down and kill her first. Thereby, she will not realize your failure until she is already dead. That will be my gift to you! Now then...Goodbye, Saiyan Bardock~"

The threat against her life was enough to spur Bardock awake, if just barely. He forced himself to his feet and glared at Cold. Cold chuckled. "Humorous. You seem a tad angry. How very pleasing~"

And then, Cold fired his Gravity Bolt. The attack shredded the ground as it screamed towards Bardock. The older Saiyan simply stared it down. For the umpteenth time in his existence, Bardock stared death in the face. And as the attack drew in, he had to admit that Cold wasn't wrong. Bardock was very angry. The stress of this fight, the striking down of his boys, the threats made against his gentle mate who wanted nothing more than simple peace in her life...they all piled onto Bardock's already foul mood. And at this particular moment... _he was angrier than he had ever been in his entire life_.

The Gravity Bolt's hit Bardock dead on. The force of the attack shredded the rubble around Bardock, burning a trench through the very ground itself. Cold was satisfied, he thought that he was finished with Bardock. What he didn't notice, however, was the golden pocket within his Gravity Bolt. Within there was the silhouette of a single person. That person raised his hand and, with a showing of brand-new power, he fired a massive blast through the center of the lightning and right down King Cold's throat.

A massive explosion rocked from the center head's throat. It recoiled in pain, screeching and thrashing about as the smoke on the ground cleared. Once all of it billowed away, a single golden figure was left standing in place. Newly made emerald eyes glared right at Cold as golden power pulsed outward. Bardock had achieved what Goku and Vegeta had achieved before. He was a Super Saiyan.

All five of the heads stared at Bardock with utter contempt. The all poised to strike, but Bardock repelled them all away with a shout and a showing of power. His energy surged across the entirety of the landscape, but Cold was still unimpressed. "Those other two Saiyans pulled this exact same trick! It will do you no better than it did them!"

Bardock snarled at Cold. The King was overconfident. He thought that Bardock was showing off his new power, unaware of the real reason for that particular flair. At various points across the Captial City, Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz all snapped back into consciousness.

Vegeta's Super Saiyan power exploded outward and melted away the ice entrapping him. He picked himself up, rage in his eyes, and snarled. "Now, we bring this foolishness to an end!"

Goku got to his feet and gave Gooda a gentle pat on the head. "Thanks for takin' care of me. But it looks like I'm not quite done yet..."

Back at the palace, Cold roared down at Bardock. Once the hate-filled shriek was done, Cold seethed at his foe. "This is pointless! Don't you realize?! What can one 'Super' Saiyan do against my imposing might?!"

Luckily for Bardock, that question did not require an answer. Two more golden warriors fell from the sky and landed at either side of Bardock. Goku and Vegeta were both awake and alert and were ready to rejoin the fight. Cold glared down at Goku, Vegeta, and Bardock. The three of them shot back glares so cutting that they were almost damaging in their own right. Bardock clenched his fists tight and spoke one blunt order. " _Let's kill this ugly son of a bitch!_ "

Cold didn't take that statement lightly. All five of his heads immediately charged attacks into their mouths and fired them at the Saiyans. But, the Saiyans fired back. Goku, Vegeta, and Bardock's beams crashed into Cold's five attacks and a massive beam struggle ensued. The sheer pressure from the two sides sent shockwaves rushing across the planet. This beam struggle, however, didn't last long. Cold was strong in his own right, Cold was creative, but the three Super Saiyans with their combined efforts were much stronger.

Cold was overcome with fear as their beams pushed him back, forcing him into the air. Cold tried to sustain himself with his wings, regather his footing in some way or another. But then, the three Super Saiyans all turned and nodded to one another. And then, they gave another burst of energy to their attacks. The force of the beams pushed both Cold and the Raditz he was carrying back even farther, toppling the King backwards into the wreckage of his own city.

Cold was quick to recover. He sat up with a screeching roar and hissed at the three Saiyans. With a flap of his massive wings, the King attempted to take flight once more. However, two massive energy blasts blew holes through his wings. Cold crashed back to the ground with a quaking thud. He glared up at the sky with pure rage and saw the three Super Saiyans hovering above him, Vegeta and Bardock with their hands extended towards him. Cold roared in frustration. "Cocky bastards!"

The five heads darted right at the three Super Saiyans. Each one of them worked in tandem with the others, blasting or biting in an attempt to kill the Saiyans. However, none of the three of them were willing to fall for the chaos this time around. Vegeta, Bardock, and Goku watched each other's back throughout the entire fight. One of the right-side heads attempted to blast Goku from behind, but Vegeta shot an energy beam into its left eye and through its right eye. Another fire breathing head, on the left side, tried to spit flames at Bardock, but Goku came rushing in to intercept. Using his PENETRATE! attack, Goku piercing through the bottom side of that head's jaw and through the top its skull. The other left head tried to strike at Goku, but Vegeta came rushing in and fired a Galick Gun into the beast's nostril.

The remaining right head lunged towards Bardock, but Bardock deflected it away with a kick. He didn't have time for that idiotic lesser serpent. He was focused on the center head directly in front of him. The _real_ King Cold!

This center head fired Gravity Bolt after Gravity Bolt at Bardock. A few of his lightning breath attacks managed to hit, but Bardock didn't seem to notice. Or, more likely, didn't seem to care. Bardock raced high into the sky and shouted at the top of his lungs. " _SUPER TYRANT LANCER!_ "

Bardock enveloped his body in energy, this time Super Saiyan energy, and raced down towards Cold's face. He slammed into it with all of his weight and sent the center head whipping back, several of its fangs flying out in the process.

As Cold recoiled, Bardock, Vegeta, and Goku regrouped. And then all three of them charged forward, slamming into the body of the wicked King and forcing him back again. King Cold went sliding, Raditz still motionless and held tight in his grip, coming to a stop upon crashing into a pile of felled buildings.

The three Super Saiyans flew high into the air. They were ready to finish this. Goku pulled his arms to the side and began to charge a Super Kamehameha. Vegeta pulled his to the side and began to charge a Super Galick Gun. Bardock held up his right hand and summoned his trusty Riot Javelin. This was where this fight would end!

Cold was panicking on the ground. He could feel it, the power behind those attacks. They were genuinely about to kill him! "N-No! This...This can't be how it all ends!"

The cowering King frantically looked around for anything that he could use to assist in saving his life. But there was nothing. The Super Saiyans could blast through any building he threw; his wings were destroyed. What could he...King Cold glanced down beneath his legs and smiled. He had almost forgotten that he was still holding onto that. With a wicked laugh, Cold's tails lifted their captive high up, into the path the blasts would take. Cold seethed. "Now, you wouldn't want to hurt this. Would you, dear Super Saiyans?"

Raditz was hanging limp in the air, his back to his Super Saiyan comrades. All three of them cringed at the sight of this. Their attacks were ready, they could kill Cold off for good. But...none of them could bring themselves to possibly kill Raditz alongside him. Not even Vegeta. The Saiyans did not dispel their attacks, but they were visibly cowed. And that was all that Cold needed. "Sentimental fools~"

Cold got back onto his feet and sneered at the Saiyans. "The sheer indignity of it all. To think that Frieza would allow himself to fall to emotional dolts such as yourselves! The more I deal with the lot of you the more I come to realize that Frieza wasn't the perfect successor! If he was unable to kill you lot, then he amounted to little more than dumb mus-"

Suddenly, Cold began to gurgle in pain. All three Super Saiyans flinched back. They had no idea what was going on. From their perspective, nothing had changed whatsoever. Luckily, Cold was quick to provide them with some insight. All five of his heads turned their attention to one person: Raditz. The seethed at the Saiyan currently in their grasp and the center head snarled. "H-How dare you?!"

Raditz spoke for the first time since Cold transformed. "You...should...have...killed me...before..."

Cold twisted to his side, coughing up blood from his center mouth, and the others finally got a full view of what had happened. Raditz had used his free arm to cripple Cold, ramming his fist into the monster's gut. His focus ruined, Raditz was able to take advantage and tear his way from Cold's grip. As the rended chunks of tail fell to the ground, Raditz snarled. "You got...cocky. Never...underestimate...the Saiyans!"

Raditz reared back his other fist, coating it in energy, and plunged it into Cold's gut. The beast shrieked in pain and Raditz lifted him up high. "Should have...destroyed Power Ball...not ate it!"

As Raditz lifted Cold into the air, Goku was confused. "Wh-What's going on?!"

Vegeta chimed in. " _Cold ate the Power Ball!_ That's why Raditz didn't lose his Oozaru form! He must have been right next to it this entire time!"

Finally, Bardock spoke. "Who gives a damn?! Get ready to attack!"

Cold snarled. " _Y-You dirty, little Saiyan!_ "

All at once, all four of Cold's lesser heads bit into Raditz. The Saiyan screamed in pain as blood oozed from his bitten flesh, but he did not let that deter him. Raditz felt around in Cold's guts until he found what he was looking for. The older brother smirked and shouted. "We not die here today! That your duty!"

And then, firing a Mouth Cannon right into the center of Cold's torso and yanking his arms to the side with all of his might, Raditz ripped the mighty King Cold into three pieces. One half of his torso with two head, the other half of the torso with two others, and the center head all by itself. With Cold's body out of the way, the Power Ball was back in view. But, only for a moment as Raditz crushed it like a bug between his two massive hands.

As Raditz began to rapidly shrink, the three Super Saiyans saw their opportunity. And the all too happily took it. Goku unleashed his attack first. " _ **Kamehameha!**_ "

As his attack obliterated the left side, Vegeta fired off his own attack towards the right. " _ **Super! Galick! Gun!**_ "

With his other heads and his entire body gone, Cold's center head began to experience true terror. He refused to accept it. _He refused to die like this! Not on his own planet! Not to the Saiyans!_ Cold glared at Bardock and he roared at the top of his lungs, firing a Gravity Bolt directly at the newest Super Saiyan.

As the attack barreled towards him, Bardock closed his eyes and thought back one last time. He thought back to everything Gine had ever said. Her hopes, her dreams, her aspirations, all of his promises to her that she would get to live a peaceful life one day, and the promise that he might even join her. He thought back to that conversation that they had once had so long ago, the hopes in her eyes, and Bardock knew that he had finally reached that moment he had discussed. The older Saiyan reared back his arm and shouted with all of his might. " _ **FINAL! RIOT! JAVELIN!**_ "

The attack was truly massive, blue in the center but wreathed in gold. It crashed into Cold's Gravity Bolt and shredded right through it. Cold's eyes widened and his pupils shrank and the attack crashed right into him. Cold contorted and screamed as Bardock's ultimate attack ate away at him. "No! No! No! This...this can't be real!"

And then, the last bit of King Cold burned away into nothing. A final explosion rocked Planet Cold...and then all fell silent.

The three Super Saiyans all descended to the ground together and lost their golden forms the moment they touched the ground. Goku and Vegeta collapsed and Bardock fell to his knees. They all sat there in silence, for a moment, and caught their breath. And nothing happened. No twists, no turns, no surprises. Where there had been a war less than a minute ago was now calm and still.

After a while, Goku shakily got to his feet. "H-Hey, Vegeta..."

Vegeta groaned. " _What?_ "

Goku chuckled. "Will you help me look for Raditz? He must have landed somewhere around here, right?"

Vegeta sighed and shakily sat up. "Fine...but I'm not doing anything else after that."

As those two hobbled off in search of Raditz, Bardock took a moment to reflect. He looked up at the clear sky and at the stars above and sighed. "It's over. The nightmare of the Frieza Force and the Cold Empire is _finally_ over..."

Bardock looked around the still battlefield. He observed the destroyed building and the various corpses that littered the land and sighed. Listening to the sounds of Vegeta and Goku shifting rubble in the background, Bardock continued to look until he came upon the sight of a set of armor with Cold's crest on it. He walked over to the armor and picked it up, finding it to be the remnants of the armor that Cold had worn earlier. "How in the hell did this survive all of that?"

The older Saiyan flipped the armor over and found a small strip of cloth, from Cold's cape, still attached to the shoulder paldron. It was just a single strip, frayed and blood-red in color. Bardock mused to himself. " _Hmm..._ "

Meanwhile, Goku and Vegeta finally managed to locate Raditz. Together, the two of them pulled their third brother-in-arms from the rubble and helped him get back on his feet. Raditz groaned as he held the massive gash in his neck. "I-Is is all over? Is Cold really dead? Can we finally...go back to the Earth?"

Raditz's questions were quickly answered by Bardock. "Yeah, I think we're done..."

Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz turned their attention to the top of a nearby pile of rubble, seeing Bardock standing atop it with a confident smirk and a newly acquired red bandana. Vegeta snorted. "Okay then...what now?"

Bardock took a deep breath and sighed out. "Well...you don't have to if you don't want to Vegeta...but I say we do like Raditz suggested, get the hell outta here, and head back to the Earth!"

 _Planet Cold, a few days later..._

Faline Phars cringed as she accidentally moved her broken arm. Carefully she reached around, avoiding touching her sling, and grabbed her coffee. As she sipped it, Gooda stood next to her with a hopeful look on her face. "Th-That's my first time making the coffee. Was it good, pretty lady?"

Phars sighed and smiled. "It's delicious, sweetie."

As Gooda ran back into the kitchen to tell her parents about the compliment she had just received, Faline turned to Genoa and Salam. "Are you guys sure that you don't just wanna come with me? I'd love to have you as my camera crew. Especially seeing as the Cold Force killed the old one..."

Genoa shook her head with a smile. "S-Sorry ma'am. But, with the relationship that little one has with Master Goku..."

Salam chuckled. "...we feel as if it would honor him better if we were to stay here and help out where we can~"

Faline nodded and took another sip of her coffee. "What happened that those guys anyway?"

Both of the twins shrugged. Faline sighed. "Well, ain't that just dandy. It would've boosted my profile a lot if I got to get an interview but...ah well..."

She set her cup onto the table and stood. "Mind being my camera girl one more time, Salam?"

Salam smiled and stood, putting the Camera Scouter onto her ear. Faline turned to Genoa. "We ready?"

Genoa shot a thumbs up. Silently, Faline counted backwards from three and then cleared her throat. "Hello GalacTV nation! This is Faline Phars with what will be the final report for the time being."

She adopted a confident smirk. "Ladies and gentlemen, after much searching around by the remaining members of the Cold Force, the only remnant of King Cold that they were able to locate was the crumbled remains of the tyrant's broken armor. A perfect metaphor for the state of the Universe at the moment, if you asked this reporter."

Faline sipped her coffee. "The Cold Force is in shambles, people. What few soldiers remained after that monster's rampage have either deserted their posts or have gone into hiding. The reign of tyranny that King Cold and Frieza once wreaked upon all of us is over."

She looked directly into the camera. "And, as for our four, brave Saiyan rebels...?"

Phars looked into Genoa and Salam's eyes. She looked to her left and saw Gooda and her family sitting there. She took a deep breath and sighed. "I suppose...given that they are not here...and given that they never shared their names with anyone before they began their campaign of rebellion against the tyrannical Cold..."

She shook her head. "I would suppose that would mean that they prefer to remain an unknown entity in this entire matter. And more power to them for that. In this reporter's humble opinion, the four of them have earned the right to their privacy as much as they have earned a debt of gratitude from every good-natured citizen of every galaxy in the cosmos."

She nodded. "But that is the news as it stands at the moment. Let us all move forward towards a better, more peaceful tomorrow with the newfound freedom we have all just been afforded. This has been Faline Phars, signing off~"

 _Meanwhile, somewhere out in space..._

Slowly, Raditz opened his eyes. The older brother lifted his hands through the fluid in his healing chamber and felt the spot on his neck that King Cold had ripped a chunk of flesh from. Raditz was relieved to find that the wound had been fully healed. With that matter handled, Raditz reached over and pressed the release button. Once the fluid completely drained, Raditz opened the dome and stepped out of the chamber. He cracked his neck with a sigh and exited the medical bay.

It was a short walk for the older brother from the medical bay to the bridge of the ship: King Cold's former flagship, to be specific. Raditz stepped through the door and found two comforting sights. Goku and Vegeta were happily sparring with another up in the air, and Bardock was sat in the command chair with a bored, somewhat tired expression on his face.

As Raditz got closer, he looked over Bardock's shoulder and saw some kind of movie playing. The eldest son knelt next to his father's seat and chuckled. "Watching a movie?"

Bardock shrugged. "Trying to. It's in the Language of Hera and I can't figure out how to get the damned subtitles to work..."

Shortly, Raditz and Bardock were joined by Goku and Vegeta. The three younger Saiyans all gathered around Bardock's chair and watched as stars flew by at a rapid speed. Vegeta chuckled. "Nice to see you up again, Raditz. And here I thought you were going to spend the rest of your life in that chamber."

Raditz rolled his eyes. "Go to Hell, Vegeta."

Goku chuckled as the two of them bickered like usual. Bardock pulled up the map to check their course. Once Raditz and Vegeta got done sniping at each other, Raditz turned and looked at the map. "So...it looks like...5 months until we get to Earth?"

Bardock nodded. "Just about, yeah."

Vegeta sniffled, rubbing his finger under his nose. "Do we have enough fuel in this thing for a full trip?"

Bardock shook his head. "Definitely not. We'll have to make a pitstop somewhere on the way back. Somewhere peaceful like Dionysus or Yardrat..."

Goku slammed his fists together. "That sounds fun! Maybe we could have an adventure while we're there!"

Bardock chuckled and shook his head. Vegeta quickly spoke up. "If you want to have an adventure, we should keep training to make sure that we stay in shape! The last thing we need is to land somewhere unprepared for a fight!"

Raditz smirked. "You know what...I could actually go for some sparring..."

Bardock spoke up. "Hey! If you're going to spar, go to some other room and do it. It's hard enough to listen to this movie when I can't understand it!"

Vegeta shrugged and chuckled. "Whatever. Come along, Raditz. I'll use you as a punching bag in one of the cargo holds."

Raditz snorted. " _You'll try._ "

As the two of them walked off, and Goku began to follow, Bardock suddenly spoke up again. "Hey Kakarot! Wait a second..."

Goku turned and smiled. "Sup Dad?"

Bardock shut off his tablet and tossed it aside. "If you wouldn't mind...I mean...if you have a minute..."

Goku saw the blush on his father's face and he sat down next to his chair. "Wassup?"

Bardock sighed. "...I'd actually like to hear about this Grandpa Gohan guy, if you have a bit of time."

Goku was instantly excited. With a chuckle and a nod, the Saiyan from Earth began to speak. "Well...to tell you about Grandpa Gohan and everything he did for me; I'd have to tell you about the entire mystical adventure I went on. You think you have time for all of that?"

Bardock smiled and nodded. "We have five months, Kakarot. I've got plenty of time."

 _A/N: And with that, the King Cold arc is complete. It was a short little thing, but this was the first, like, big original idea I had when I started planning out this story. So, please let me know what you think. Next chapter begins a new arc, the last arc before we enter the Android Saga. I hope that you all continue to read and enjoy my work going forward. I have a ton of plans for this story and a lot left in the tank when it comes to writing it. Thank you all for reading this far along~ :)_

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	46. Chapter 46: The Blackwater Mist

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Who's ready for a new arc?! I'm taking a more "Dragon Ball Super: Broly" style with the movie villains and adapting into something new (and hopefully more enjoyable). I hope you all like what I have come up with~_

 **Chapter 46: The Blackwater Mist**

 _Within the Earth's Orbit..._

It has been 13 months since the battle with the monstrous Frieza on Planet Namek. The Saiyan men, seeking to end matters with Frieza's ilk for good, have taken to the home world of the tyrant to neutralize any sort of threat from the even more wicked King Cold. As for the other members of the Z-Fighters, they all went home and got back to their normal lives on Earth. All was peaceful.

But peace is little more than a temporary luxury.

Unbeknownst to the people on the blue planet near to it, Earth's Moon suddenly came under assault. It was not a flashy or brutal assault, simply as sudden and rapid attack. A large, blood red crystal came flying towards the Moon. Its origin unknown, how long it had been flying unknown, the crystal crashed into the surface of the Moon and embedded itself deep into the crust of the satellite. It dug deeper and deeper until only the very top remained on the surface.

Things were eerily still. And then, with a flash of red, seven beings stood atop the bloody red platform. They all knelt and then an eighth being joined them. This eighth being stepped forward without a word and motioned for the others to follow him. The eight of them stepped hovered forward and stared down at Planet Earth, hungry and wicked smiles on all of their faces. The eighth being spoke as the little, blue planet reflected in his eyes. "Yes. This planet will do nicely~"

 _East City Market District..._

Life on the Earth was going on a normally as it ever had. The lively hustle and bustle of the recently restored East City was in full display. Ever since the miraculous restoration of the city nearly a year ago, the residents seemed eager to live their lives happily and to the fullest. And among these droves of cheerful citizens, were two particular people who had more of a hand in their restoration than any of them would ever realize.

Both dressed in their casual clothes, Gine and Chi-Chi walked down the street. Each of them had their arms loaded with bags upon bags of groceries. It had been a pleasant trip for the two women as they shopped for their weekly supply of groceries. Chi-Chi jokingly sighed. "We're lucky that my Daddy is so wealthy. You and Gohan eat so much! You're both turning into different versions of Goku!"

Gine blushed, finished her banana and tossing the peel into a nearby trashcan. "W-We are not!"

Chi-Chi chuckled and teased. "The horse meat we bought last week was supposed to last for three days and you two polished it off in one day!"

Gine shook her head, but then she chuckled as well. "He really is growing into a proper, little Saiyan. In some ways at least~"

Chi-Chi glanced over to Gine. "You really think so?"

Gine nodded. "Yeah. He's strong, very strong. But it's so much more than that too. He's smart and gentle and as caring as can be. He's a Saiyan in strength, he's a Saiyan in spirit, he's a Saiyan in appetite...but he's going to be so much more when he grows up!"

Chi-Chi smiled. "Yeah. He's been so into his learning lately. Even if it's just so I'll let him train with you and Piccolo, he's making so many leaps and bounds. I just bought him a set of advanced learning books four months ago and I'm already having to order the next set up~"

Gine smiled back. "Right. It's been just as fun watching him study as it has been watching him train. I just..."

Chi-Chi turned to her mother-in-law, she gasped as the sight of tears shimmering in Gine's eyes. A massive, happy grin spread across the Saiyan mother's mouth and she spoke. "We've been staying up so late into the night lately. Studying and getting to know one another. He's taught me so much as the Earth and I've gotten to share so much with him about Saiyan culture~"

The tears cascaded down her cheeks. "I'm just so happy to have him Chi-Chi. I never thought I'd be lucky enough to get to be a grandmother like this~!"

Chi-Chi smiled as she and Gine continued to walk. She nodded and sighed. "Well, you'll have a long night to spend together tonight. It is the end of the month, after all."

Gine cocked her head. "What are..."

She gasped. "Oh yeah! The Moon is going to be full this evening, isn't it?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Mhm. And, I know you've been teaching him and whatnot...but I still can't help but be nervous, Gine."

Gine frowned. "You're worried about his tail, right?"

Chi-Chi sighed. "I don't want to be. But we always had to tip-toe on eggshells when it came to that tail when he was little. Goku was never really aware of his reaction to the Full Moon, but I knew what would happen if Gohan transformed. I'm not going to lie to you Gine...I was relieved when I saw that he had lost it while Piccolo was training him..."

Gine nodded. "I can understand that. But you don't have to worry, dear. I've been educating him. From when it grew back on the trip back to Earth, I've been striving to make sure he knows the ins and outs of how his tail works and all of the things that come with keeping it. He seems all too happy to accept the restrictions that come with keeping it. He told me that he wants to keep it because it makes him feel closer to Kakarot, Bardock, and myself..."

The two women rounded the corner of the sidewalk they were walking down and, once the coast was clear, the slipped into the nearest alleyway. As the two of them walked deeper into dank alley, Chi-Chi glanced up to the afternoon sky, sandwiched between the two buildings. "I hope they're all okay out there..."

Gine glanced over at her daughter-in-law, and then she looked up at the sky as well. "I think...Bardock, Raditz, and Kakarot are all okay out there. Bardock is reserved, Raditz is cautious, and Kakarot is resourceful. I think, if you take those different personalities and you put them all together, they balanced each other out well enough to survive almost anything~"

Chi-Chi smiled. "You really think so?"

Gine chuckled. "Well...that and I feel like the three of them, in addition to Vegeta, are too hard-headed to just roll over and die."

Chi-Chi chuckled back. "Well, thanks for the positive attitude~"

She readjusted the bags on her arms and turned to Gine again. "So, you ready to take off? We have to get home so that we can get dinner going."

Gine rolled her eyes. "I still can't quite comprehend that we have to hide our ability to fly like that. I've never been to a planet where that was the case before. Earth is so weird..."

Chi-Chi giggled. "Well...we could always go and get our driver's licenses."

Before the two of them could take off, however, a trash can crashed to the ground behind them. Gine and Chi-Chi turned to find a mountain of a man stood behind them, a pistol in one hand and a knife in the other. "The only flying you broads have to worry about is me sending you flying if you don't hand over your wallets!"

The two women turned to each other. Gine cocked her head. "I-Is he serious?"

He shouted at the two of them. "You're damn right I'm serious! Now be good girls and-"

Quick as a flash, the bottom of Chi-Chi's boot was planted squarely in the mugger's face. He went flying back, his gun and knife both lost, and smashed his head into the side of a dumpster. As he laid there, bleeding and unconscious, Chi-Chi landed atop the dumpster and flashed a peace sign. And then she called out. "Come on Gine, ya slowpoke! We have to hurry and get home!"

Watching her daughter-in-law take to the sky, Gine could only laugh at her brash attitude. And then, she followed along back to Mt. Paozu. As they flew home, across the Earth, several other members of their little group faced everyday challenges of their own.

 _At Kame House..._

Krillin thrust his hands forward and fired another massive blast into the ocean. He watched at the sea parted, the waves cresting and then crashing back down, and he sighed. "Dammit. Still not strong enough..."

Master Roshi was laying on his lounge chair in the background, using the slumbering Turtle as a stand for his portable television. The old pervert watched as the women in the exercise tape did their leg lifts, their glistening thighs shining under the intense studio light. " _Hehehehehehehe..._ "

Roshi called over. "Hey Krillin! Why don't you take a break, son! Grab yourself and ol' Master Roshi a couple cans of beer and come watch the show~!"

Krillin blushed, embarrassed by the perverted showcasing of his martial arts master. He shook his head and charged a Kamehameha. "I can't!"

The monk fired the blast and made the sea rend again, still not getting the result he wanted. "I have to make myself stronger! I can't stop until I can part the sea all the way to the bottom!"

Krillin charged another blast. "If I can't get at least that strong, I won't stand a chance against the next Frieza that comes along! I refuse to be that helpless ever again!"

 _At Capsule Corp..._

Yamcha was barely able to dodge as a heavy box of his gear came flying right at his face. He held his hands up in defense and shouted. "Hey! Come on, Bulma! Take it easy!"

Bulma shouted back, flinging one of Yamcha's bats directly at his head. "Take it easy? _Take it easy?!_ "

She threw a lamp at him. "Forty women, Yamcha?! FORTY?! You've been screwing around on me with _FORTY_ women?!"

Yamcha shook his head. "I wasn't screwing around on you! They're part of my fan club, babe! That's it! That's all they are!"

Bulma roared at the top of her lungs and flung a leather-bound notebook at Yamcha. "Then why do you have all of their phone numbers?!"

She threw Yamcha's phone at him. "Why do you have all of these photos on your phone?!"

And then, she reached into her pocket and pulled out what appeared to be a pair of delicate, silk underwear. " _ **And who the hell do these panties belong to?!**_ "

Yamcha nervously chuckled as the panties landed on top of his head. "I... I mean...they could just be a pair of yours that you don't-"

Bulma's stare was icy cold enough that it practically made the blood in Yamcha's veins freeze. After a moment, the former bandit spoke. "L-Look...I'm sorry. Okay? It won't happen again, I swear."

Yamcha smiled, hoping that maybe Bulma had been swayed. Bulma was cold in her response. "You're damn right it won't. I'm not putting up with this anymore, Yamcha. Being single is better than this. Pack your shit, and get out of my house."

Bulma turned and walked away. Yamcha held up his hands. "Bulma! Wai-"

A heavy door slams. And then silence. Yamcha lowered his head in shame and sighed. " _Dammit_..."

 _In a village at the base of Yunzabit Heights..._

Chiaotzu sat respectfully on the sidelines and watched as Tien sparred with and defeated several of the pupils of the latest dojo they had arrived at. Ever since the two of them had made it back to the Earth, with a fresh lease on life, they had been travelling around looking for the next way to overcome their limits. Dojo after dojo and training hall after training hall had fallen to Tien's skill and their banners were rewarded to him as a result.

And this dojo didn't seem to be any different. With a showing of his martial prowess, Tien dropped the final student to the ground without having even broken a sweat. The three-eyed human looked bored and dissatisfied. He clapped his hands together in front and took a calming breath. "This can't be it. Have I really found the pinnacle where nobody on the Earth is a challenge anymore? Is...is this how Goku is forced to feel every day?"

As Tien mumbled to himself, the Master of this dojo, Master Zurin, stepped forward. He looked displeased. "I have heard a tale of you two. Going around and robbing dojos of their banners. If you truly believe that you will take the banner of the Jiang-Shi School so easily, you will be sorely displeased."

The Master pulled several spell tags from his coat and tossed them on the faces of his defeated students. Instantly, they all stood and began radiating a rancid, purple aura. The Master spoke. "Today, not only shall I defeat you fools, but I shall display a fatherly dignity to my young daughter!"

As the newly invigorated students surrounded Tien, Chiaotzu leapt in to stand by his longtime friend. The two of them turned to each other and smiled, and then they activated their Kaioken.

 _In the wastelands..._

Piccolo was standing in the middle of the barren wasteland, his eyes closed in deep meditation. Ever since taking in King Piccolo, and then taking in Nail, the Namekian warrior had been working on fully making their power his own. Nail's influence within him seemed to have cowed King Piccolo's more overt evil, but Piccolo new he could still gain more. All he had to do was find that _more_ within him.

However, Piccolo's concentration was quickly broken by an intruder into his wasteland. The warrior's eyes cracked open and he growled under his breath. "Kami."

Kami stood there, the harsh wind causing his robes to billow to the side. "Hello Piccolo."

A long, tense silence unfolded between the two. It quickly became clear that Piccolo was not going to start this conversation off. Kami looked up at the Moon, which he had restored a scant few months ago, and chuckled. "It's quite a nice Moon, isn't it? I have already taken the time to scold the Turtle Hermit for destroying it so long ago, I suppose now it is your-"

Piccolo rudely interrupted. " _Cut the crap_. Why are you here?"

The smile left Kami's face. This time, he didn't speak. He stared at Piccolo's back, the moonlight reflecting from his starch white cape. Piccolo spoke again. "You're not here to chat with me; you're here to check on King Piccolo. Right?!"

Kami nodded. "I am."

The elder Namekian stared at Piccolo once more, peering directly into his younger counterpart's soul. "I can still see him in there. His fragments. Festering and waiting to try and assert dominance once your guard is down. But...is...is that another? Watching over King Piccolo, ready to strike should he attempt to assert himself? Who is that?"

Piccolo finally turned, glaring at Kami with anger and disgust. "Mind your own _goddamned_ business. I've told you before, old man, I am not you. I'm only connected to you. You have no right to barge into my private business. You have no agency over my life. No matter how much you wish it were different, I am not your subject to watch and command. Now _piss off_!"

Kami turned his gaze to the ground, silently contemplative. "I... yes. You are right. I should...give you your space and leave you to your own devices. Please, forgive me."

The Guardian turned and began to walk away. Piccolo turned around as well, going back into his meditation. But, before he could fall back into his own mind, Kami called over to Piccolo again. "Piccolo...you have been there, so I must ask you. How...how was our old homeworld?"

Piccolo didn't turn back. He didn't even open his eyes. "If you are so interested in Planet Namek, why don't you find it and go see for yourself?"

Kami sighed. "Why indeed."

 _On Kami's Lookout..._

In a flash, Kami returned to his Lookout and was horrified by what he came home to. The Lookout was in obvious disrepair. The marble structures were cracked and crumbled and the various plants and trees were either shredded, snapped, or outright on fire. Kami stepped forward, feeling an eerie energy over the place. A rancid smell filled the air. "Mr. Popo!"

Kami stepped forward, marching towards his palace. " _Mr. Popo!_ "

Suddenly, Kami was met by hysterical laughter. It sounded as if a hoard of demons was shrieking out from within his home. "Who dares-"

Three shadowy beings leapt out from the inky darkness and tried to lunge at Kami. The old Guardian jumped backwards and glared at them. Sick looking creatures all three of them. The brown one jumped up and tried to blast Kami in the face, but Kami struck him to the ground with his staff. The blue one ran over to his comrade. "Ginger!"

The black one, meanwhile, held out his hand and a spear burst forth from his skin. He charged at Kami and tried to stab the Guardian, but Kami dodged. He landed on the ground and slammed his staff down, causing the entire Lookout to glow with holy light. The demons screeched as their skin began to sizzle and Kami shouted at the three of them. " _ **WHO ARE YOU WHO DARE TO STEP UNINVITED UNTO GOD'S DOMAIN?!**_ "

The three of them screeched in pain as they flopped about on the ground. However, a massive blast came shooting from within the palace forcing Kami to cease his attack. "Ginger, Nikki, Sansho...could the three of you kindly refrain from embarrassing His Majesty's court with this sorry display?"

The three of them stood, Nikki scratching the back of his head. "F-Forgive us, Big Brother Spice."

Kami glared at this latest intruder, a large, handsome man with pale blue skin and a massive shock of snow-white hair. Spice smirked at Kami. "So, this is _your domain_ , is it?"

The Guardian could instantly tell how outmatched his was. This one seemed leagues above the other three. Kami attempted to retreat back, but he slammed back first into something solid. The older Namekian turned and was met by a sheer mountain of a man, flanked by a dwarf and a horned horror. Kami sneered. "Who are you people?"

The big one spoke. "I'm Vinegar! The young King's Enforcer!"

The horned one chuckled. "I'm Mustard! The young King's Chamberlain!"

The dwarf sneered. "I'm Salt! The young King's Page!"

The brown one chuckled. "I'm Ginger! The young King's Attendant!"

The blue one smirked. "I'm Nikki! The young King's Herald!"

The black one cracked his knuckles. "I'm Sansho! The young King's Constable!"

And finally, Spice himself spoke. "And I am Spice. Secretary and Grand Chancellor to the Garlic Family. As well as the leader of the Royal Guard: _The Spice Boys_!"

Spice threw out his arm, sending his cape billowing to the side. "And I regret to inform you, that this domain is no longer yours."

Kami sneered. "What _mere king_ would have the temerity to invade this sacred Lookout?"

Suddenly, an eighth sinister voice joined the conversation. " _That would be me._ "

Kami turned and saw this eighth intruder step out from the shadows. A miniscule being that the other seven immediately took a knee for came into view and pulled down the hood obscuring his face. He was a pale blue imp with a wicked smirk and the clear stench of evil wafting from him. "Pleased to meet you, sir. I am Garlic Junior. The Prince of the once proud Makyan race. Allow me to be the first to apologize for our intrusion. And also, allow me to be the first to thank you..."

Kami flinched. "Thank me?"

Garlic Junior nodded. "Indeed. Thank you...for the _donation of your planet and its people to the noble cause of avenging my nearly extinct race_ ~"

Kami snarled. " _Donation?!_ Do you think I will just allow you to take over my world like this?"

Garlic Junior smirked. "I am afraid that you do not have a choice in the matter. This floating platform in the sky, the people on the planet below, the full Moon above, and the Dragon Balls that you created, _Namekian_ , will all play their part in ensuring that my plans are successfully completed."

The little imp laughed out loud. And then he snapped his fingers. "Vinegar. Do not kill our guest...but do _break him_."

Vinegar roared with joy and raised his fist into the air, slamming it down onto Kami and crumpling the aged Guardian to the ground. The intense, brutal beating continued outside. Bones audibly snapped as Garlic Junior marched into Kami's private quarters.

Garlic Junior approached Kami's throne and regarded a massive well that was next to it. "This well appears to be how that doddering old cretin affects the lives of his subjects below..."

The imp peered into the water and watched as billions of different lives flashed before his eyes in an instant. He smiled. "This would appear to be the well that we should poison, Spice."

Spice nodded. "Indeed, sir."

He reached into his cloak and produced a crystalline, black bottle. "The essence of the late King Garlic, my liege."

Garlic Junior took the bottle and chuckled. "Oh Father...your brutal vengeance shall be attained. I will die the stars of this universe red in your honor~"

He opened the bottle, tossing the stopper aside, and poured its contents into Kami's well.

 _Back in Piccolo's wasteland..._

As the Namekian warrior stood there, trying to access a wider breadth of his inner power, a feeling of intense pain suddenly overcame his entire body. Piccolo fell to his knees, gurgling in pain, and snarled. "Wh-What the hell?!"

Piccolo dragged himself forward, cringing in agony. "Who...who the hell...?"

He couldn't move anymore, his head cracking against the ground. "What are you doing, old man...?!"

And then, Piccolo fell unconscious. He laid there on the ground, still as a stone, as a harsh wind blew over him.

 _On Mt. Paozu, the Son Family home..._

The home of Goku was as busy and bustling as ever that evening. Gine and Chi-Chi were both stood at the stove, chopping vegetables and searing meat, trading places and tools back and forth as they cooked as a unit. The two of them were deep into their work, functioning as a well-oiled machine in their toiling over the boiling pots and searing flames. In this state, there were no two better cooks on the planet than Gine and Chi-Chi.

As the two of them cooked, Gohan and Ox-King sat at the dinner table in wait. Gohan was nose deep in his studies and Ox-King was locked firmly in doting Grandpa Mode. He grabbed a bit of Gohan's hair and lifted it up. "My oh my, your hair is getting pretty long again Gohan. You think maybe it's about time for another haircut?"

Chi-Chi interjected. "He's fine, Dad. I've asked him if he'd like me to cut it again and he says he likes it better this way."

Gine chuckled. "He's such a cute little guy~"

After a short time, the dinner was finished and the mother-daughter team quickly dished it out and set the table. The books were set aside and Gohan and his family enjoyed yet another delicious feast. As they ate, enjoyable family conversation took place as per normal. Gohan turned to his mother. "Hey Mom, can I go to Capsule Corp tomorrow and see if Bulma has gotten around to fixing up my Saiyan armor yet? I'd kind of like to get it back."

Chi-Chi slurped a mouthful of noodles from her bowl. "I would wait a few days. I talked to Bulma on the phone earlier today and I do not think that she's in a good place to be bothered about armor right now."

Gine bit into a slab of meat. "Yamcha?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yamcha."

Gine sighed. "Yamcha..."

Gohan frowned. "Is... something wrong?"

Chi-Chi waved him off. "I'll explain it when you're older."

Gine quickly changed the subject. "Uh...what about your other outfit Gohan? The one that Piccolo gave you?"

Gohan smiled. "I still have that one. It's just really damaged. I was meaning to ask you or Mom if you would sow it up."

Gine cheerily smiled. "Happily~"

The dinner continued well into the evening. As the piles of food slowly reduced, the conversation picked up. Warm conversation and humor continued well into the evening as Gine fell further and further into the family dynamic. Between her friendship with Chi-Chi, her doting on Gohan, and the occasional teasing from Ox-King, Gine had truly become a member of the family over the past months.

Gohan walked up to Gine and showed her his workbook. Gine stared down at it with a vested interest as she and Gohan worked through the complex math problem together. Chi-Chi smiled, her cheeks glowing, as she walked over to the fireplace.

Chi-Chi grabbed the poker, not paying attention to the flames, and chuckled as Gine began to get flustered at the more complicated equation. "Come on now, Gohan! Don't confuse your poor, ol' Grandma too mu-"

Chi-Chi cringed and pulled her hand away from the flames. " _Agh_! _Dammit_!"

Ox-King and Gine both turned in their seats. The older gent called over. "Chi-Chi! Are you okay?!"

Chi-Chi cringed, gripping her hand and hissing under her breath. There was a rather nasty, dark red burn running across her hand. "N-Not really."

Gine leapt from her seat with a start and rushed over to her daughter-in-law, grabbing her hand and looking it over. "Jeez. That's a pretty bad burn. Gohan! Go get a rag and some cool water!"

Everyone sprang into action, doting over Chi-Chi and caring for her badly burnt hand. Gohan brought back the water and the rag and gently began to cascade the cool water over the burn. Chi-Chi cursed herself as everyone cared for her. "Damn. I can't believe I burned myself like that tonight of all nights."

Chi-Chi cringed. "I still had to go and chop more wood for tomorrow morning. And gather water from the river to water the garden tomorrow morning..."

Ox-King frowned and rubbed his daughter's back. "I'm sorry Chi-Chi. I'd offer to go and do it if my back wasn't going out on me..."

Gohan raised his hand. "I could go and do it!"

Chi-Chi shook her head. "No, son, you can't. It's a full Moon out. If you go out there and you aren't careful, you'll transform into a monster!"

Gohan frowned. "But Mom..."

Gine stood. "Don't worry. I can handle it. You two just stay here and take care of Chi-Chi."

Chi-Chi stood, still gripping her hand. "Are you sure, Gine? You have the same problem that Gohan does. If you look at the Moon..."

Gine opened the drawer on the hutch, reaching in and pulling out a pair of sunglasses that she had previously bought specifically for times like this. "You don't have to worry. I have more experience with avoiding the activation of my Oozaru form. I can handle myself~"

Gohan frowned. "I...I'm sorry that I'm not more experienced, Grandma. I wish I could come and help you out."

Gine smiled. "You're fine, dear. Just stay here and help to care for your Mama. I'll be back soon."

 _Down by the riverbank..._

With her sunglasses placed firmly over her eyes, Gine quickly got to work on the chores that she had volunteered to do. Filling water jugs and chopping some firewood was no problem for her with her standard Saiyan strength. The firewood didn't take even five minutes and filling the jugs was tedious more than it was hard. It was a pretty easy-going evening for Gine...minus one minor issue she was having.

This wasn't Gine's first full Moon outside while on the Earth. She had taken plenty of evening walks before just to clear her head after a long day of helping Chi-Chi to keep the household running. But something was off with this night. In spite of the full Moon shining brightly above, her surroundings seemed unusually dark. Even dark than a normal night where she was forced to wear her sunglasses. And the more work Gine did, the more she realized that she was developing a massive, splitting headache.

Gine groaned as she pulled the final, filled jug from the water. "Maybe I'm catching something..."

She shook her head. Gine didn't have time to get sick at the moment, she had to focus on the task at hand. The Saiyan woman slung the pallet of chopped firewood onto her back and grabbed all four jugs of river water, and then she began her walk back to the house.

As she walked back, through the pathway through the woods, Gine stared up at the sky. She stared at the dimmed, glowing light of the moon and the twinkling stars and thought back to the conversation that she and Chi-Chi were having earlier that day.

In her heart, something was still bothering Gine. As she stared at the Moon, the thought of her husband flashed through her head. Bardock. Gine sighed and spoke aloud. "It's not your fault. You have to know that, Bardock..."

A single tear streamed from under the sunglasses and down Gine's cheek. "What must be going through your head right now?"

In her distraction, however, Gine neglected to notice something directly in her path. An errant tree root stuck up from the soil in front of her. Unaware, and with her mind wandering, Gine's foot caught onto the root and she was sent tumbling to the ground. Gine grumbled as she felt the spilled water pooling under her. "D-Darn it..."

Gine pushed herself up and fell into a sitting position. "Aw man..."

She looked up and sighed. "Now I have to go back to the river and-"

Gine flinched in shock as she slowly realized that she was staring up at a completely undimmed full Moon. This shocked flinch was quickly replaced with unbridled panic as Gine began to scour the ground for her sunglasses. Looking at the ground, however, yielded a much different kind of surprise: the entire forest floor was covered in an unsettlingly familiar black mist.

The Saiyan mother's blood began to run as cold as ice. Slowly, she stood and turned around, looking up at the Moon again. She stared at the fullness of it for at least three minutes and, to her horror, nothing happened. Sweat poured from Gine's forehead. She gripped her fists so hard that her knuckles turned white. And, as she took stock of the black mist and the apparent lack of Blutz Waves from the Moon, her body began to tremble. "No..."

Screams of terror and death began to echo in the back of Gine's mind. "No... this...this has to be a bad dream. _It...it has to be a bad dream..._ "

As she stood there, slowly slipping back into PTSD, Gine's mind was racing. It went from face-to-face, from corpse-to-corpse, images burned permanently into her mind from all the way back then. The disaster on Planet Makyo. But then, Chi-Chi and Gohan immediately entered her mind and Gine gasped. "No! _No no no no no!_ "

Abandoning the jugs and the firewood, Gine sprinted through the forest and back towards the house. It didn't take her long, but she was not pleased by the feeling when she got there. Everything was still and quiet, unnervingly so. And it was not just a lack of noise from within the house, it was a lack of noise all together. Everything around her was chillingly still...and yet Gine could feel hundreds of eyes stuck to her all coming from the surrounding forest.

Swallowing a massive lump in her throat, Gine rushed into the house. "Ox-King! Chi-Chi! Gohan! Are you all okay?!"

She rounded the corner into the kitchen and, to her horror, Gine found everything had been torn to pieces. The table was split down the middle, the dishes were broken, the fridge was tipped over. Her heart was beating in her throat. Gine grabbed two handfuls of her hair and pulled at them, beginning to whimper to herself. "This isn't real. This isn't real. This isn't real. It's just a bad dream. It's always a bad dream. You're going to wake up any second and wish that Bardock was there to hold you and..."

As Gine mumbled to herself, the massive frame of the Ox-King appeared in the far door. His face was cast in shadow as he lumbered in. Behind her, Gine heard the door to the den creak shut and eventually close with an unnerving click. Gine lifted her head and squeaked at the lumbering form approaching her. "O-Ox-King..."

Behind her, however, another familiar voice sinisterly spoke. " _Giiiiiiiiiiiineeeeeee..._ "

Gine turned. "Chi-"

As she turned, Gine was suddenly assailed by her daughter-in-law. Chi-Chi tackled the Saiyan Mother to the ground, hissing directly into her face with massive fangs showing. Tears welled in Gine's eyes, she stared at her reflection in Chi-Chi's now bright pink eyes and she screamed at the top of her lungs.

 _Meanwhile, at Capsule Corp..._

Yamcha sighed as he grabbed the final box of his belongings off of what was once his and Bulma's bed. He looked into the box, down at a picture of him and Bulma together on a vacation and he kicked himself hard. He couldn't make himself say it out loud, but he knew that he had ruined their relationship and the it was solely and squarely his fault.

Hearing the door open behind him and sensing that it was her, Yamcha sighed defeatedly. "This is the last box, Bulma. I'm-"

Completely out of the blue, Bulma slammed into her ex-boyfriend, catching him off-guard and shoving him into the nearby window. Yamcha's hand went through the glasses and the shards tore into his forearm. The former desert bandit struggled as he tried to pull his arm out without mangling it too badly. He was able to do so, but just barely in time to avoid Bulma rushing at him with a chair.

The chair smashed through the window, shattering it out near completely and letting in a black mist that instantly gave Yamcha a headache. "Bulma! What the hell are you doing?!"

What happened next made Yamcha's heart stop. Bulma leaned over, sticking her tongue out, and licked a trail of Yamcha's blood from the glass. She turned to him and smiled, eyes glowing pink and fangs jutting out from her hungry smirk. And then, with a hiss, Bulma lunged at Yamcha.

 _At Kame House..._

Krillin gripped the side of his aching head as he dodged another kick from the suddenly feral Master Roshi. Krillin stared in horror as Roshi lunged at him again, drool pouring from his mouth. He tried to bite Krillin with his new fangs again and again and again.

The monk had no clue what was going on, or why Master Roshi would suddenly be acting like this. But he knew he had to defend himself somehow. As he tried to think of a way to put a stop to this without injuring Roshi, Krillin was surprised by a sudden attack from the Turtle. Turtle tried to bite Krillin, but the lack of fangs rendered the attempt totally ineffective. Thinking fast, Krillin lifted Turtle into the air and tossed him at Master Roshi, sending them both crashing to the ground in a heap.

Krillin leapt into the air, watching as Roshi moaned about his aching back on the ground, and wiped sweat from his brow. "What the heck is going on here?!"

 _At the Yunzabit Heights village..._

Tien and Chiaotzu were both breathing heavy as they stood atop a pile of battered martial artists. Beneath them, the suddenly vampiric fighters were howling and hissing, writhing in their attempts to get back on their feet. The two warriors rose high into the air to avoid being trapped in another brawl. Tien glanced over to Chiaotzu. "Are you okay? They didn't bite you, did they?"

Chiaotzu nodded. "I'm fine. What about you, are you okay?"

Tien stared down, watching as the various warriors below attempted to leap up and bite at them. "Okay is a strong word..."

Chiaotzu nodded. "This is pretty concerning..."

Tien shook his head. "And concerning is a big understatement."

The three-eyed warrior turned. "Come on! We're going to go and see if we can find out what the hell is going on."

As Tien began to fly, Chiaotzu nodded and followed along. "R-Right."

 _Back at the Son Family Household..._

Gine was still screaming in utter horror as Chi-Chi was joined by the lumbering Ox-King in trying to bite her. She held the two of them at arm's length, shuddering in fear as they snapped at her, drool leaking from their gaping mouths. For a brief moment, Gine flashed back to that fated mission so long ago. Chi-Chi and Ox-King were replaced by two of her comrades, their fangs snapping inches from her face as she tried her hardest to keep them at bay. Gine trembled, sobs weeping out from the back of her throat. She remembered everything that went on around her. The snide laughter, the sounds of hissing and shouting and death...all of it assaulted her mind all at once, pounding against her brain like a fist against a drum. And then Gine screamed even louder.

It took her a second to snap out of it. Her breaths were rapid and shallow. Gine looked to her left and saw the Ox-King lying still. And then she looked to her right and saw Chi-Chi in a crumpled heap. Gine got to her feet and check on each of them, relieved to find that Chi-Chi and Ox-King were both still alive, just injured and unconscious.

Gine started to breathe a sigh of relief, but was caught unaware by a suddenly conscious Chi-Chi. The vampirized woman lunged at Gine, fangs at the ready. However, the cupboard suddenly flew open and Chi-Chi received a boot to the face for her troubles. She went flying into the tipped over fridge and smashed into hard, actually unconscious this time.

Gine looked over and saw, to her sheer relief, that Gohan had not been turned. The boy was knelt there on the ground, clutching his head and groaning. "M-My head..."

The grandmother crawled across the floor, grabbing her grandson and pulling him close, hugging him like a safety blanket. "Gohan! Oh Gohan! I'm so glad to see that you're okay. I'm so glad..."

Gohan groaned and leaned into Gine's breast. "Grandma...wh-what's happening? I... started to get a really bad headache and then Mom and Grandpa Ox started to act like monsters..."

Gine closed her eyes, pressing her lips onto the back of Gohan's head. The Saiyan woman's ears were ringing. She couldn't believe that any of this was actually happening. They two of them sat there for a few minutes, in silence. And then Gohan snapped Gine back into it. "G-Grandma...what do we do?"

Gine glanced down at him, and then over at Chi-Chi and Ox-King. "Go out to the shed and fetch some rope."

 _A few minutes later..._

Gine gently laid her bound and gagged daughter-in-law onto the couch in the den, gently caressing her face and sighing. "Don't worry, Chi-Chi, I'll fix this. I don't know how I'll fix it...but I'll fix it, I promise you."

At the moment, Chi-Chi began to stir. She started to grunt and snarl beneath the tape, thrashing around on the couch until she fell onto the floor. In the kitchen, Gine could hear that the Ox-King had started to wake up and thrash about as well. Gine made sure that all of the doors to the kitchen were secure and then gave one last sad look to Chi-Chi before closing and locking the front door as well.

Stepping out into the front lawn, Gine looked over and saw Gohan staring up at the Moon. The young boy's tail swayed to and fro as he sat there, staring up at it. "So... something is affecting the Moon? And... it has something to do with this black mist?"

Gine nodded. "Yes. This is exactly like...that day. I... I can't believe that they've somehow come to Earth..."

In her deep thought, Gine seemingly didn't notice a vampirized bear charging at her from behind. Gohan cried out. "Grandma Gine! Behind you!"

Gine clenched her fist tight. And then, she turned on a dime and slammed her fist into the side of the bears face, sending it flying across the yard and into the shed. The bear laid there, dead, and Gine screamed at the top of her lungs in frustration. Gohan approached. "Grandma, what's going on?"

Gine turned to Gohan and wiped her sleeve over her eyes, banishing the welled-up tears. "Earth is in trouble, Gohan. From the looks of things, we're being attacked by the Makyans..."

 _Meanwhile, up on the Lookout..._

Garlic Junior swam his finger around in the water of Kami's well. He watched at the Blackwater Mist swirled around his finger with a smirk. On either side of him, on the armrests of Kami's throne, the broken Guardian and an equally as injured Mr. Popo laid in their glass bottle prisons.

Garlic Junior chuckled. "Welcome back, Spice."

Spice stepped out from the shadows with a smirk, producing the One-Star Dragon Ball from his cloak. "The Dragon Ball, as requested, King Garlic~"

Garlic Junior took the ball and smiled at it, gazing upon his reflection in the orb. "Oh yes..."

The imp looked up to his Grand Chancellor. "And the others?"

Spice nodded. "They should have returned with their Dragon Balls within three hours."

Garlic Junior and Spice both looked up to the sky, watching as the once pale-yellow moon slowly turned as red as blood. Garlic Junior chuckled. "The conversion has begun, Spice! Soon...we shall have an army, a super weapon, and unlimited power above all else! Soon, the Moon of this insignificant planet shall become a new Makyo Star!"

Spice smiled and nodded. "Yes sir. And with those ready...the vengeance of the Makyans shall commence."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	47. Chapter 47: The Heavens Tremble

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 47: The Heavens Tremble**

 _Flying through the sky..._

The black mist became thicker and the moonlight was dyed even redder as Gohan and Gine flew forward. The atmosphere became more unnerving with each city they flew over, finding the population beneath to be just as rabid and violent as Chi-Chi and the Ox-King had become. Buildings were aflame, cars were tipped over, and the entire population of Earth seemed to have become utterly deranged.

Gine was oddly tight-lipped, seemingly struggling to come up with any sort of words to address this situation with. Gohan stole a small glance at his grandmother every so often. The situation on Earth was bad, but he was genuinely more worried about her sudden shift in attitude.

As the two of them flew, they eventually noticed several other figures flying in the distance and coming right at them. They both stopped and prepared to fight, only to be relieved at the sight of Krillin, Tien, Chiaotzu, and a bandaged-up Yamcha.

Krillin spoke up first. "Oh, thank goodness! You guys are all okay!"

Tien grunted. "For the most part. Chiaotzu and I had to fight our way out of a village of monsters..."

Chiaotzu nodded. "And every city we've flown over since then has been in the exact same state as that village. Everybody on Earth is turning into a vampire out of nowhere..."

Krillin sighed. "Y-Yeah. I noticed..."

His shoulders slumped. "Whatever is going on, it got Master Roshi too..."

Yamcha chimed in, giving a tight squeeze to his injured elbow. "Bulma too."

Gohan spoke up. "It got my Mom and Grandpa Ox as well!"

Krillin gripped his fists. "Dammit! _What the hell is going on?!_ "

Gohan turned to the monk. "Grandma Gine said it was the ' _Makyans_ ', right Grandma?"

All eyes fell on Gine. Tien cocked his head. "Makyans? What's a Makyan?"

Her mouth went dry, she crossed her arms and noticeably tensed up. "They're...evil. That's the best way I can think to put it right now. Just...evil..."

It was clear that she was struggling. Tien sighed and looked at everyone else in the group. "Okay then. So, Earth is being attacked by... evil. Again. What do we do about it? Anyone got any ideas? Chiaotzu? Yamcha? Krillin? Gine? Gohan?"

Gohan gasped. "M-Me?"

Tien smiled at him. "Of course, you. You're just as much of a warrior as the rest of us, kid. Your opinion on this is no less important than anyone else's."

Gohan smiled. "W-Well...I can feel Mr. Piccolo's energy, but he isn't here with us. We should go and find him first, I think."

Krillin nodded. "That's a smart idea. Piccolo is stronger than any of us, he probably hasn't been turned. Hopefully..."

They all nodded to each other and then turned in the direction of Piccolo's faint power level.

As they flew, with Gohan distracted by a conversation with Krillin and Tien, Yamcha noticed that Gine was trailing a bit behind the group. The former desert bandit could tell that something was serious bothering her, so he decided to trail back and see if he could find out what was up from her. "Hey, Miss Gine."

Gine flinched, snapped out of a seeming trance she was in, and turned to see that Yamcha was right next to her. "Oh...Yamcha..."

Yamcha smiled. "You look like you have a lot on your mind. Maybe I could help you take a load off?"

Gine glanced away. She opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it. She didn't know what to say. Yamcha prodded her a bit. "Come on! You have to have something to say. Maybe you have a bit of advice for a poor, down-on-his-luck baseball star?"

She looked to him again. And then, her mind briefly leaving the situation at hand, Gine glared at Yamcha. "Okay then, as long as we're talking...I'm not very impressed with you, Yamcha. I hope you know that."

Yamcha's smile faded and he instantly looked ashamed. "So you..."

Gine crossed her arms. "Bulma told Chi-Chi and Chi-Chi told me. How could you do that, Yamcha? Cheating? Really? And with all of those women too..."

Yamcha flinched. "H-How many women has she been telling people I was with?!"

Gine responded. "I heard forty."

Yamcha gasped, his face instantly turning red. " _F-Forty?!_ No way! It wasn't forty women, Miss Gine. Most of those women really are just members of my teams fan club!"

Gine narrowed her eyes. "Oh really?"

Yamcha rapidly nodded. "I swear! I wasn't sleeping around with forty women... _it was just one_..."

He frowned again. "She was a fan that would always follow me and the boys to the restaurant after games. She'd hang out with us and stuff..."

Gine coldly responded. "That makes no difference. Infidelity is infidelity, Yamcha. You should be ashamed."

He sighed. "I am. I... I knew it was a mistake after the first time I did it. But...I needed it, Miss Gine. I needed someone who felt like they cared, especially with how Bulma's been treating me recently..."

She glanced over at him. "What do you mean?"

Yamcha frowned even harder. "E-Ever since I was wished back, she's been so distant. She won't talk to me, she won't look at me, she'll barely stay in the same room as me most of the time. It's like she just doesn't want me around anymore."

Gine's face softened a bit. "Why is that?"

Yamcha shrugged. "I didn't know. At least, not a first. But...one day I overheard her talking to herself after we had a fight. Didn't hear everything she said...but she seemed pretty angry about one thing in particular..."

Gine was silent. Yamcha sadly chuckled. "She was angry that I died on her. I heard her say it. And... I just don't get it, Miss Gine. I feel terrible for what I did and there's no excuse for what I did...but how can she just shut me out like that for dying? It's not like I could help it. I... I wouldn't have died if I could've avoided it..."

Still no response. Yamcha glanced over at her. "Miss Gine?"

Gine's lower lip was quivering, a massive lump formed in her throat. Yamcha was instantly worried. "Oh no! I'm sorry, I-"

She held up her hand. "Yamcha...just..."

She gripped her fist tight. "Just go and talk to her when all of this is over. You and her need to work all of this out between the two of you, okay?"

Yamcha nodded. "O-Okay. Are you okay, ma'am?"

Gine glanced to the ground. "I see Piccolo."

She instantly descended toward the ground, getting as far away from that conversation as possible. Yamcha was silent, shaking his head. He was worried about her, but she had a point. Emotional problems could wait until this crisis was solved.

 _In the wasteland..._

Gohan was the first person to reach Piccolo once all of the warriors had landed. The boy went sprinting across the rocky wastes to reach his fallen mentor, checking on him to make sure he was alright. "Mr. Piccolo!"

He gave him a good couple of shakes. "Mr. Piccolo! Wake up!"

Tien looked over Piccolo's prostrate form. "He doesn't look like anything attacked him. I wonder what knocked him out?"

Krillin scratched his head. "Maybe it was the mist. It's been giving all of us headaches, maybe he just got hit by a particularly strong cloud of it."

After a few more moments, Piccolo's eyes cracked open and Gohan helped his mentor get to his feet. "Are you okay, Mr. Piccolo?"

Piccolo growled under his breath. "What's going on?"

Krillin began to explain. "Well, there's an evil mist over the entire world and it's turning everyone into vampires. Also, the moon is turning red, but we haven't figured out what's causing that yet..."

Chiaotzu tried to speak. "Maybe we could split up and see if we could find-"

Piccolo interjected. "The Lookout. The bastards that have caused all of this are on Kami's Lookout."

Everyone was silent. Piccolo stood up and cracked his neck. "Well?! What are you all standing there gawking for?! Hurry up and let's go!"

Piccolo took off with purpose. Gohan followed along near instantly. The remaining Earthlings and Gine all looked to one another, and then they followed along as well.

 _At Korin's Tower..._

The Z-Fighters made their way to Korin's Tower as quickly as possible and felt out the situation going on in the heavens above. Krillin glanced up at the into the swirling black clouds, illuminated by only blood red light. The monk shivered. "O-Ominous..."

Piccolo sneered. "We don't have time for your cowardice! We need to get up there and find out what the hell is going on!"

The Namekian warrior went to move, but a sudden dark flash and a hiss came rocketing at him. Piccolo prepared to defend himself, but the shadow was prevented from attacking by Chiaotzu. Chiaotzu thrust his hands out and caught it, mid-air, with his telekinesis. "Wh-Whoa! Yajirobe?!"

Everyone looked on at Yajirobe hovered there, snapping his fangs at them with glowing red eyes. Piccolo growled. "Damned fool."

Yamcha scoffed. "Don't get mad at him! It's not like he can help it, Piccolo..."

Chiaotzu moved his hands and Yajirobe moved with them. He sighed. "I'll just put Yajirobe somewhere safe..."

He glanced around and eventually found a lake. With little effort, Chiaotzu tossed Yajirobe into the lake with a hearty splash. Tien glanced over to the hollowed space of Korin's Tower. "I wonder if Lord Korin was affected too?"

Gohan and Gine glanced at one another, looking worried. Piccolo glared up into the sky. "I don't care about that right now! We have more important things to deal with!"

Once again, Piccolo shot higher into the sky and the others followed along once more.

 _On Kami's Lookout..._

One after the other, the Z-Fighters landed on Kami's Lookout and took in the sight of what was many of their former training grounds. Mr. Popo's carefully curated shrubbery was in ruins and the architecture was crumbling. It looked as if a natural disaster had hit the place. Krillin sounded worried. "It sure does look like something happened here. What could have done this?"

Krillin's question was answered by Piccolo's angry shouts. " _Kami! Where the hell are you?!_ "

Everyone froze as they suddenly felt evil eyes locked onto them. Several shadows came shooting from within Kami's Palace and positioned themselves to surround the group. The Earth-based warriors shot glares at the horde of demons that had surrounded them before they all turned their attention to the main demon standing in front of the entrance to the palace. Spice sneered. "How in the world are there so many on this planet that can withstand the effects of the King's Blackwater Mist?"

He threw his hand to his side and made his cape flourish. "Who are you people?"

He examined each of them...and then his eyes fell directly onto Gine. Spice silently regarded her, as if some distant memory had been stirred. Gine saw him and instantly recoiled backwards. Vinegar chuckled. "Looks like this planet has some life to it! That's good! I was getting bored!"

Yamcha clenched his fist. "Who are you bastards?! And what have you done to our planet?!"

Another voice spoke up, stepping out from the shadows and march up next to Spice. Garlic Junior stroked his chin and chuckled. "How fascinating~"

He looked up to Spice and Spice glanced down to him. "Spice! Look at this lot! They stand before us utterly unencumbered by the effects of Father's mist! How powerful must they be?!"

He looked again, his eyes falling upon Gine and Gohan's tails. Garlic Junior flinched. "My word! And those two are _Saiyans_ , Spice! And I was shocked once I realized that the God of this place was a _Namekian_! We seem to have picked a good place to set up our operation, if so many strong creatures flock to it~"

Spice nodded, still seemingly distracted. "Yes...My King. _Indeed_..."

Tien glared at Garlic Junior. "You seem to be the boss around here. Why don't you explain just what's going on?"

Garlic Junior chuckled. "Quite forward for a mere peasant. What makes you think I owe you any sort of explanation?"

But then, the Makyan's gaze fell back onto Gine and Gohan and he snickered. "How apt. My plan for vengeance, inspired by the Saiyans, shall now enter its final phases with _two Saiyans serving me_ ~"

Chiaotzu shouted. "What are you talking about?!"

Garlic Junior ignored Chiaotzu, turning his back to the Z-Fighters and addressing his men. "Boys. I know you've just returned from retrieving the Dragon Balls and that you must be quite tired, but it seems I have another task of you before we are to acquire our immortality. These fools are brash, but they are also quite strong. You will convert them into Greater Makyans at once! Am I understood?"

The seven demons are smiled, roaring out in unison. " _By your command, Garlic Junior!_ "

The little imp retreated back into the cover of shadows and his minions all immediately pounced. The Z-Fighters all went on the defense and several fights broke out at once.

 _Near the edge of the Lookout..._

Yamcha went skidding to the edge of the Lookout, catching himself before falling off, and was quickly set upon by Ginger. The two of them engaged in a series of rapid-fire fisticuffs. Ginger attempts to sink his razor-sharp claws into Yamcha's flesh, but Yamcha rebuffed him with several well-timed counters. After a snap kick to the throat, which threw Ginger off-guard, Yamcha leapt forward and shouted. " _Wolf Talon Thrust!_ "

With a sharp, two-fingered thrust to the stomach, Yamcha sent Ginger reeling back. The Makyan's eyes were bugged out of his head as he doubled over in pain. He gurgled and snarled at Yamcha. "You little..."

Yamcha winked at him and chuckled. "Your move, man!"

Ginger hissed and reached to the two spikes on his elbows, pulling a blade from each of them and spinning them with a flourish. " _I'll dice you into pieces!_ "

The imp charged again, taking two massive swings at Yamcha. But Yamcha was unimpressed. He leapt into the air, rotating onto his side, and slid between the two blades. He smashed his foot into Ginger's face again, knocking him back and knocking the sword from his left hand. Yamcha picked the blade up from the ground and smirked. "It's been a minute...but I think I still know how to use one of these~"

Ginger shrieked in fury and charged at Yamcha once more.

 _In the sky above the Lookout..._

In the sky above Yamcha and Ginger, Krillin and Nikki were locked in a rapid-fire brawl of their own. The camp Makyan was eager to smash Krillin up, having pulled a massive spiky club from his own skin. Krillin was on the defensive as the hefty object was levied at him over and over again, barely avoiding being reduced to a red cloud in the sky.

Krillin leapt backwards and raised up his hand, summoning a Destructo-Disc above his head. "Eat this! Destructo-Disc!"

He tossed the attack forward and it collided with Nikki's waist. The Makyan was easily sawed in half, his legs splatting against the ground. Krillin smirked at his apparent success, but Nikki simply chuckled. "It's not that easy, fool!"

With a bit of exertion, Nikki grew a new set of legs and charged at Krillin once more. Krillin yelped and dodged a strike from the club. "What the heck?!"

Nikki giggled. "Makyans are a hearty species, boy! _It takes more than simply being chopped in half to kill us!_ "

 _On the far side of the Lookout..._

At the side of Kami's Palace, Tien and Chiaotzu were locked in an intense fight with Salt and Mustard. The tandem of demons and the tandem of humans were both very clearly used to working side-by-side. Tien and Chiaotzu, however, were not in the mood for a competitive fight with this one. The lives of billions were on the line, so they had to be quick and concise. Tien shouted. " _Dodon Ray!_ "

And Chiaotzu followed up. " _Dodon Ray!_ "

The two beams shot forward like bolts of lightning and collided into Salt and Mustard's chests, piercing where their hearts should have been. The two of them gave a brief pause and began to buckle over, but then caught themselves and charged to deliver a hefty punch and kick to Tien and Chiaotzu. Chiaotzu gasped. "B-But...we shot them in their hearts!"

Mustard chuckled. Salt snorted. " _Bold of you to assume we rely on those!_ "

Tien growled. "You have to have some form of weak point!"

And then he and Chiaotzu charged right back at their foes.

 _In Mr. Popo's courtyard..._

Amidst Mr. Popo's ruined greenery, little Gohan was locked into a deathmatch with Vinegar. The young half-Saiyan and the massive Makyan had a clear size difference, but that was affecting Gohan's tenacity. With grandmother, his mentor, and his father's peers all nearby to observe, Gohan couldn't afford to bring anything but his best to this fight.

He delivered a sharp kick to Vinegar's face and sent the brute toppling back. Vinegar chuckled and wiped a trickle of blood from his face. "You got spunk, brat! But I'm gonna shatter you like a drinking glass!"

He charged at Gohan and rained a massive punch down onto the boy. Gohan barely dodged as Vinegar's fist went through the floor of the Lookout like wet paper. He raised his hands to prepare a Masenko, but Vinegar was too quick. He reached forward with his free hand and wrapped it around Gohan's throat, heaving the boy high into the air. "You know what a broken face feels like, boy?!"

Vinegar yanked his fist from the ground and reared it back to smash into Gohan's face. Gohan didn't flinch. With his hands still above his head, he charged his attack and fired it right at Vinegar's fist. "Masenko!"

The blast smashed into Vinegars fist and exploded with great effect. Vinegar roared in frustration and stumbled back while Gohan landed on his feet. Keeping with the momentum, Gohan leapt forward and smashed his head directly into Vinegar's core, sending the massive brute flying even further back.

Gohan raised his hands above his head and started to charge another Masenko, but Vinegar chuckled at the sight of this. "You really are a feisty little brat!"

Vinegar regrew his missing hand and clenched his new fist. "But every bit of damage you do to me is going to be returned with _force_!"

Gohan and Vinegar clashed again as another fight raged not too far away. Gine and Spice were trading blows back and forth with one another. Spice seemed to have the upper hand in this fight, if only by just a little bit. But it was hard to tell who was superior when it was quite clear that both combatants were distracted. Spice was studying Gine's face from the top of her forward to the tip of her chin. He knew he recognized her from somewhere, but he couldn't quite place it.

Gine, meanwhile, knew full-well who Spice was. That was part of what was keeping her from fighting at her fullest. The Saiyan woman suffered from continued flashes to the past. Brief snippets of the most horrifying time of her life. Experiences worse than any she had gone through while facing Frieza with her family. Flashes of red and the sounds of screaming. The smells of death and spit and rage combined with the overwhelming feeling of the pit in her stomach. And Spice himself standing at the center of it. Gine recognized Spice. She recognized him well. And facing him was sending her deeper into a state of post-traumatic stress than she had ever been before.

 _In front of the entrance to Kami's Palace..._

And finally, Piccolo faced off with Sansho. The large, gray Makyan was vicious as he tried his best to bring an end to Piccolo's life. The demon had pulled a massive halberd out of his body and was frantically trying to slash Piccolo apart with it. But he didn't seem to be pressuring Piccolo in the slightest. After yet another fruitless jab with the bladed polearm, Piccolo vanished from sight. Sansho was taken off guard and that was when Piccolo struck. Coming up from behind, Piccolo grabbed Sansho around his neck and, with a quick and brutal twist, Piccolo snapped his neck and let his limp body fall to the ground.

Piccolo sneered. "Utterly pathetic."

He turned to walk into Kami's Palace, to hunt down Garlic Junior, but Sansho smirked. The Makyan leapt up and took his polearm in hand, attempting to run Piccolo through from behind. However, Piccolo managed to catch the blade. He glared back at Sansho and Sansho chuckled. "The Makyans are a super-endurant race, fool! It takes more than a simple injury to put our kind down!"

Piccolo rolled his eyes. "Such as?"

Sansho sneered. "Such as an overwhelming kind of force a mere Namekian like you couldn't muster!"

Piccolo chuckled and reached up to his cape. "Interesting."

The Namekian whipped his cape off, throwing it over Sansho's face. He disappeared and Sansho stumbled forward in a muffled rage. The Makyan dropped his halberd and started ripping at the cloth to regain his sight. What he failed to notice was his halberd be caught as it fell. Sansho eventually managed to rip the cape apart, but with immediately ran through by his own weapon. He turned and snarled. "What the he-"

Sansho turned to find an outstretched, green palm right in his face. He gasped and Piccolo chuckled. "Overwhelming force, you say?"

And then, with a massive Destructive Wave, Piccolo deleted Sansho from existence, engulfing and exploding the Makyan in a massive wave of energy. Once the smoke had cleared, all that was left of Sansho, his halberd, and Piccolo's shredded cape was a dark scorch across the white marble of the Lookout. The sight and sound of this, one of their own being destroyed, drew the attention of the other six Spice Boys. Spice himself caught a punch from Gine and snarled. "Sansho, _you idiot_..."

Vinegar was in disbelief as well. "What the hell just-"

Piccolo's weighted turban came flying through the air and smashed Vinegar directly in the face. This allowed Gohan to take a brief advantage in their fight and force Vinegar to the ground. Piccolo nodded to himself, pleased with having helped his student, and then charged into Kami's Palace to hunt down Garlic Junior. "At this rate, this will all be over before the sun rises."

 _Within Kami's Palace..._

Piccolo marched into Kami's throne room with purpose. The Namekian warrior glared across the spacious room and right at the little imp sitting in Kami's throne. As he walked towards Garlic Junior, Piccolo took in all that there was to see around the demon brat. Sitting on the armrests of the throne were two bottle prisons, one containing Kami and one containing Mr. Popo, a massive chalice of Dragon Balls sitting off to the side, and a crystalline black bottle sitting next to Kami's well. Piccolo snorted. "I see you've made yourself at home."

Garlic Junior chuckled. "A God's Palace for an up-and-coming God. I would argue that it's quite appropriate that I have made this my home. But...let us not discuss me for the moment, I am more interested in you~"

Piccolo narrowed his eyes. Garlic Junior stood. "I would like to make a proposal to you. Join me! You can replace whichever one of the Spice Boys that you dispatched! I'm going to say it was...Ginger? Or...perhaps Salt?"

Piccolo responded to Garlic Junior's inquiries with a rapid blitz forward. However, the little cretin was quick to evade. He leapt into the air, his cape twirling around him and landed behind Piccolo to charge a blast. "You think I will just fall for such an obvious attack, fool?!"

Piccolo turned to Garlic Junior and smirked, holding up the bottles containing Kami and Popo. He crushed both in his grip and tossed them to the ground, allowing them to burst and freeing the two Lookout inhabitants. Piccolo snarked at Garlic Junior. "Forgive me. You just don't seem to be the smartest person ever to live."

Garlic Junior snarled. Piccolo crossed his arms over his chest. "You don't seem to be much more than a _whinny brat_."

The imp fired his blast. "How dare you?!"

Piccolo thoughtless slapped the attack away and then turned to Kami. "How do we fix all of the things this little bastard has done to the Earth?"

Kami stood, popping his back. "Nothing has been done that a wish to the Dragon Balls could not correct."

Piccolo nodded. "Got it."

The Namekian warrior stepped forward and cracked his knuckles, glaring directly at Garlic Junior. Garlic Junior glared back, his composure having totally left him. "Oh, so you think my machinations will end that quickly do you?!"

He smirked. "I think not!"

Garlic Junior rushed across the room to the chalice of Dragon Balls and grabbed the Four-Star Ball. Opening his mouth, the little demon shoved the Dragon Ball down his throat and swallowed it with a satisfied smirk. "Try and get it back now, fool~"

Piccolo shrugged. "I was planning on ripping you open regardless. You've just given me a reason to do so, now."

The Namekian warrior shot his arm forward, stretching it and grabbing the chalice with the remaining balls in it. He pulled it back and then shoved it into Mr. Popo's arms. "Take the Dragon Balls and get lost. I'll come to you with the one in his stomach after I've finished with him."

Kami seemed annoyed. "What do you mean by 'get lost'? This is _my_ palace, child!"

Piccolo sneered at his older counterpart. "I don't care. You're a target to the fools. Nothing more. I can't have you getting caught and sealed into another bottle. Now go and hide somewhere!"

Kami seemed reluctant, but Mr. Popo placed a hand on his shoulder. "Please Kami. Piccolo is right. We must flee in order to keep you safe."

The Guardian gripped his fists tight and sighed. "Fine. We will go..."

He turned and began to walk away, stopping and turning to speak to his younger counterpart. "Fight well, Piccolo."

Piccolo did not respond.

Once Kami and Mr. Popo had successfully fled, Garlic Junior chuckled. He sounded unimpressed. "What do you think that is going to accomplish?! This planet is not that large! They could hide anywhere on this miserable mudball and I could find them with ease!"

Piccolo charged again, clashing with Garlic Junior and smashing him into a nearby wall. "That's assuming that you're going to leave this room alive!"

He thrust his hand at Garlic Junior and fired a massive Destructive Wave. Garlic Junior feinted to the right, but the blast still collided with his left arm, blowing it off in a spectacular display. Garlic Junior growled, regarding his missing arm and then Piccolo. But the imp simply smirked in response. "I must tell you, fool. The Makyan race-"

Piccolo interrupted. "Yes, yes! You're more endurant than the average race and all of that drivel that that other fool was spouting. Get on with re-growing the arm and come at me!"

Garlic Junior smiled wide. "I will do much more than that!"

The imp shrieked at the top of his lungs and his body exploded. In a mass of rippling muscle, Garlic Junior grew four times larger than he was previously. He towered over Piccolo and his voice fell to a deeper, more sinister register. "I will rip you to shreds, Namekian!"

Piccolo took a fighting stance. "We'll see about that."

 _Far below the Lookout, near Korin's Tower..._

Kami sat there on Mr. Popo's magic carpet, regarding the chalice of Dragon Balls held tight in his grip. In their distraction, none of Garlic Junior's Spice Boys had noticed himself and Mr. Popo slipping away and making their escape. Mr. Popo sat at the reins of the carpet and steered the woven vehicle through the air. "Where should we hide, Kami?"

Kami glanced from the Dragon Balls over to Korin's Tower and then towards Mr. Popo. "I think I have an idea of where we could hide..."

 _Back on Kami's Lookout..._

Yamcha and Ginger crossed blades once more, glaring into one another's eyes before leaping back. Yamcha smirked and flourished his sword around. Ginger was breathing heavily and snarling to himself. He never expected to be this outmatched by a mere Earthling. Ginger hissed and charged once again. "You miserable insect!"

Yamcha dodged several slashes of the sword before, with a quick slash of his own, taking off Ginger's arm and running him through in one sleek motion. Ginger gurgled as Yamcha yanked the sword from his torso, pulled the other sword from his severed arm, and snapped both of them over his knee. Yamcha smirked. "Sorry little guy, but I think it's time to end this!"

Yamcha charged forward. "Wolf Fang Fist!"

Ginger recoiled; fear streaked across his face. "Hey! Someone help me out here!"

The imp's pleas were immediately met by an eager ally. Falling from the sky, club levied high above his head, Nikki launched himself at Yamcha. He swung his club down to smash Yamcha's head open, but the former bandit was able to turn and catch it. Nikki chuckled as Yamcha struggled under the weight of the club. Ginger regenerated his arm and then summoned two more swords. "Okay Nikki! Just hold him still for me!"

Ginger charged, seeking to run Yamcha through, but was put to a halt by a sudden kick to the face. The force of the kick sent Ginger flying forward and directly into Nikki, toppling the two of them to the ground and sending Nikki's club crashing to the floor. Yamcha turned and smiled at his rescuer, Krillin smiled right back. The two Turtle School students stood side-by-side, sharing a quick fist-bump, before each taking a fighting stance.

Krillin took a stance similar to Master Roshi's and Yamcha, lifting Nikki's club over his shoulder, looked as if he was seeking yet another home run. "Time to play some baseball!"

Ginger and Nikki both rose up, looking furious at their opponents. They both bared their fangs and charged at the two Earthlings, ready to rip them to shreds. Krillin and Yamcha both nodded to one another and then they smirked. Yamcha feinted back and closed his eyes tight, allowing Krillin to do his work. The little monk fanned his hands in front of his face and shouted. " _Solar Flare!_ "

The light bathed over Nikki and Ginger, harshly burning their eyes and their skin. The two Makyans were both stopped in their tracks, cringing in pain, and Yamcha took that as his cue. " _Kaioken Times Five!_ "

Yamcha charged up to his blinded opponent, Ginger, and reared his new bat back as far as he could. His muscles tightened and strained against the Kaioken as he did. He was going to put all of his strength into this one. Yamcha summoned the energy into his hands that he would normally use to make a Spirit Ball, but he flooded it into the bat instead, making the already harsh club and even harder prospect to take head on. "So, from what that guy Piccolo fought was saying, I just gotta hit you hard enough so that you don't regenerate! _Right?!_ "

The ground cracked under Yamcha's feet as he squared up. Ginger's vision slowly cleared and he glared in the direction of Yamcha's voice. "Do you really think-"

Ginger froze in place. Once his vision fully returned, he came upon the most horrific sight he had seen in his entire life. A demon, _a true demon_ , stood before him. He was bathed in an aura even redder than the moonlight and holding a stick that seemed to radiate with holy, golden light. Ginger held his hands in front and began to charge an energy blast to vanquish the being. "Ginger Bust-"

Yamcha retorted with force. " _SPIRIT SMASHER!_ "

He swung the club with all of his might, smashing it against the side of Ginger's face. In one clean motion, the sheer force of Yamcha's strength and energy ripped through the Makyan, reducing all but his feet to a cloud of red mist and smashing off a good portion of the Lookout from the pressure of the swing. Off to the side, Nikki's vision had also returned. And he instantly began to panic at the sight of Ginger's rapid death. "What in the hell did you just-"

Krillin suddenly called out. " _Scatter Bullet!_ "

Nikki turned and was immediately slammed into by a massive yellow blast. He screeched at the top of his lungs as Krillin hoisted him and the blast into the air, and then threw them both over the side of the Lookout. Nikki and the Scatter Bullet took the long, long ride down to the ground below before eventually colliding and exploding. Nikki screamed out as the blast vaporized him near instantly.

 _In Mr. Popo's garden..._

Eating a punch to the face from Gine, Spice glared over in the direction of Yamcha and Krillin. He observed the blood spray on the ground that used to be Ginger and saw the few remaining tatters of Nikki's robes floating through the air and he snarled. "Oh, you _must_ be kidding me..."

Gine went for another punch, but Spice sent her crashing to the ground with a well-placed slap to the face. He turned to the remaining members of his troop and shouted to them. "Boys! We've lost several of our troop! It is time for the fun and games to come to an end!"

Vinegar blocked a punch from Gohan and smiled wide. Mustard and Salt both chuckled. Spice raised his hand into the air and shouted. "It might slow the process a bit, but siphon some power from our developing Makyo Star in the sky! We must use its power to convert these fools as per our King's wishes!"

The others all nodded and then, the four remaining Spice Boys turned their attention to the red moon in the sky. Bathed in the eerie, blood-soaked light, the four of them began to absorb the power of the satellite above, expanding their muscle mass and increasing their power. Gohan took a nervous step back and Vinegar grew even larger in front of him. "What the heck is going on?! Wh-What is this Makyo Star thing anyway?!"

Gine, on the ground and staring up at Spice, turned utterly blue in the face. As much as she had hoped it wasn't true, her worst fears had indeed been realized: the Moon was being converted into a Makyo Star! She shakily stood up, trying to face up to Spice as he grew larger and larger, but was unable to stop herself from shaking.

More and more memories flooded into her head: a massive ship crashing to the ground and exploding, two hazily remembered facing snapping and snarling right in her face, Spice's mocking laugh, and the blood red Moon shining above.

Gine felt a sense of helplessness invade her soul as Spice charged at her once more.

 _Back inside Kami's Palace..._

It was a battle of brute strength as Garlic Junior and Piccolo continued to brawl with one another. And, unfortunately for Garlic Junior, he was no Frieza when it came to strength. The miserable imp was giving it his all, but Piccolo was proving to be far too powerful for the monster to overcome. Another blast shredded through Garlic Junior's shoulder and he leapt back, allowing it to regenerate. Piccolo smirked. "I thought you were going to rip me to shreds. I'm waiting, brat!"

Garlic Junior launched forward again, rearing back to punch Piccolo. " _How dare you mock the King of the Makyan Race?!_ "

Piccolo sneered and kicked Garlic Junior in the throat, sending him bouncing back into the shadows of a nearby corridor. "You sound like that miserable Vegeta. Except Vegeta probably would probably be putting up a better fight right about now..."

Garlic hissed from the shadows. "How dare you speak that wretched name in my presence?!"

Piccolo retorted. "What is this all about anyway? You seemed oddly fixated on Gohan and Gine. And now you have something against Vegeta's name? I mean...I get it, I can't stand Vegeta either. But what do you have against him?"

Garlic raged from the shadows, firing off another blast that Piccolo easily dispelled. "You have no grasp on what that name has done to me! _Vegeta_! Pah! King Vegeta and King Cold are both due a healthy dose of my wrath!"

The imp leapt out at Piccolo, trying to blast him in close range. Piccolo responded with a shattering kick to the gut that sent Garlic flying back into the darkness. Garlic Junior roared in frustration. "Father sent me away to get revenge on those two fools! The ones that prevented his ascent to holding reign over the entire Universe!"

A psychotic chuckle. " _And that revenge begins here! Can't you see?! This Earth is my new kingdom, the people on it my new army, the Dragon Balls my new power, and the Makyo Star I am creating with that Moon above my secret weapon! King Cold's number is up! King Vegeta's number is up! And they will_ _ **burn**_ _for what they have done to my race!_ "

As twisted laughter echoed through Kami's Palace, Piccolo was growing annoyed. This opponent of his really was nothing more than a rampaging child. And Piccolo had no time or patience for an out of control brat.

Another blast came shooting out at Piccolo's back, but the Namekian was prepared. He turned and blasted the blast with his own before stretching his arm into the darkness and grabbing Garlic Junior by the throat. Piccolo tossed Garlic Junior into the air, stretching out his other arm to match its twin, and then pummeled the little imp mid-air with a flurry of stretched out punches. After the beating concluded, Piccolo left into the air, clasping his hands above his head, and smashed Garlic Junior into the floor below. Piccolo landed next to Garlic, watching as his body rapidly healed itself. "And just what the hell do you plan to do against a monster like King Cold? Do you really think that you and your merry band of morons can go and take a creature like that on?"

Garlic Junior shakily pushed himself up. He glared at Piccolo. "What are you implying?"

Piccolo chuckled. "Let me lay out the facts for you. The warriors of the Earth are much stronger than one measly imp and his entourage of flamboyant vamps. We aren't just going to let you take this place-"

Garlic Junior stood. " _I will admit that you are quite formidable..._ "

Piccolo held up his finger. "I wasn't done. Together, the strongest of our number took on and killed Frieza."

Garlic Junior cocked his head. "Frieza? Who the hell is Frieza?"

Piccolo flinched. "You really are quite out of the loop, aren't you? I'll explain. Frieza is King Cold's son. From what I've been told, Frieza has more raw power, but Cold has more experience which makes him slightly more formidable compared to his son. _I_ was able to fight evenly with _Frieza_ , and _you_ can't touch _me_. So... _just what in the hell do you plan to do to Frieza's more formidable father?_ "

Garlic Junior chuckled. "A valid point. But I have my ways. Like I said, I have the Makyo Star~"

Piccolo cocked his head. Garlic Junior sneered. "By implanting a Makyan Blood Crystal into the core of the Moon of this planet, I have turned it into the trump card of my race! A Makyo Star! A tool to generate power for my men and to serve as a final weapon should King Cold prove to be too powerful! By using the Blood Crystal to gather and store Blutz Waves that a satellite like that would naturally produce, I can create a sort of bomb that could be used to swallow King Cold up! An explosion massive enough to rip a hole in space-time and create a sink in the very fabric of the Universe!"

The Namekian warrior flinched as Garlic Junior became even more manic than before. " _I was always aware that I might not be able to beat King Cold! But revenge is revenge! If I cannot kill him with my own hands, I will simply cast him into the Dead Zone where he can rot for the rest of eternity!_ "

Piccolo gripped his fists. "That's psychotic. You're planning to tear apart reality for revenge?! That has the potential to kill everybody in the Universe!"

Garlic's pupils had shrunk to the size of pinpricks. " _Who cares?! I have been lying dormant for decades waiting for this revenge! If everyone else in the Universe has to die for me to get what I want, then so be it!_ "

Piccolo's eyes steeled upon Garlic Junior. Now that he knew the full extent of this little cretin's plans, playtime was over. Garlic Junior summoned two more blasts into his hands and flung them both at Piccolo. "Now prepare to die by the hands of the great Makyan King, vermin!"

Piccolo crossed his arms over his chest, and then splayed them out with a mighty shout. Energy erupted from the Namekian and shredded through Garlic Junior's attacks, eventually colliding with the imp and blasting him across the room.

As the smoke cleared from Piccolo's Super Explosive Wave, Garlic Junior shakily stood up. "Th-This pain is nothing! You will eventually run short of stamina and-"

A wet crack and a splatter cut Garlic Junior's sentence short. He looked down, to his shock, and saw that Piccolo was right there, his hand thrusted through the imp's stomach and back. In his grip, Piccolo had the Four-Star Dragon Ball. Garlic Junior doubled over onto Piccolo's shoulder and the Namekian sneered. "You're an overconfident, psychotic little freak. And I won't let you destroy the Universe for your selfish desires."

Garlic was slumped over Piccolo. He chuckled. "You...you know...I could say the same about you."

Piccolo glared. "Pardon me?"

Garlic Junior chuckled. "I mean...with the overconfidence~"

And then, quick as a flash and catching Piccolo off-guard, Garlic Junior opened his mouth wide and sank his teeth into the Namekian's neck.

 _Outside, on the Lookout..._

The fights continued to rage out on the Lookout. Having vanquished their foes, Krillin and Yamcha joined up with the others to fight the remaining Spice Boys, but the newly bulked-up forms provided by the Makyo Star were proving to be a challenge in their own right.

Vinegar's new strength was met by Gohan and Krillin's combined efforts, but neither warriors was fully prepared for the sheer might the brute would display in this brawl. Vinegar was beating the two of them like ragdolls, tanking their best attacks and responding with devastating hits of his own.

Spice, meanwhile, was a challenge in his own right. Yamcha had attempted to leap in and help Gine, but the leader of the Spice Boys saw him as little more than a buzzing fly. The club that Yamcha had taken from Nikki was shattered with very little effort and Yamcha was quickly introduced to the shattered ground by the bottom of Spice's boot. The formidable Makyan was still more enthralled by Gine as something seemed to be coming back to him.

Finally, Tien and Chiaotzu were both at the mercy of Mustard and Salt. The two warriors were both battered and beaten from the onslaught of their newly empowered foes. The Makyans were way too strong to beat with just their strength alone after this transformation. As Tien and Chiaotzu kneeled there, Mustard and Salt loomed over them. Mustard chuckled. "Worthless Earthlings! You should've seen this coming from the get-go!"

Salt planted his fists onto his hips. "It'll take more than your pathetic power to crush the two of us!"

Tien silently looked at Chiaotzu. And Chiaotzu glanced back at Tien. They were both pretty badly hurt. However, they both smiled at one another. The two of them stood to their foes and each took a deep breath, and then they shouted at the top of their lungs. " _ **KAIOKEN!**_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	48. Chapter 48: K-Class

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Hey guys. Short chapter this time. But next chapter is going to be a pretty long flashback to Gine's past. I hope you enjoy this one for all it's worth and tune in next time as we enter the climax of the Garlic Junior Arc!_

 **Chapter 48: K-Class**

 _12 months ago, on King Kai's planet..._

As Yamcha and Chiaotzu took a break, enjoying a glass of iced tea alongside Bubbles and Gregory, King Kai was watching the only remaining student on his little planet. Tien was standing there, training as hard as he always had. King Kai had been observing this one for quite a while now, watching as he silently gained leaps and bounds over his fellow deceased warriors.

As the others monkied around over tea and cookies behind him, King Kai stepped up behind Tien and observed more closely. And what he observed gave the deity a genuine shock. "Wow...for a person born on the Earth to advance to such a level of Kaioken..."

Tien turned, his face dripping with sweat. King Kai pulled out a towel and gave it to Tien to wipe his face. King Kai stroked his chin. "What kind of human are you?

The warrior tossed the towel aside and went back to his training. A red aura covered his fist and he slammed it into the pile of bricks in front of him, sending a shockwave through the pile and shattering them. Tien took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "I am a martial artist. There are no barriers I cannot overcome with discipline and training..."

King Kai nodded with a smile. "That's the spirit! So... it looks like you're at about a Times Six right now. How much farther do you think you'll be able to go?"

Tien gripped his fist and focused. " _Kaioken..._ "

 _On Kami's Lookout..._

Tien shouted and a red aura exploded from his body. " _TIMES TWELVE!_ "

Salt and Mustard were both taken aback by this sudden surge in power. And seemingly, Chiaotzu was as well. The psychic warrior stared at his partner in awe. "T-Tien..."

Tien trembled as he brought his arms down to his sides, focusing his energy squarely into his core and taming it to his command. This was the max Kaioken he was able to reach after all of his training since coming back to life. But he knew that it still didn't compare to the like of Goku or his family. Beads of sweat trickled down Tien's face and evaporated into nothing. "Are you monsters ready to see what the people of Earth are truly capable of?"

Chiaotzu swallowed a lump in his throat and cried out. " _Kaioken Times Three!_ "

Salt and Mustard, both bulked up from the power of the Makyo Star, tried not to let their shock overwhelm them too much. Powered-up or not, these two were still merely human. The two Makyans shot each other a quick glance, and then they rushed forward at Tien and Chiaotzu.

Tien and Chiaotzu rushed back and the battle resumed in earnest. Chiaotzu was quickly overwhelmed by the force in front of him. In spite of his training, the warrior's strength paled in comparison to the other three. The sheer force of Mustard, Salt, and Tien exchanging blows sent him flying back. And this, unfortunately, left Tien outnumbered and in an unfair position. One which Mustard was all too happy to exploit. He raised his fist and the air and roared with vehement fury. " _RARRRGH!_ "

Mustard slammed his fist onto Tien's shoulder and the warrior briefly buckled to one knee. He retaliated with an elbow strike that sent Mustard flying back, but it was clear that that move had hurt Tien more. He gripped his shoulder and snarled to himself. It was definitely broken.

Tien stood, gripping his injured shoulder, and glared at Salt and Mustard. The two of them both had a triumphant smirk on their faces. But Tien wasn't done yet. "You broke my shoulder..."

The warrior cried out and two more arms erupted from his back. Tien waved his foes towards him. "Bring it on! Maybe my broken shoulder will give the two of you a chance to win this!"

Rather than let them charge, Tien was on the offensive this time. Kaioken power still surging, he tucked into the Makyans with a series of strikes that seemed to hit right on target. Mustard and Salt both snarled in pain as crane strike after crane strike sank into their pressure points. But even that was not enough.

Severely roused by Tien's rough treatment, the two of them came back with force. Tien was still managing hits, but the two of them were clawing into him with strikes of their own. And it was clear that they were quickly taking the lead on the damage quotient. Discouraged from his position on the sidelines, Chiaotzu gripped his fists tight. "Tien..."

And then his gazed harshened. "I won't let those two beat you, Tien! No matter what it might cost me!"

And with that, Chiaotzu charged back into the fray!

Not that Mustard or Salt could be bothered to notice. The larger of the two went for a strike with his claws, but was very quickly counter-attacked for his efforts. He snarled and clenched his teeth. "To hell with this!"

He leapt back and charged an attack in his hands. "Mustard Break!"

Salt chuckled and leapt back, charging an attack as well. "Salt Shower!"

Tien glared as the two attacks charged in front of him. He wasn't sure if he would survive being hit by both at once, but he knew that he would be severely damaged regardless. The warrior crossed his arms in front of his face for defense. Mustard and Salt both wickedly laughed. Mustard growled at Tien. "Enjoy Hell, human! Tell Ginger, Nikki, and Sansho that they're all washouts for me when ya see 'em!"

Tien braced himself. But, before either attack could launch off, interference came in from the side. Tien watched as, to his shock, Chiaotzu tackled Mustard off balance. Salt shouted. "Hey! Don't interfere with me and Mustard's fight, you punk!"

Salt tried to charge and strike Chiaotzu, but Tien was quick to intercept and send the imp flying with a kick. As he handled Salt, Chiaotzu struggled with Mustard. The larger Makyan was frustrated, prying at Chiaotzu as the shorter warrior stayed latched to his chest. "Get the hell off of me, runt!"

Tien turned to help his partner, but was stopped short by sudden mental contact. Chiaotzu's tone was quick, but calm. " _Don't worry about helping me, Tien!_ "

The warrior was confused as to what his partner was asking. " _But Chiaotzu, that guy is-_ "

Chiaotzu fired back. " _I know he's stronger than me! That's why I'm doing what I can! I'm using my powers to leech a bit of the energy from that Makyo Star thing off of him. And then I have one more little surprise that should weaken him enough for you to finish him with the Neo Tri-Beam!_ "

Tien flinched. " _N-No! You don't mean..._ "

Chiaotzu smiled as Mustard's fist smashed into his face. " _I've learned since the last time Tien. We'll take the enemy out this time! We won't die for no reason!_ "

Tien was unsure, but Chiaotzu gently reassured him. " _Just trust me and be ready, okay?_ "

After a moment, Tien nodded. " _Of course, my friend. I leave it to you. Just tell me when you're ready._ "

Chiaotzu nodded. And then, as Mustard rained another blow down upon him, he surprised the Makyan with his psychic barrier. Mustard's fist bounced back and he snarled. "What are you... _AGH! HOT!_ "

Chiaotzu smirked as his body began to heat up, the energy he was putting out searing against Mustard's flesh. Mustard growled in pain and frustration and shouted over to his partner. "Hey Salt! Are you just taking a nap over there?!"

Salt popped up from the rubble, his face creased with anger. "These damned humans!"

He held up his hands and charged another Salt shower. "Hold still and I'll blast him off of you!"

Mustard puffed out his chest, making sure that Chiaotzu was a clear target. "Hurry the hell up! It feels like this little creep is about to explode!"

Chiaotzu glanced over at Salt, watching as he charged his blast up to its full potential. He waited for the Makyans fingers to twitch, a sign that he was about to fire the blast. Once he saw that, Chiaotzu smirked. "Not this time."

And then, in a flash of light, Chiaotzu and Mustard disappeared. Salt flinched, genuinely confused. "Wh-What the h-"

And then, in another sudden flash, Mustard was suddenly right on top of Salt. Salt cried out in shock and confusion and Chiaotzu mischievously smiled. "Looks like this is about over~"

With a psychic push, the little warrior propelled Mustard into Salt's blast and the blast exploded onto both of the wicked Makyans. Chiaotzu propelled back and joined up with Tien. He hovered up, between Tien's arms, and put his hands into a familiar triangle position behind his partners as he started to charge.

The energy in Chiaotzu's hands and the energy in Tien's hands combined together into one massive, charged blast. Tien smiled. "Good plan Chiaotzu."

Chiaotzu nodded. "Thank you."

The smoke cleared around Salt and Mustard and the two of them both shakily stood. They were both damaged, and both quite angry. Mustard snarled. "I'm going to tear those-"

The sight before him cut the Makyan off. Tien and Chiaotzu were both hovering there, glowing with golden light and radiating with red aura. Tien's second set of hands joined his and Chiaotzu's already charged attack and added even more power to it. Fear froze Mustard and Salt in place. Tien smirked. "Get ready!"

Chiaotzu smiled. "Here we go!"

And then they both shouted in unison. " _TRIPLE SCOPE NEO TRI-BEAM!_ "

The massive blast propelled from Chiaotzu's hands to Tien's hands to Tien's other hands and then fired out towards Mustard and Salt. Salt screamed in fear, Mustard's pupils shrank, and then both were engulfed by the full breadth of the attack. Two pained screams echoed out from the golden light, but then quickly fell silent. The blast shot off into the distance and exploded, creating a massive void in the far-off black mist. Mustard and Salt were both defeated!

 _Over with Gine and Spice..._

Spice had his grip wrapped tightly around Gine's throat. The Saiyan woman struggled to break his grip as Spice mildly throttled her. The leader of the Spice Boys glared at the woman currently held in his grip and studied her face closely. "I swear...I have seen you somewhere before..."

Collapsed under Spice's boot, Yamcha shakily attempted to push himself back up. But Spice stomped him right back to the ground. Yamcha cursed himself. "D-Damn...this guy is on a whole 'nother level..."

Spice studied Gine's face intently, covering each individual detail of her face and thinking back hard. And finally, after a few moments, it came to him. "Oh! Oh my word...it's you! I remember you!"

Gine flinched back in horror, her eyes widening. It was as she had dreaded. This was, indeed, the same Makyan from way back then. The one from the incident that had originally turned her into the famed "Makyan Disgrace". Spice chuckled. "To think...a pathetic fool like you would manage to live for such a long time since that day..."

Yamcha clenched his teeth. With all of his might, he shoved himself up and got out from under Spice's foot. Yamcha leapt back, regaining his bearings, and then leapt forward again towards Spice. " _You leave her alone!_ "

Spice didn't even bother to look, holding out his hand and firing a blast that struck Yamcha dead center. The warrior went flying back and smashed into a pillar. Gine choked out from beneath Spice's grip on her throat. "Y-Yamcha..."

Her Makyan captor chuckled. "It has been quite the while, Madame K-Class. I see you've led a life of quiet shame since our last meeting~"

With a mighty heave, Spice threw Gine across the Lookout. She bounced like a rubber ball and eventually skidded to a stop in Mr. Popo's shrubbery. Spice marched towards her with purpose. "You have gained a bit of strength since our last encounter. But, unfortunately, so have I."

Yamcha's eyes shot open and he leapt up towards Spice once more. "I said leave Miss Gine alone!"

Spice smashed his fist into Yamcha's face and the former bandit fell in a heap onto the ground. "Gine? So... your name is Gine, is it?"

Fresh off of their battle, Tien and Chiaotzu tried to intervene. But Spice easily put the both of them onto the ground with a single kick each. "I'm happy that someone said it. In the back of my mind, I was always so upset with myself for never learning the name of you or that mongrel that came to save you. What was _his_ name?"

On the ground, Gine fearfully slid back. She...couldn't make herself face this anymore. She was terrified. Her heart was beating out of her chest as stressful tears built in her eyes. Spice chuckled. "Come now. I'm sure that whoever he was he's long gone, given that he is not here chaperoning you. Tell me his name."

Gine was still unable to speak. Spice's smile faded. "I said..."

Spice held out his hands and thin wires of red energy shot from them. They entangled Gine and began to radiate a red, electric aura. " _Tell me his name!_ "

Gine thrashed around on the ground, screaming in anguish. The sound of this brought a smile back onto Spice's face. " _Tell me, K-Class! Tell me now!_ "

 _Over with Gohan and Vinegar..._

Gohan and Krillin both rushed Vinegar together. Gohan kicked at the behemoth and Krillin threw a punch. But Vinegar was able to harshly rebuke both of their attempts. The two of them were both excellent warriors in their own rights, utilizing skill and technique to try and combat their more imposing foe, but Vinegar was a violent stonewall that refused to budge for them.

Vinegar chuckled. "Come on, little flies! Aren't you ever going to _try_ and hurt me?!"

Krillin sneered. "Bastard."

And then he leapt at Vinegar once more. As Vinegar and Krillin exchanged blow back and forth, Gohan charged a blast in each hand. He waited until he had a clear shot at Vinegar and then threw both at the titan. But the blasts harmlessly bounced off of the brute's skin. He turned to Gohan and chuckled. "I'm disappointed, boy! You blew my hand off earlier! Where's the spark at?!"

Vinegar raised his elbow into the air and smashed it into the back of Krillin head. Krillin bounced off of the Lookout floor with a gasp and then laid still. Vinegar laughed out loud. "That get your fire going, brat?!"

Gohan roared in fury. "Leave Krillin alone!"

He rushed at Vinegar, charging a blast in his hand, and fired it at the brute. The attack hit dead center into Vinegar's chest and sent him stumbling back. The smoke cleared and revealed a massive smile spread across the Makyans face. Vinegar touched his hand to the burn mark on his chest, as it started to heal, and laughed. "That was better! But still kinda weak! Try harder boy!"

Vinegar stomped on Krillin's right hand and the monk cried out. "I can do this all day!"

Gohan gripped his fists tight, glaring as Vinegar with enough anger to intimidate any lesser foe. Vinegar sneered back at him, looking extremely confident in what the result of this fight would be. Gohan summoned his power from deep within, ready to charge into the fray again, but then another pained scream echoed out and caught him off guard.

Gohan turned and looked across the Lookout to see a sight that pushed his anger over the edge. Spice was towering over his beloved Grandma Gine, torturing her with some sort of energy attack. Gine's piercing screams echoed out across the Lookout and Gohan immediately knew what he had to do. With Mr. Tien, Mr. Yamcha, and Mr. Chiaotzu down, and Mr. Piccolo nowhere in sight, Gohan had to go and support his grandmother himself. Abandoning his fight with Vinegar, the boy started his charge over to Spice. But Vinegar wouldn't allow that so easily.

In a flash, the brute appeared in front of Gohan and punched him to the ground. Gohan landed into a skid and glared at the wall between him and assisting his grandmother. Vinegar wagged his finger at Gohan. "Don't you know how rude it is to abandon a fight like that! Come on kid! We weren't done seeing how hard you could hit me!"

" _Destructo-Disc!_ "

The deadly energy disc came flying through the air right at Vinegar. He sneered and held his hand up, blasting the disc into pieces. He glared over at Krillin, the monk's broken hand twitching and bleeding, and snarled. "Ain't you dead yet?!"

Krillin charged at Vinegar. "Gohan! I've got this! You go and save-"

Once Krillin was in range, Vinegar busted the monk in the face with his knee. Krillin went flying and smashed into the side of Kami's Palace, busting through the wall and getting buried in rubble. Vinegar turned his attention back to Gohan. "See?! Ain't none of your other friends strong enough to dent me! So, I've got to rely on you! Come on boy, make this exciting for me! Hit me hard! I wanna real fight!"

Gohan was trembling, his eyes shadowed over. "Stop hurting my friends. And... _get out of my way!_ "

Vinegar chuckled. "If you want me outta your way, then hit me kid! Hit me as hard as you can!"

Gohan clenched his teeth. "As hard as I can, huh?"

Vinegar nodded. "Yeah! As hard as you ca-"

In an instant, Gohan cleared the space between himself and Vinegar and rocked the titanic Makyan with a clobbering blow to the face. Vinegar spun in the air as he flew back, feeling the strain on the muscles and bones in his neck. He laughed out loud as he landed. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

He looked up. "You nearly broke my neck with-"

Gohan was right on top of him, a massive Masenko charged above his head. Vinegar looked into Gohan's eyes, seeing a level of cold fury that he never expected. The brute felt a chill rise up his spine and he began to speak more gently. "Now let's hold on just a minute!"

Gohan threw his hands forward and pressed them right against Vinegar's face, and then he fired his blast. " _MASENKO!_ "

The massive blast engulfed all of Vinegar and instantly the brute knew he was finished. The energy attack shredded him away into nothing, burning his flesh and searing a crater beneath him where he stood. Vinegar screamed in anguish, and then a massive explosion erupted out and he died, reduced to nothing but ash by Gohan's boiling anger.

From the nearby rubble, Krillin watched this show of power in awe. "Holy cow..."

Gohan, meanwhile, could not care less about Vinegar. Instead, he continued on with his momentum, propelling across the Lookout like a bolt of lightning and delivering a massive kick to Spice's face. Spice went tumbling across the Lookout, crashing into a pillar and making it collapse and Gohan immediately went to check on his grandmother. " _Grandma Gine!_ "

It did not take long for Spice to recover. He stood and wiped blood from his busted lip with a sneer. "Damn it Vinegar! Can't you watch one-"

Spice turned to admonish his ally, but was shocked to see that, in addition to Ginger, Nikki, and Sansho, Mustard, Salt, and Vinegar had all vanished as well. Spice sneered. " _You must be kidding me..._ "

He turned back to see that, in front of him, the humans had all gathered around that woman. The younger Saiyan was frantically checking on her as the rest of them gathered up into one group. All of them stared at Spice with a clear intention on their faces, he was the last Makyan that they had to kill to win. Spice splayed his hands to his sides. "No, please. Come at me, fools!"

As Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu stared down Spice, Gohan cradled his injured grandmother. "Grandma Gine, please wake up..."

Gine's eyes cracked open. "G-Gohan?"

The pain and fear were still spread all over Gine's face. Gohan smiled down at her, gently reassuring her as best he could. "I don't know what's going on, Grandma. But...we're here. Okay? All us of, your friends and family. You aren't alone! We'll beat these guys and fix the Earth together~"

A small, sad smile spread across Gine's face. She shakily got to her feet and nodded. "O-Okay Gohan. Okay..."

Gine stood next to her grandson, behind her friends that she had made since coming to the Earth, but even with all of them supporting her, she still couldn't make herself look Spice directly in the eye. Regardless of that, the entire group took up fighting stances in preparation to finish off the leader of the Spice Boys.

Spice took an aggressive stance right back at them. "Do you lesser fools think that you can take me out? Even all together?!"

He snarled and lunged towards them. " _How dare you insult me like that?!_ "

"Now hold on Spice."

Spice instantly stopped, turning and staring into the entrance of Kami's Palace. "My King."

Garlic Junior's juvenile laughter echoed from the shadows. "To think, in my distraction you would go and lose the Spice Boys like that. Bad form, Spice, bad form."

Spice gripped his fists, his voice shaking in embarrassment. "F-Forgive me sir. I did not mean to bring shame upon the Garlic Family like this..."

Garlic Junior's hulking form stepped from the shadows, throwing the Earthlings off-guard with the radical change in appearance. "No! I'm not saying it's your fault, Spice. If the six of them were weak enough to die to these people, then they were not fit to serve me. We simply just have to replace them~"

Spice nodded. "I see your point, My King. And I wholeheartedly agree."

Garlic Junior chuckled. "Excellent. Well, in that regard, I have made the first steps in regard to finding suitable replacements~"

He motioned into the shadows. "Meet the first of our new allies~"

And what happened next shook each of the remaining Z-Fighters to their very core. As, to their shock, Garlic Junior's new ally stepped from the shadows. With eyes glowing pink and fangs salivating for blood, Piccolo the Makyan stepped forward.

Krillin trembled. " _N-No way..._ "

Tien growled to himself. " _Damn it..._ "

Gine, however, instantly fell into an even deeper panic than before. Her hands shook like leaves and tears welled up in her eyes. " _N-No... not again._ "

 _Years ago, on Planet Vegeta..._

Gine sighed as she stared into the mirror at her new armor, specifically at the new badge that adorned her chest. Handed down from a commanding officer, the Saiyan woman had been conscripted into a new type of unit for the latest invasion that King Cold had tasked the Saiyans in assisting: the invasion of Planet Makyo.

Gine had been taken into a new type of squad. One that she had never heard of before. For the sake of this invasion, she had been forced into joining a K-Class Squadron. Apparently, from what she had been told, because of her low power level.

K-Class Squadrons, she had been informed, were stealth units. Contingents of soldiers picked for their low power to sneak behind enemy lines for tasks such as intel gathering and planting of devices that would assist the Cold Force and Saiyan Empire in conquest.

Plain as she was, Gine was honored to have been noticed for anything. She was eager to prove that she was worth something to the Saiyan Race, to go out there and perform to the best of her capabilities. But...she couldn't help but feel a tinge of sadness at this reassignment. Gine produced a picture from the breastplate of her armor and traced her finger over each face in it. It was a picture of old Taro's retirement party. She looked at everyone in it: old Taro, Leek, Panbukin, Totepo, Toma, Fasha with her arm wrapped over Gine's shoulder and her lips pressed onto Gine's cheek... _and him, sitting in the background with a scowl on his face_.

Gine blushed as decidedly un-Saiyan-like thoughts entered her mind, but was quickly snapped out of it by a voice behind her. "Hey there new teamster!"

She turned and saw two other Saiyans approaching behind her, an older, chubby woman and a rather unimpressive-looking young guy. Gine smiled. "Hello there. P-Pleased to meet you..."

The chubby lady spoke in a grumpy voice. "Spara! Introduce yourself to a new face properly!"

She smiled at Gine. "Hello there, young'un. My name is Ayam. And this little ankle biter is Spara. What's your name?"

Gine folded the photo, putting it back into her armor. "G-Gine. My name is Gine."

 _Back in the present, on the Lookout..._

Gine was broken from her daze by the sudden crying out of one of her current allies. "No! _Tien!_ "

Gine flinched at what she saw. In her brief moment of distraction, the vampirized Piccolo had descended upon them, overpowering Tien and sinking his fangs into the warrior's neck. Tien sputtered, gasping in pain. But it didn't take long for those pained gasps to be replaced by a psychotic brand of laughter. Piccolo dropped Tien to the ground and he quickly got onto his feet, his broken shoulder healing back into place. Tien turned and glared at the others, his three eyes glowing pink and fangs displaying prominently in his toothy grin.

He was joined in his glowering at his former allies by and equally bloodthirsty-looking Piccolo. And then by a confidently grinning Spice.

Gine flinched back, retreating a few steps. "No..."

Piccolo and Tien both got into lunging position. Spice raised his finger and pointed at the remaining Z-Fighters. Gine stammered. "W-We have to..."

Spice smiled. " _Attack!_ "

Gine acted quickly, grabbing a surprised and confused Gohan by the wrist before turning tail and running the opposite direction. " _RUN! WE HAVE TO RUN!_ "

Gohan cried out in confusion and he was dragged. " _G-Grandma?!_ "

He tried to fight his way out of her grip. "S-Stop! We can't just abandon everyone like this!"

Gine couldn't hear Gohan over the sound of her own frantic heartbeat in her ears. At this particular moment, everyone else on the Earth were rendered secondary in her mind. She had to save Gohan!

Briefly, just briefly, Gine glanced back over her shoulder at the vampirized Tien and Piccolo, and then to the confused and shocked Krillin, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu. Tears flooded from Gine's eyes and she mentally apologized. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."

But then, in one smooth motion, she scooped the resisting Gohan off of the ground and tossed him over her shoulder before continuing her sprint towards the edge of the Lookout.

As they watched her flee, the remaining Z-Fighters all came to the same conclusion. In this case, in this hopeless scenario that they had found themselves in, Yamcha, Krillin, and Chiaotzu couldn't be mad at Gine for just running off like this. Yamcha took a deep breath and smiled. "Well guys..."

Krillin and Chiaotzu both looked up to their taller ally. Yamcha but on a brave smile. "Miss Gine's trying to keep her grandson safe. _Let's buy 'em some time to get out of here!_ "

Chiaotzu nodded. " _Right!_ "

Krillin smirked, clenching his broken hand. " _Hell yeah!_ "

The three humans turned to their former allies and Spice and all charged. The six warriors slammed into each other and began to fight. Chiaotzu tried to stall Tien with his psychic powers, Krillin shoulder-rammed into Piccolo's chest, and Yamcha smashed his fist into Spice's fist.

As these fights took place in front of him, Garlic Junior coldly stared across the Lookout at the fleeing Saiyans. He smiled a sadistic smile. "Piccolo! Is that boy on her shoulder the Saiyan-Human hybrid you informed me of?"

Piccolo cracked his fist across Krillin's face and sent the monk flying. "Yes Master! That's the one! He has so much potential as one of your servants!"

Garlic Junior chuckled. "Excellent~"

And then, leaving the three remaining humans to his thralls, Garlic Junior charged across the Lookout.

Gine didn't notice as the King of the Makyans charged up behind her, and as a result she absorbed a powerful punch to the back of the head. Gine's slammed face-first onto the ground and she and Gohan both went skidding across the Lookout floor, stopping just short of both of them tumbling over the edge.

Garlic Junior landed before both of them with a massive stomp, shattering the stone beneath his feet. Gine slowly got back to her feet, woozy and with a bloody nose, and glared at her latest attacker. "Wh-Why?! Why can't you Makyans just...just leave us alone? What did we do to deserve this?!"

The imp chuckled. "You personally? Not a thing. I have no idea whom any of you cretins are. But, unfortunately...you and that boy both have a _particular feature_ jutting from your backsides that I just cannot ignore..."

He held out his hand. "But, if I may ask, why not just join us? It's a nearly painless transformation. And you get to join the most powerful empire this Universe will ever know! You... _and that powerful brat behind you_...could become immortal Gods of this pathetic universe alongside me as we go and annihilate that bastard King Cold and his miserable Saiyans together!"

Gine was shaking, fear instilled into every fiber of her being, but her eyes steeled at the hulking brute in front of her. "You...you won't touch him! I won't let you! Y-You hear me?!"

Gine shook her head, her voice cracking and sounding utterly frantic. " _I'll n-never let you take my grandson!_ "

Garlic Junior sighed and shrugged, a confident smirk on his face. "I am afraid... _you don't really have a choice~_ "

The psychotic Makyan shrieked, charging at Gine once more. Gine tensed up, gritting her teeth, and shouted back in defiance. " _KAIOKEN TIMES TWENTY!_ "

The red flames of Gine's aura erupted around her and she charged into her foe. To her surprise and horror, Garlic Junior was able to rather easily smack her to the ground. But, that did not deter Gine. She stood back up, a piece of one of her chipped teeth falling from her mouth, and attacked again. Garlic Junior growled in frustration and delivered a shattering blow to the stomach.

As Gine buckled over, Garlic Junior started to approach the still prone Gohan, but Gine was on him again. She tackled into his legs, trying and failing to knock him over. Garlic Junior snarled. " _You're starting to annoy me, woman!_ "

Garlic picked up Gine by the sleeve of her qipao, but Gine responded with a sharp kick to the Makyan's jaw. Garlic stumbled back and Gine began to charge and energy blast. "Mother's Bla-"

Garlic Junior's hand shot forward and plunged into Gine's blast, breaking through and wrapping tightly around her throat. Gine choked, gagging in pain as Garlic forced her to the ground and started to throttle her. "I have decided! You are not welcome into my empire, wretch! _You die for daring to annoy me!_ "

Gine desperately fought back, prying at Garlic's fingers with all of her strength. But, to her horror, they didn't budge. Was...this really going to be it? Gine's struggling slowly began to fade, her eyes rolling back. Was this how she was going to die? Strangled to death in a failed attempt to protect her grandson? What would that make her? What would her family and friend think of her in the afterlife? What would... _he_ think of her?

But, just as Gine began to black out, an attack shot forward that saved her life. Her vision was so blurred that she could barely make out what it was, but a purple bolt of energy shot through the air, crashing through Garlic Junior's surprised face and accompanied by a mighty cry. " _SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

Garlic Junior's massive body crashed backwards and Gine could suddenly breathe again. She looked up, her vision clearing just a bit, and saw the worry-stricken face of her beloved grandson. Gine opened her mouth, managing to croak his name. "G-Gohan..."

Gohan, once again, gently cradled his grandmother in his arms. In spite of her fear and trepidation holding her back, she still tried to defend him. The boy looked up from his broken grandmother to his friends in the distance. In spite of their best efforts, Krillin and Chiaotzu and Yamcha had all fallen, each of them struggling as a pair of fangs sank into their necks. As much as he hated to admit it, his grandmother had had a point. Retreat was the only option they had right now.

Gohan picked up Gine. "It's okay Grandma, I'll get us out of here."

The boy, carrying his grandmother, ran to the edge of the Lookout and leaped over the side. He didn't know where they would end up hiding, but they would find somewhere to regroup.

However, as they started to descend, a hand came shooting out and grabbed Gohan by his ankle. The sudden stop nearly sent Gine flying, but Gohan just barely managed to snag her hand. The two of them dangled there, off of the side of the highest point on Earth, over the sheer oblivion beneath them.

Gohan craned his head back to see what had snagged his foot. And to his horror he saw the still healing Garlic Junior. The Makyan chuckled. "You really are as strong as Piccolo said you were. That's good! I can use that~"

Garlic Junior hoisted Gohan back up, still dangling him over the edge. The sudden jerk nearly made Gine's grip fall loose, but she held on tight. She was badly injured, unable to concentrate enough to even fly. Garlic Junior glared down at her and mocked her. "Poor Saiyan woman! You had to have realized that this was inevitable! Your race and King Cold will pay! You will pay for every transgression that you have committed! You Saiyans in particular will pay for your King's part in helping King Cold extinguish my father's life!"

Garlic laughed. " _First Planet Vegeta! Then Planet Cold! The Revenge of Planet Makyo is nigh!_ "

Gine wanted to shut him up. She wanted to leap into his face, grab him by the ear, and scream as loud as she could that the Saiyan Race was gone, that he was fighting for nothing. But she didn't have the strength for that. She glared at Garlic Junior and choked out one meager sentence. "I won't let you have my grandson..."

Garlic Junior's face twisted from psychotic smirk to psychotic sneer. He shouted at the top of his lungs at Gine. " _THEN I WILL TAKE HIM!_ "

And then, raising his foot high into the air, Garlic Junior stomped down. He slammed the bottom of his boot into Gine's jaw and her grip slipped. Gohan cried out in horror, he and his grandmother locking eyes, as she plummeted down and disappearing into the roiling black mist.

Garlic Junior chuckled, holding up Gohan like a freshly caught fish. He looked back towards Spice and his new servants, the vampirized Z-Fighters, and tossed Gohan towards them. "Do me a favor, boys! Beat the fight out of this one~!"

Gohan was barely able to get to his feet as Krillin, Yamcha, Chiaotzu, Tien, and Piccolo descended upon him. As that fight began, Garlic Junior walked up to Spice and smiled wide. Spice smiled back. "Excellent acquisition, My King."

Garlic Junior nodded. "Thank you, Spice. Now, I have a separate task for you."

Spice nodded. "Sire?"

Garlic Junior pointed to the edge of the Lookout. "That woman. If she survives that fall, she'll be in no condition to resist. But I would rather not take the chance. Find her and return with her head."

Spice chuckled and began to walk toward the edge. "Just her head, sire?"

Garlic Junior shrugged. "That depends on how brutal you wish to be. I just request that you kill her and find the recently stolen Dragon Balls. Otherwise, have your fun with her Spice~"

Spice smirked as he leapt over the side. " _Gladly._ "

With Gohan being beaten by his former allies and Gine being hunted by Spice, Garlic Junior retired back into Kami's Palace. He sat in the throne and held up the Four-Star Ball. He looked at it, next to the blood-red tinted sky and the hauntingly red light. "Yes...our revenge is nigh, Father~"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	49. Chapter 49: Birth of the Makyan Disgrace

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: I hope you all enjoy this one. This chapter was my main reason to not just skip the Garlic Junior Saga. Please leave a review to let me know what you think~_

 **Chapter 49: Birth of the Makyan Disgrace**

 _In an unknown location..._

Gine woke up wreathed in pain. The Saiyan woman sat up, with serious effort, and tried to get her bearings. The last thing she remembered, before blacking out, was the feeling of Garlic Junior's boot on her face and the look of horror in Gohan's eyes. At that thought, Gine flinched in shock. "Gohan!"

She tried to stand up, but instantly fell onto her face. Jolts of intense agony ran up and down Gine's body as she laid face down on the ground. She was hurt bad. As she tried to push herself up, knowing that Gohan needed her, Gine was suddenly spoken to by an unseen presence. "You should calm down, you'll only make ya injuries worse."

Gine jerked her attention towards the voice and came upon an unusual sight, a talking cat. She shakily spoke at the adorable, but wise-looking creature. "Wh-Who are you?"

The cat smiled. "My name is Korin. I'm the hermit that lives below Kami's Lookout."

Gine nodded. "R-Right. I remember...everyone was worried about you when we first arrived. They were afraid that the Blackwater Mist might have claimed you as well..."

Korin chuckled. "Nah. When I first saw that mist raining down from the heavens, I knew that I had to escape just in case you guys weren't able to stop the demons up above. Someone had to be awake to tell Goku what was up when he returned to the Earth. So, I came in here, where the mist had no chance of turning me."

Gine flinched. "You...know my son?"

Korin nodded. "Of course, I do. I trained him a while ago. He's surpassed my teaching by a lot since then. One of the pupils that I'm prouder of, the more I think about him."

Gine looked around where she and this cat were, taking in the dank, dark cave around them. "Wh-What makes this place so safe from the Blackwater Mist? It doesn't look like anything more than a cave..."

Korin smiled. "I can show you why. Why don't you follow me?"

Gine nodded and tried to stand up again, feeling more jolting pain through her entire body and then falling again. Korin walked up to her. "Yeah, that figures. You fell a pretty long way. Here!"

Korin held out his staff, offering it to Gine for use as a crutch. She took it with a thankful nod and leaned her broken weight onto it. She and Korin walked deeper into the cave and Korin spoke to himself. "It's a shame. I went to grab some Senzu Beans, just in case, but Yajirobe was turned before I could get any. Now, that oaf wouldn't normally be a problem for me to handle, but the mist seems to give supernatural boosts to any of the things it infects. Heck, if it weren't for my own years of training and conditioning, it might've turned me too..."

Gine was only half-listening as Korin spoke, focusing on both her own trouble walking and the ever-increasing lighting within this cave. It filled her with curiosity as the deeper they walked in, the brighter it seemed to get. As they walked down an old set of rickety, wooden stairs, Gine spoke up. "Just what kind of cave is this?"

Korin smiled as they made it to the bottom of the stairs, and Gine herself was left staring in awe. Expanding out before them, glowing with a holy blue light and giving an air of peace and security, was a massive spring. Korin chuckled and swiped his staff back. Gine nearly buckled over, but was saved from faceplanting by Mr. Popo. Korin walked up to the edge of the water, next to a kneeling Kami, and motioned to the water. "Welcome to the Hermit Spring!"

Gine and Mr. Popo both walked up to the edge of the water as well, Gine cringing as she was helped to the ground. She looked to Korin, and then over to Kami next to her. "Wh-What is he doing?"

Korin pointed to the water. "The Hermit Spring is a place of reflection and clarity. Those seeking answers in their lives can come here and gaze into the depths of the water to find answers to the challenges they face in life. Kami's spirit was troubled, and there isn't much else he can do at the moment, so I encouraged him to have a gaze and see if he can find some answers he's been seeking for so long."

Gine nodded. "I... see..."

Korin continued. "Goku came here long ago as well. As part of his training for the fight with King Piccolo. He stared into the waters and that allowed him to come to terms with Krillin's death and prepare for his final fight with the Demon King."

The wise, old cat picked up a pawful of water and tossed it into the air. It sparkled with the beauty of the finest jewels. "This spring is too pure for something like that mist to affect it. It is a safe place from such wicked forces."

He turned his attention to Gine. "And you, ma'am, are in the same position as Kami right now. If you try to go back up there and fight those monsters in your current state, they'll kill you."

Gine gripped her fists tight. "But what else am I supposed to do?!"

Korin held up a calming hand. "Your spirit is weighed down by sins from the past. Intense guilt that you've held onto for the longest time. Perhaps, if you were to face this guilt head-on, you might be able to overcome it and draw even greater strength."

Gine glanced away from Korin and down into her own bruised reflection in the water. "Face it head-on?"

Korin nodded, dipping the tip of his staff into the water and causing ripples on the surface. "Face it head-on. Reflect. Look into your past and use that to decide your future."

Gine stared at her reflection and, slowly, she began to sink into it. Descending further and further, into the recesses of her own mind. All at once, Gine went back to the time so many years ago...

 _Years ago, on Planet Makyo..._

Gnarled branches snapped and cracked under the feet of Gine and her new squadmates. Together, she and Ayam and Spara had been hiking through the dark forests of Planet Makyo to make it to their destination. A dangerous, black fog covered the ground of the Makyan landscape, necessitating that Gine and her weaker teammates all wear protective masks to avoid falling under the influence of it.

The goal of this mission had been laid out plain for them before they were sent off from the main battlefront: they were to find an encampment that was used by the Makyan Kingdom to guard the royal castle of King Garlic and lay a tracker in it for the Saiyan Dropships to target and destroy. It was a simple stealth mission, one befitting three weaklings such as themselves.

After such a long walk, they soon came upon their target. It was a massive tower that stood before them, hundreds of stories tall and black as pitch. It blended in seamlessly with the black and red Makyan skyline. A perfect ambush on any ships that might try to invade to deeply into the planet. Gine stared up at the tower, feeling quite intimidated by it all. "We just have to find a way to break in, right?"

Ayam was equally intimidated, although one couldn't tell by the forced confident look on her chubby, old face. "Y-Yeah. It shouldn't be too hard, right Spara?"

Spara, unlike his female peers, was quite peppy in the face of danger. "No sweat! I was shown some diagrams of towers like this by one of the commanders. They all have access vents around them for the discharge of heat from the defense systems. We could sneak in through one of those and be safe, so long as the weapon itself doesn't fire."

Gine nodded. "Okay. Sounds like a plan. Let's find one of those, do our job, and get out of this creepy place..."

After some searching, the three low-class Saiyans came across the vent they were looking for. The ground around it was scorched, likely from all of the heat that Spara had mentioned. It took the young man only a couple of minutes to pry the grate loose. Once he did, he turned to his peers with a satisfied smile. "Okay ladies! Let's head in!"

Ayam and Gine both had a chuckle at the boy's eagerness. They both stepped into the vent and Spara followed, putting the grate loosely back in place to avoid suspicion. All seemed to be going off without a hitch. But, unfortunately for the three Saiyans, none of them noticed the lesser Makyan perched on a structure directly above them.

 _Within the Makyan Tower..._

It was hard to be quiet while crawling through the cramped vents of the Makyan Tower, but Gine, Ayam, and Spara were trying their best. The three of them were all awkward and clumsy in their own special ways, but they eventually came upon another grate to exit their tight passage.

The grate was softly set to the side by Spara and the three of them crawled out into a pitch-black hallway. Ayam shivered at the sheer darkness surrounding them. "Geez. Don't these Makyans ever get sick of being surrounded by darkness?"

Gine shook her head. "Well, they are vampires. So..."

Spara put the grate back in place and then started digging into his bag. "Well, luckily I brought along some cures for that darkness~"

He handed Ayam and Gine each a small case. They opened them and found a small eye piece and a small earpiece. After putting them both on, the two women were surprised to see that a lot of the inky blackness had been cleared up. Spara smiled. "A night-vision spyglass and an inner-ear communicator! That way we can split up and search for the control room for this place and maintain a clear line of communication!"

Gine smiled sweetly. "Good thinking Spara!"

Ayam smiled. "Yeah, I have to admit it. That was a smart move, kid."

Spara chuckled. "Th-Thanks guys~"

He sighed. "Okay then. Now, I think we should leave the tracking beacon with the strongest of us. So, we'll leave it with you Gine."

Gine blushed. "Oh! W-Wow... _I'm the strongest?_ "

Ayam and Spara both nodded. Gine looked genuinely stunned. "I... have never heard someone say that about me before..."

Spara handed the beacon to Gine and she strapped it onto her back. Once that was done, each of the Saiyans picked a hallway and nodded to one another. It was time to get searching for that control room.

The hallways stretched on and on, seemingly infinitely, as the three of them undertook their search. Massive, dark expanses of nothing but empty hallway. The longer they went along, the more nervous the three of them seemed to get. It got to the point where Gine could hear Spara's heavy, fearful breathing in her ear before she quietly spoke up. "Perhaps...some light conversation would help steady everyone's nerves?"

Silence at first, but then Ayam spoke up. "Conversation? Wh-What are we supposed to talk about in this situation?"

Gine responded back. "I-I don't know what we could talk about..."

Spara spoke up. "We could...talk about our lives on Planet Vegeta. Just as, ya know, a way to get our minds off of how overwhelmingly creepy this place is..."

Another long silence. But then, Ayam spoke up again. "W-Well...I've never been the strongest Saiyan in the army. B-But my son is. He's grown into a fine mid-class warrior, despite coming from two low-classes. We...barely get to talk anymore, because he's so busy and so high up the food chain nowadays..."

Gine and Spara could hear her smile. "But I hope he knows how proud I am of him. Even if I'm always seen as trash by the upper crust of society... _even if he's started to see me the same way_...he's honored me by becoming such a great warrior..."

Spara chuckled. "That's so sweet, Miss Ayam."

Ayam snorted. "Hmmph. And just what do you have back home, Spara?"

Spara smiled. "Well...my Dad is a mid-class just like your son is. He's served with some of the best. I actually think he's on General Nappa's ship right now..."

His voice shifted to a somewhat downtrodden tone. "He seemed disappointed when my power level turned out as low as it did. But he never kicked me out of our home. So, as thanks for that, I want to do what I can to maintain the pride of our family name. I... I might be weak, but I will do what I can for the sake of honoring our bloodline."

As Ayam and Spara chatted back and forth, Gine remained silent. She was silently kicking herself for bringing up the topic of conversation in the first place, not thinking ahead to see that it might lead here. Truth be told, Gine didn't have much in the way of a home life, at least not in the same way that Ayam and Spara seemed to. She was born of a somewhat massive, mid-class litter. And she was the one runt out of all of them. It didn't take long for her to be put out on the street by her much more powerful siblings.

She barely even remembered any of her family's names. She couldn't recall her mother's face if you paid her to. The only detail she remembered was that her father's name was Oyon. And even then, other than a small act of kindness towards her, helping her enlist into the army in the first place, Gine could barely remember him. Ayam spoke up into the chat. "So Gine, what are you here fighting for?"

Gine was given pause by this question. Thinking hard, she came up with an answer that a certain person she knew would give. "M-Myself, of course! I don't have time for hang ups with home life or any of that sh-shit... _I fight for me!_ "

Another brief silence, but then Ayam and Spara both started to praise her over the mic. It was wonderful, in their eyes, that a weak soldier like Gine still had the dignity to seek her own honor, even in the face of inherent weakness!

As the praised Gine for being such a noble warrior, however, the Saiyan woman's face burned red. She couldn't share with them the real reason she kept going. It was so un-Saiyan-like that they would surely mock her for it. As the two of them continued to quietly chat to themselves, Gine thought back to her friends. Specifically, she thought of Fasha... _and Bardock_.

 _The Makyan battlefront..._

Bardock and the rest of his crew were resting in a clearing after they're latest battle. Panbukin had already popped open three cans of indiscriminate meat and flushed them down his gullet. Toma, sitting next to a fire, snapped at him. "Hey! I get that you're _wasting away_ over there, bud, but try not to eat all of the rations. Okay?!"

Panbukin flipped him off and popped open a fourth can. "Why don'tcha eat that, Toma?"

Toma smirked and tackled him off of the log. "Flip me off, will you?!"

As the two of them wrestled on the ground, Toma quickly gaining the advantage, Leek was patching up a fresh set of gashes on Totepo's balding head. "Yeah, sorry Totepo. That's definitely going to leave a pretty nasty scar."

Totepo grunted and shrugged. Bardock, meanwhile, was sat on a high tree branch, overlooking his crew. After Toma and Panbukin finished their wrestling match, the two of them got back to preparing a proper meal for the rest of the crew, none of them having had a bite for the last day and a half. He looked from those two, to Leek and Totepo, and then off in the distance to Fasha. She had been sent to refill canteens from a nearby river, but Bardock could plainly see that she was just standing there lost in her own thoughts. He leapt down from his spot on the tree and walked over to see what the issue was.

After a bit of walking, Bardock made it over to Fasha. "Something wrong?"

Fasha was snapped back into attention. She looked at Bardock, a blush on her face, and shook her head. "N-No. It's nothing. I'm just..."

Bardock sighed and sat on a nearby tree root. "Look. Reassignments happen. That's life. She'll survive and, once this war with these damned vampires is over, we'll request that she be reassigned back to us."

Fasha knelt down, going back to her task of filling the canteens. "I'm just worried about her, Bardock. Gine's a softy. I don't want something to happen to her and we not be around to do something about it..."

Bardock smirked. "Aww! Fasha's worried about her side-girlfriend. If you keep acting like this, Toma's gonna get jealous!"

Fasha snapped at Bardock. " _Cut the crap!_ I'm not the only person here who has _that type of relationship_ with Gine. You and her are together a whole hell of a lot more than she and I are. Are you really going to sit there and tell me that you aren't at least a little worried?"

Bardock was silent. Fasha sneered at him. "When she and I... _got together_...before our deployment, she told me that you wouldn't even act like your relationship meant something. And..."

Fasha crumpled a canteen tight in her grip. "You can't just do that to people Bardock. You can't just act like it doesn't mean anything. Especially with someone like her."

Bardock grunted. "Okay. Too far. Back it up."

He and Fasha glared at each other. Bardock spoke bluntly. "I don't have time for sentimental crap, Fasha. Especially not before we're shipped out for an invasion. We have a war to fight, battles to win... _we have priorities, Fasha!_ "

Fasha glared at him. "You don't sound too sure. That silent pause speaks volumes, Bardock."

Bardock was stone-faced. "You're reading too much into things."

On the inside, however, Bardock's opinion was quite the opposite. Deep down, he didn't disagree with Fasha. He was worried for Gine, if just a bit. But he had priorities to focus on as the leader of the group. Everyone had told him that Gine was part of a stealth squad for this deployment, a specifically non-combatant unit. She would be fine, as long as she did her job properly. Bardock had to focus on more important matters, making sure that he and Toma and Fasha and Panbukin and Totepo and Leek all made it home alive.

Bardock stood. "Hurry up and finish and then come and get something to eat. We'll just say that that canteen you destroyed was mine and you'll be sharing with me for the rest of the deployment."

He started to walk away and Fasha's glare went from him and back down to the stream. " _Asshole._ "

Bardock continued to walk away, listening as Fasha mumbled to herself. "But, maybe he's right. Gine is in a _K-Squad_ and they don't fight, so maybe my priorities shouldn't be focused on her right now..."

That little detail that she let slip, however, caught Bardock's attention. He turned on his heel and ran back to Fasha, grabbing her by the armor strap and turning her to face him. " _She's in a what?!_ "

 _Back at the Tower..._

Gine continued to remain mum, slowly making her way down the dark hallways of the Makyan Tower as Ayam and Spara continued their conversation. She didn't want to cut them off or force them to worry, but it was becoming increasingly clear to her that they were lost, trapped in the labyrinthine structures of this hellish place.

As she listened to Ayam and Spara talk, it reminded her of her old crew. How Panbukin and Toma would argue, how Toma and Fasha would flirt, how Fasha would flirt with her to get Toma's attention, how flustered Leek would get and how Totepo would never chime in with more than a grunt...and her thoughts seemed to revolve around Bardock's snarky contributions to the conversation. He was everything that the others said about him, "prick, asshole, dick, jerk, etc.", but Gine had always valued what Bardock was underneath all of that. She knew that he cared...but their conversation before this deployment had cast some doubt on this otherwise implicit knowledge. Gine's mind sank into these thoughts, about that last conversation that she and he had, and it made her stomach ache in a way that she had never felt before.

Gine stopped moving, pressing her hand onto her stomach as she thought back to that conversation from two weeks ago. She closed her eyes and fought back the urge to vomit...but was soon snapped out of that by a sharp yelp in her ear. "Wh-What's going on?"

A sharp crack and static followed and Gine shouted. "H-Hello? What happened?!"

Spara answered, sounding positively frantic. "Miss Ayam! Are you there?! Miss Ayam, please respond!"

Gine could hear that Spara's voice was becoming frantic. She tried to ease him. "Now, Spara, just stay calm. It's probably just interference. Ayam is probably fine."

Spara stammered back. "A-Are you s-sure? We're in the middle of an enemy base and-"

Gine cut him off. "No! Don't start thinking the worst! Just stay calm. Just stay calm and we'll try to think of something."

Spara was breathing heavy. "O-Okay. I-I-"

The sound of crashing metal rang through the ear piece and Spara's stammering voice broke into a full-on fearful scream. " _MISS GINE! MISS AYAM! DAD! SOMEONE HELP ME!_ "

The sound of dragging followed by static. And then, Gine was all alone. Gine was starting to panic. She ripped the buzzing device from her ear and roughly ran her fingers through her hair. "No. This isn't happening. This can't be happening!"

She didn't realize right away, but Gine was sprinting at this point. Sprinting down that endless hallway, terrified at the increasing horror of realizing she was all alone. She didn't know what to do. Blindly, Gine rounded the corner as her train of thought ran a mile a minute.

She was so distracted, that she ran into something solid without realizing it was there. Gine fell back onto her back and groaned. As she laid there, another voice suddenly spoke up. "Pardon me, are you lost perhaps?"

Gine flinched. "Wh-Who...?"

He stepped into view, a tall, pale-skinned man with a massive shock of snowy white hair. She wickedly grinned down at her. "Forgive me. My name...is Spice. And you, ma'am, will be coming with me."

 _Back in the present..._

The muck of the damp ground squished beneath Spice's boots as he stepped up to the wooden gate blocking off entrance to what seemed to be a cave. He looked down to the ground and smile at what he saw, a trail of red mixed into the grey muck beneath his feet. He picked up a handful of it and sniffed at the blood, recognizing the scent. "So, she fled into this cave..."

Spice held out his hand and blasted the doors down, chuckling as the burning and splintered wood landed at his feet. "It is time to finally end all of this..."

 _Up on the Lookout..._

Garlic Junior sat in his stolen throne, a wicked smile spread across his face, as his thralls dragged in his latest interest. Gohan, beaten and battered and semi-conscious, was held tightly, dragged by the wrists, by Yamcha and Krillin.

He had put up more of a fight than anyone had expected, going on and on despite all of his allies piling atop him. But, even the mightiest of warriors eventually falls to fatigue. Gohan was tossed to the ground motionless, fading in and out of consciousness. Garlic Junior chuckled. "Excellent~"

The Makyan King stood from his seat and marched up to Gohan. "Now, he shall be converted as well. But his process shall be much harsher than any of yours was."

Garlic Junior glowered over the boy. "He shall be turned into a Royal Makyan. And then, once my conquest has concluded, he shall be raised as a successor to my lineage! A hybrid of Saiyan and Makyan ancestry! _AND THE SAIYAN RACE SHALL ROT IN HELL WITH THE SHAME THAT THEY'RE LEGAC SERVES AS THE HEAD OF THE VERY EMPIRE THAT DESTROYED THEM!_ "

Standing to the side with the others, and applauding his Master's theatrics, Yamcha posed a question. "But, sire, what of the other Saiyan filth?"

Garlic Junior waved him off. "That is not an issue. Either that woman is dead or Spice is going to make her so. And when he returns with her head..."

The brat snickered to himself. " _We shall display it on the end of a pike~_ "

This little tidbit did not sit well with Gohan. On the ground, consciousness rapidly fading from his injuries, the boy's body seemed to move on instinct. Gohan's eyes went blank and he leapt from the ground with a roar. He drew his fist back and, with a briefly flash of gold streaking across his hair, he sent Garlic Junior flying back with a heavy punch.

The Makyan King slammed into Kami's throne and smashed through it with a yelp. Gohan was furious. His body was surrounded by a golden glow. He held his hand forward and started to charge a blast with enough power to give Garlic Junior pause. But, luckily for the Makyan, Piccolo stepped in.

In a swift motion, the Namekian slammed his foot into Gohan's stomach and the boy buckled over, totally unconscious. Garlic Junior shakily stood as Piccolo stomped his foot onto Gohan's back. The Makyan King snarled to himself as he glared down at the boy. "What the hell was that?!"

 _Back in the past..._

Gine snarled and grunted as she fought against her new bonds. She glanced over from her spot, shackled in the corner of the control room of the Makyan Tower. Spice had taken her fairly easily, his much greater strength allowing him to incapacitate Gine without damaging her, and locked her hands into the Makyan bloodsteel manacles above her head.

Gine was seemingly frustrated, her current power level being too low to actually break the restraints. But she was merely putting on an act. While the manacles were too sturdy for her to shatter by herself, Gine's time spent with a group made up solely of former street punks and hoodlums had served to teach her that there was more than one way to break out of a pair of handcuffs. Bardock, Fasha, Toma, Panbukin, and Totepo had spent a good deal of time making sure that she and Leek were accurately prepared to deal with such inconveniences.

As she put on a show of futile struggling, while secret prying away at the bolts keeping her chains attached to the wall, Spice stood on the opposite end of the room fiddling with the tracking beacon that he had confiscated when he captured Gine.

Spice traced his fingers over the outer shell of the device and eventually deployed the antenna. "Him...I see. A transmitter of some kind perhaps?"

The Makyan continued to mettle, slowly making progress in figuring out what the device was. He was certainly smart enough to work it out with enough time and some finicking. Rolling his eyes at the sounds of her struggles, Spice turned to Gine. He spoke in a joking tone. "Perhaps you might be willing to save me some time and explain what this device is?"

Gine clenched her teeth. She dug deep down, trying to think of what any of her comrades would say in this situation. Eventually, she settled for a Panbukin Classic. "Uh...eat...shit? Y-Yeah! _Eat sh-shit!_ "

Spice laughed out loud at the sheer level of awkward discomfort in Gine's voice. "I take it you do not order people to 'eat shit' that often? That's fine. I will happily discern the purpose of this device on my own~"

As he looked away from her to continue, Gine went back to prying at the bolts. As she did that, she though back to the instructions that she, Ayam, and Spara had been given for operating that device. The console that Spice was holding was a standard tracking beacon. The activation, as they had been informed, was as simple as deploying the antenna and flicking the switch to turn it on. Once that was done, it would transmit a signal that would inform ships of the greater Saiyan fleet where to enter the atmosphere at. This would allow the Saiyan Elite to perform a counterattack.

Gine knew that this counterattack would involve some form of aerial assault. And she knew, very well, that she had no desire to be in this tower once that started. So, she focused even harder on the bolt holding the chain between her wrists to the wall. She might have to run with her hands restrained, but that didn't matter. Once Spice fumbled his way into activating the device, and it sounded off with that horrific, piercing noise it made, Gine would make her move. She would flee in the confusion, find Spara and Ayam, and then escape as quickly as possible.

Gine smirked as she pulled the bolt loose, positioning her thumbs and wrists to make sure the chain stayed upright. Now she just had to wait.

But she didn't have to wait long. Almost immediately after she had worked herself free, Spice did what Gine was waiting for. He ran his finger over the switch, turned it on, and was shocked at the sudden, ear-piercing screech the device started sounding out.

Spice clamped his hands over his ears and hissed in frustration, giving Gine her opening. She jerked her arms down in front of her and went running towards the nearest door. Gine smirked to herself, she was going to make it! But then, to her chagrin, a pale hand shot down in front of her, grabbing the chain between her shackles, and hauling her into the air.

Gine struggled and kicked as she was lifted off the ground, coming face-to-face with Spice. He smiled. "Are we going somewhere?"

He dropped her to the ground, quickly binding her even more securely in energy strings, before picking her up again and carrying her back over the tracking beacon, sitting in the controls to the Tower itself. Gine cringed as jolts of Spice's energy ran through her body. Spice looked down that the shrieking device, watching as a meter on the side slowly filled up with red light. "I see now. You...are a _K-Class soldier_? We were informed about you by our spies within the Saiyan and Cold armies..."

Gine flinched at Spice's apparent knowledge. But she tried her best to disguise how he had managed to unnerve her. Spice chuckled. "You are quite the coward, no? Allowing someone else to activate your device and then fleeing? How amusing~"

Gine grunted at him. "Th-That doesn't matter in the least! The signal has been sent! The Saiyan army is already coming! And when they arrive, this place is as good as gone! So, why don't you just run off before they show up and you die?"

Spice smiled. "Madame K-Class, I am well aware that the signal has been sent. But I assure you, this Tower is going nowhere."

He reached down and shut off the switch to the tracking beacon, just before the meter on the side had completely filled up. "You see? The threat is now disabled. You have failed."

Gine was bewildered by what he meant, her face radiating genuine confusion. Spice stared at her. "What is that look about?"

She cocked her head. "How have I failed? The Saiyan army still got the signal. They are going to come and destroy this Tower..."

Spice looked perplexed. "What is your position in the Saiyan army?"

Gine spoke genuinely. "I'm...normally a soldier. But I was but into this squad as a recon scout because they assumed you would not be able to sense my low power level."

Spice was stunned silent. This long, pregnant silence lasted for a few minutes. But then, to Gine's shock and confusion, he began to laugh. That small laugh soon became bigger and louder until Spice's voice was echoing off of the walls. Gine cringed as another jolt of energy shocked her from the energy strings. "Wh-What's so funny?!"

The Makyan sighed, wiping a tear from his eye. "Oh, dear Madame K-Class...you seem confused, so allow me to educate you..."

He set her down onto a clear spot of the control panel, getting close to her face to make sure she could hear him clearly. "You are a K-Class soldier within the Saiyan Army. Perhaps, do you not know what the 'K' in K-Class stands for?"

Gine flinched. "Wh-What does it-"

Spice answered, amusement in his voice. "Kamikaze. You are a Kamikaze Class, K-Class for short. You are not a scout, nor reconnaissance. _You are a suicide bomber_. That device on your back is a high-powered explosive. And you...are you really unaware of what your role here is?!"

The silence and horror on Gine's face seem to confirm that this was indeed the case.

Spice looked away from her to the bomb on the console, smacking it away and letting it crash to the floor. "The Saiyan army is composed of little more than baffling fools. Who would make a bomb so easily disarmed? An, adding to that, why would they have it send a signal before it explodes? Are the fools that govern Planet Vegeta genuinely so shortsightedly bloodthirsty?"

As Spice pondered to himself, and Gine sat there trying to process the revelation just provided to her, both their attentions were suddenly drawn to a noise from the sky. The telltale groan of a warship breaching the atmosphere. Spice and Gine both looked to the inky black mist that filled the blood red Makyan sky and saw a ship stoked with Saiyan elite making its way through. Gine looked to the bow of the ship and saw the name inscribed onto the front. "General Zorn..."

Spice's eyes lit up. "General Zorn? _The vanguard for King Vegeta's personal fleet?_ "

He smiled wide. "Oh, this is perfect!"

Reaching over, Spice grabbing Gine harshly by the jaw, squeezing tight and forcing her to stare directly at the Elite Warship. "You are going to want to see this~"

Spice clicked a few buttons on his control console and the entire tower began to hum. Just below the window they were looking from, a red ring began to spin and charge with electrical power. Spice gripped a lever with his free hand and chuckled, before leaning over and whispering into Gine's ear. "Watch closely and see what your failure fulfill your duty has caused."

And then, pushing the lever forward, Spice unleashed the Tower's attack. Bolts of dark red lightning shot forward, crashing into General Zorn's ship. And there was nothing anyone on the ship could do to stop it. With no way to defend or evade, thousands of Saiyan lives were left at the mercy of the Makyan Defense Tower. The lightning hit it on the starboard side and surged through the entirety of the ship. Explosions rang out from every port and opening in the hull, and then the engine itself exploded, blowing the ship in half and sending both pieces crashing to the ground in flames.

The two halves of General Zorn's ship laid there, burning and destroyed. No person on board could have survived that. The flames of the wreckage reflected in Gine's eyes and the realization hit her hard. Thousands of Saiyans had just died all at once...it is was her fault.

Spice chuckled and glared down at Gine. "What do you think? Isn't the sight of your failure marvelous?"

Gine continued to stare in silence, the weight of all of the lost lives weighing heavily on her mind and soul. And then, she mustered the only response her body would allow. She threw up.

Spice hissed in disdain, pressing a button on his console to open a shallow pit behind him before throwing Gine into it. She landed and the energy string snapped. At her wits end, she stared pitifully up at Spice who had managed to readopt his smug grin. Gine stammered, her mind unable to process clearly. "Wh-What are you going to do with me?!"

The Makyan chuckled. "You have handed a great victory to us today. King Vegeta's fleet is going to come through this sector and, one at a time, I shall blast them out of the sky! As a showing of gratitude...I am going to allow you to reunite with your former squadmates~"

Gine was flustered and confused. "Wh-Wha-"

Spice answered her by pressing a button on his console. A door within the bit opened and two distinct low growls emerged from the darkness. Gine peered into the void, trying to see what might lie within, and was horrified as Ayam and Spara both bolted out.

The two of them lunged at her and Gine quickly fled backwards, receding into a corner. Gine's former squadmates lunged at her again, pouncing on top of her and snarling in her face. Using the chain that still kept her hands restrained, Gine held the two of them at bay, drawing the chain between their snapping teeth and keeping them held back.

She looked up at the two and finally got a good look at them. They both had bright red, glowing eyes and massive fangs. At first, Gine thought that they might be turning into Oozaru before shakily remembering that the Makyo Star prevented the production of Blutz Waves.

As they both snarled at her, snapping and slobbering as she barely held them back, Gine tried to reason with Ayam and Spara. "Guys! Please! Stop! Pull yourselves together! We have to get out of here and warn everyone else about what's going to happen! We have to hurry and-"

Gine's frantic attempts to reason were cut off by an amused chuckle from Spice. "I am afraid that reasoning will not work in this case. The two of them, as you knew them, are both well and truly dead at this point."

Her heart pounding through her chest, Gine glanced up at Spice. The Makyan smirked. "The Makyan condition is quite the thing. One bite and anything will turn. Your comrades are gone, replaced by two hungry thralls for the Makyan Empire. Nothing short of a burst of pure energy crashing through them would reverse the condition. And, well, I doubt you are strong enough to cure them... _Madame K-Class~_ "

Gine grimaced as both of them pushed against her, making her arms strain as she tried to hold them back. Gine's pupils shrank and she began to tear up. "N-No! No!"

Spice smirked. "I shall leave you and your friends to get reacquainted. I must now prepare for the arrival of your King. We simply cannot allow a foreign dignitary to arrive without a _proper greeting_ ~"

Gine's heart began to beat even faster as she realized that yet more lives were at risk. She shouted out. " _NO! PLEASE STOP!_ "

In her distraction, Spara and Ayam pushed even harder against Gine, their snapping fangs mere inches away from her face. Overwhelmed by everything happened to her all at once, Gine finally snapped. In the face of all of the torment and horror, she could do little more than scream bloody murder. And that sound pleased Spice to no end.

Spice watched the sky, smirking with the bow of King Vegeta's personal warship crested through the thick, black mist. The prideful fool was most likely totally unaware of what was about to hit him. Spice chuckled as he set the Tower to charge once more. "Yes! Yes! The foolish Saiyan race that dared to oppose King Garlic's will is about to meet their doom! Their King is going to die in flames and then Planet Vegeta will fall! And then, soon after, King Cold shall meet the same fate! You fools might have started this fight with our glorious empire, but we shall just as quickly end it!"

Spice gripped the lever tight. "And then, we shall plunge this Universe into infinite darkness from which it shall never escape!"

Laying on the ground, with her former allies snarling over her, this was all too much for poor Gine. Her struggles to keep Ayam and Spara back were becoming weaker and weaker. Her ears were starting to ring. She didn't know what to do. Gine cringed as she felt a sharp pain in her gut and this falter allowed Spara and Ayam to overcome her. As the two of them descended down, their claws tearing into her flesh, Gine was totally numb. She closed her eyes, waiting for death to come, and mentally she cried out for help one last time.

And this last plea for help was met by a Riot Javelin crashing into Ayam's face.

Gine's eyes shot open and she looked up, seeing Spara staring at something other than her. Her vampirized form comrade lunged up towards whatever he was staring at, but was immediately sent flying back as well, crashing next to where Ayam had crashed and exploding, leaving two scorch marks in place of the now deceased Saiyans.

Gine sat up, breathing and sobbing at the same time, still not quite able to process who had saved her. But this question was quickly answered when her savior landed directly in front of her. From his spot on the ledge up above, Spice stared down with disdain. "And who might you be?"

He responded back. "That's none of your damned business."

He stepped forward, looking ready to brawl with Spice. And, as he leapt up to face down his Makyan foe, Gine mumbled her savior's name in confusion and shock. "B-Bardock..."

 _Just a little earlier..._

Bardock raced through the dark and gnarled Makyan forests towards the large, imposing tower in the distance. He was furiously trying to make it there as quickly as possible, before he and the rest of the squad lost Gine forever.

A K-Class, a suicide bomber. If anyone had told Bardock that that was Gine's reassignment, he never would have allowed her to go on this mission. He would have done anything and everything he could to keep her away from this.

Luckily, Bardock had quite a few contacts in various levels of the Saiyan hierarchy. It didn't take long to get the coordinates that Gine had been sent to. Bardock continued to race along, get closer and closer to the Tower. He looked up into the sky as he arrived at the base of the structure and saw General Zorn's ship breaching the mist up above.

Bardock sneered. "Dammit. This day just gets better and better..."

 _Back in the Tower..._

The fight between Spice and Bardock didn't amount to much. As strong as he was, Bardock leaped up to engage the Makyan foe standing above him and was near instantly smacked back to the ground for his trouble. Spice was quite powerful, easily an equal to Zarbon or Dodoria, maybe even closer to matching a member of the Ginyu Force. As Bardock crashed back to the ground, and Spice followed. "Was that meant to be an attack? Foolish Saiyan..."

Bardock tried to sit up, but Spice stomped hard on his chest. He gurgled in pain and sneered at the Makyan. Bardock jerked his attention over to Gine. "Hey! Help me out here!"

Gine didn't respond, still knelt there, still shackled, and still in general. Her eyes were nearly blank. Spice chuckled. "You must forgive her. She's been through a lot today."

Bardock growled in frustration and thought on the fly. Knowing he couldn't hurt Spice, he aimed for something else instead. Bardock shot a blast at the ceiling and brought a pile of rubble crashing down on the both of them. Spice was sent to the ground and Bardock, moving quickly, pulled himself from under the Makyan's boot and went running.

Spice sneered and pushed himself up as well, chasing after Bardock as the Saiyan leapt out of the pit. " _Damned wretch..._ "

Hearing the fight and the struggle going on above, Gine still couldn't force herself to move. She knelt there, totally numb to the world around her, letting her guilt weigh heavily on her mind. Every single life on that ship, thousands of Saiyan lives...extinguished because she couldn't even act as a suicide bomb correctly. Ayam and Spara, both dead because she couldn't do anything to save them...both having died as wretched Makyans rather than as Saiyans. Her ears rang, empty tears poured from her eyes like a waterfall, she wanted to vomit but her writhing stomach was empty. This was all Gine's fault...and that realization broke her.

She knelt there, and up above Bardock wasn't faring any better against Spice than before. Gine didn't notice, but her savior was sent flying across the room, his battered form smashing against the same screen that Spice had forced Gine to watch through. A massive crack formed behind Bardock's back upon impact. He crumpled to the ground and, seemingly acting on instinct, he began to crawl away.

Spice chuckled as he gave lighthearted chase. "And where are we crawling to, little mouse?"

Bardock's body began to shake. Spice snorted. "Are you going to start crying too? Are all Saiyans this miserable?"

Bardock rolled over and Spice's smarm instantly melted away. Bardock held up the explosive, the one Gine was originally supposed to activate, and showed that he had activated it. "Nah, just having my last laugh. Later, ya Makyan scumbag!"

Spice lunged forward. "No!"

Bardock got to his feet, thinking fast, and threw the bomb threw the cracked screen. He and Spice both watched as it fell, it's shrill shriek getting quieter, until it exploded right as the center of the Tower. The explosion burned a massive gash into the side of the Tower, and the force of the blast sent it crashing over. Bardock, Gine, and Spice were all sent tumbling over as their current housing fell with them, hitting the ground with a mighty thud and crushing under its own weight.

After that, all was still. Nothing moved for a while as the aftershocks of the explosion rang out. Underneath the rubble, Bardock and Gine were both alive. And they were both trapped, buried alive underneath piles and piles of rubble from the destroyed Tower. Bardock was struggling to make himself stay awake, he needed to try and dig himself and Gine out to get them both to safety.

But, as Bardock began to struggle, the silence in the room was broken by a furious scream. Spice exploded from the rubble burying him, screaming at the top of his lungs with hate and frustration. "Damned, accursed Saiyans!"

Spice looked up, through a hole in the side of his once glorious Tower, and saw that King Vegeta's ship had burst through the layer of black mist in the sky. "Dammit. No. _That ship is going to make it to King Garlic's castle now_."

Not caring to check for Bardock or Gine, Spice flew out from the ruins of his former base. " _I must go defend the King and the Young Lord!_ "

The moment Spice was gone, Bardock went back to struggling free. In spite of his injuries, it did not take the gruff Saiyan long to pull himself free of the refuse burying him alive. He sat up, looking around through his blurred vision, and eventually saw one of Gine's delicate hands sticking out from under the rubble. Bardock shakily stood and began to limp over to her.

As he did, Bardock heard Fasha's harsh words ringing through his mind. He limped, and he thought about how their special relationship had started. It was nothing at first. Just a way to pass time and kill boredom on shore leave. They all engaged in it with one another, in some form or the other: him and Gine, Toma and Fasha, Fasha and Gine, him and Toma. Different types of relationships seen as odd or out of place in Saiyan society. Bardock never wanted to make anything more of it than that. But Gine...Gine was always wired differently than the rest of them. There was a sentiment packed into everything that she did. Kindness foreign to the Saiyan race. She had managed to win over Fasha after enough times. But, Gine's actions and words always made it clear that she had wanted something with Bardock more than anything...

Bardock collapsed onto his knees and began to dig. Buried underneath so much heavy refuse, Gine could feel that someone was digging her up. But, deep in her soul, she wished that that wasn't the case. Gine was in so much pain at that particular moment. Physically, mentally, emotionally...everything was throbbing. Gine just wanted to be left there. She just wanted to die.

Gine closed her eyes and flashed back to the last moment of happiness she truly felt. That last tender moment that she shared with her one-sided lover. All she had wanted, after that intense moment of passion, was just for Bardock to say goodbye. To wish her luck in her mission. To ask her to be safe. She just wanted to know, in case anything and everything went wrong on Planet Makyo, that their time together had meant something to Bardock. But, by the time she had recovered...he was already gone.

Ever since then, something had felt wrong inside of Gine. A pit, a knot in her stomach. It had been there ever since and it had only been developing into something bigger and bigger ever since. And whatever it was, it made her crave his attention and affection all the more. She just wanted to know that she was worth something. That she was genuinely meaningful to someone in the world...

By the time that Bardock had managed to dig her up, Gine was long passed out. Hearing explosions of the battle echoing off in the distance, Bardock decided that his part in this war was over. He threw Gine over his shoulder, pulled his communicator to make a call, and started to limp away. "Hey Leek...I found Gine. We need...we need pickup, we're both hurt pretty bad..."

 _Back on Planet Vegeta..._

What followed after that incident was what could only be described as a total victory. King Garlic, through a joint combination of King Cold and King Vegeta's efforts, was beaten and executed. The young heir, Garlic Junior, was unable to be located at the time, but it was assumed that he was killed in the Makyan Planetary Slaughter that followed.

Upon returning to Planet Vegeta, Bardock Squad was seized by the royal guard to be interrogated for abandoning their assigned post. Cross-referencing with various branches of the Saiyan Military Structure proved to vindicate Bardock's decision. It was officially stated that his abandonment of duty served to save King Vegeta's own life from the unforgivable mistake of an incompetent K-Class. As a result, Bardock was slated to receive a commendation from the Royal Family itself.

As for said K-Class, Gine was not so lucky as the rest of her squad. Her inability to do the duty assigned to her had resulted in not just the death of an Elite General, but one of King Vegeta's closest confidants. While the rest of Bardock Squad were released from custody, Gine was immediately sentenced to serve the rest of her life in prison, until the date of her forthcoming execution. The rest of her squad futilely tried to resist, but Gine herself seemed perfectly fine with the judgement, being led away with no struggle.

Bardock made no fuss over the subject of Gine's execution, keeping a cool head right up until the day of his commendation. King Vegeta presented Bardock with a medal, going through all of the pomp and circumstance that one would expect of such a ceremony. However, when the time of Bardock's reward came, and aberration occurred. King Vegeta was ready to welcome Bardock into the Elite Class with open arms. His recent zenkai boost, in addition to his actions, ensuring him a place in higher society. But, to the shock of everyone in attendance, Bardock interrupted the King mid-speech. In his own words, the low-class warrior had a "different reward in mind."

Days later, Gine was still locked in her cell in the Saiyan High Prison. Her head was leaned against the stony wall, allowing her to hide her face. In the near month she had spent in that hellhole, she had barely eaten anything, barely drank anything, and hadn't spoken a word. Her guilt, combined with the constant sharp pains in her stomach, prevented her from having an appetite. When the jailers finally came and opened her cell, Gine was ready to accept her fate. She stood and walked across the cell, her head down, and prepared to meet the end of her life.

Which led to quite the surprise when, instead on taking her to the gallows, Gine was taken to the front of the prison and harshly thrown out onto the street by the guards. She turned and looked up at them, utterly perplexed. "Wh-Why?! I thought I was supposed to-"

Gine was cut off by the guard's heavy sigh. He and his partner turned to walk back in and he mumbled to himself. "What kind of idiot would pass up elite status for someone as worthless as her?!"

Gine had no idea what was going on. Shakily, she stood up, watching as the door to the prison slammed shut, only to be immediately tackled from behind. Gine turned, and was immediately met by a warm kiss on the cheek from Fasha. " _GINE!_ "

Gine flinched. "F-Fasha..."

Immediately, the rest of Gine's squadmates descended upon her. Totepo, Panbukin, Leek, and Toma all came up to check on her, making sure that she was okay and offering to go beat the hell out of any prison guards that might have hurt her. Gine sounded confused. "W-Wait, guys. What happened? I thought I was supposed to be...executed..."

Toma chuckled, gently placing his hand on Gine's shoulder. "You have our fearless leader to thank for that."

Toma used his thumb to point across the street and Gine saw him standing there, leaned against the wall of a local market. The owner of the market came out and started to chastise Bardock. "Get the hell away from my shop! A disgraceful punk like you has no place in my-"

Bardock slugged the guy across the face, sending him flying back into his business. As he walked towards Gine, the two of them shared a long gaze with one another. As they stared, Panbukin leaned over and whisper into Gine's ear. "Big man was supposed to be an elite, but he looked ol' Vegeta in the eye and said 'hell nah'. It was badass, you shoulda been there for it!"

Gine and Bardock didn't break their gaze away from one another. She blushed as she stared up at him. "Bardock...you-"

Bardock interrupted. "We aren't welcome in the capital anymore. But I called Taro and he set us up a place to live on the outskirts. So, let's get moving before the elites chase us out of here."

The gruff Saiyan turned and started to walked the other way. "Totepo, carry her. He leg is still pretty badly injured."

The larger, silent member of their group gently picked up Gine and started to follow Bardock. Alongside him, Panbukin followed. And then Toma, with Fasha lovingly clinging onto his arm. And then Leek brought up the rear. As they walked, Panbukin loudly joked at his comrade. "Hey Gine! Guess what? You're part of the criminal record club now! Now all we have to do is get Leek arrested and we can all be matchy!"

Leek stammered. "Th-That's a joke right? _G-Guys?_ "

Gine kept her eyes trained on Bardock back. Watching as he led the lot of them out of the city and into their lives as outcasts. The Bardock Squad might not have been welcomed into Saiyan society anymore...but at least they still all had each other.

 _In the present, in the Hermit Spring..._

Gine snapped out of her trance and looked around, seeing that Kami had moved but that Korin was still right next to her. Korin spoke calmly. "So, have you been able to reach a conclusion based on what you saw?"

She responded with a sad smile, looking back into the water and sighing. "A conclusion? No. Not really. At least...nothing I didn't know before..."

Korin nodded. "I see. And that would be?"

Gine reflected on everything, her past and the crisis of the present, and spoke with a quiet, broken voice. "I'm...useless. Without Bardock at my side...I'm just useless. Every failing that I have ever had, every problem in my life...it's been solved by him."

Gine's sad smile became a frown, tears welled in her eyes and began to fall into the water of the Hermit Spring, making the water ripple. "Even in the things I thought I had done well in my life, what did I really do? Raditz was born just shy of a year after the Makyan Incident. I thought I had given him a good enough life...but he lived in nothing but fear and misery after I died. Kakarot had a decent upbringing...but he never knew who I was."

She continued. "And Bardock...poor Bardock. He became so laser-focused on defending me from all of my faults that my death _broke him_. I like to pretend that I don't know why he won't talk to me, but I know the reason. He became so focused on feeding into my dependence on him that it broke his spirit when Frieza killed me..."

Gine sobbed. "I'm unnecessary. Meaningless. I... I can't even be relied upon to keep my own grandson safe in the face of threats like this. That's the conclusion that I was able to draw, Master Korin. I'm a pathetic failure desperately hoping that other people will provide me a happy life..."

She buckled over, burying her face in her knees. " _I'm dead weight._ "

Korin nodded. "I see. Now that you've said your peace, may I offer a retort?"

Gine looked at Korin through puffy eyes. "Hmm?"

Korin spoke with wisdom that only his years could provide him. "Everyone has their faults and their foibles, Gine. Everyone. I don't know your husband, so I can't speak on him and his mindset...but I do know your younger son."

She lifted her head a bit. Korin continued. "Goku once placed all of the blame for Krillin's death squarely on his shoulders. In his eyes, losing his friends life was his fault because he wasn't there to defend him. But, that's not how you should think in these situations. Life happens, no matter what. So, you just have to roll with the punches and learn from them. Take all of your experiences, positive and negative, and turn them into strength. That, Gine, is how you find meaning in life. That is how you grow and become stronger. You must look at your mistakes, take your lessons from your lumps...and then just let them go. You aren't the dead weight, those bitter feelings you're holding inside are."

Gine hung her head again. "I... I don't know what to say Lord Korin. I...I..."

And then, another voice spoke up. " _If it helps you at all, I still believe that you are a failure._ "

A chill ran up Gine's spine. As she turned, a blast came flying forward that crashed directly into Korin, sending the wise old cat flying into the Hermit Spring. She cried out. "Master Korin!"

Gine's gaze turned from worried, to a hate-filled glare. She stared across the cave at her mortal enemy in all of this. Spice stood there, a beaten Mr. Popo collapsed onto the ground in front of him and a defeated Kami gripped tightly in his hand. "I am quite lucky today. Not only are you here, ready and waiting to be killed, but the King's Dragon Balls are here as well~"

Spice picked up the chalice of Dragon Balls and then tossed Kami hard into a wall. He stepped forward, with a sinister smirk on his face. "Now, are you still ready to die on your own, or do you require assistance?"

Gine flinched as Spice stared down at her again. She felt incredibly small under his harsh gaze. But, in spite of that, her body told her to act. Even if she felt worthless, Gine was compelled to resist! She pictured Bardock, how he always snarled in the face of danger and death, and she chose to do the same!

Gine jumped at Spice, roaring in frustration and anger, and shouted at him as loud as she could. " _Leave the Dragon Balls alone!_ "

Spice chuckled. And then he responded with a shattering punch to the face. Gine spun in the air, eventually smashing against the ground and skidding back towards the water. She shakily pushed herself up, seeing her bruised face in the water again, and then seeing Spice's reflection behind her. Before Gine could react, Spice pressed his foot down onto the back of her head and shoved Gine's face down into the water.

Gine struggled, gurgling and trying to force herself back up. But Spice's foot was unmoving. He chuckled once more and spoke as Gine struggled for air. "I've trained for so long since our last meeting, Madame K-Class. I have reached heights in strength that I had never thought possible. All for this day, when my embarrassment could be avenged. And now that day has arrived. _And no one is coming to save you..._ "

Spice smirked as Gine's struggles became weaker and weaker. Under the water, Gine could feel her strength fading. Her lungs filled with water and her vision began to blur. This time seemed to be it. This time...Gine would die. And no one was going to come and save her. As her vision went black, Gine felt her eyelids become heavy. They slowly started to shut, and Gine's last thoughts flashed through her mind.

She saw Chi-Chi's warm smile. She saw all of the friends that she had made on Earth happily training. She saw Vegeta. And then Kakarot. And then Raditz. And then Bardock. And then, as she felt the last of her life draining away, Gine saw one last thing. This image was not nearly as happy. In her mind's eyes, Gine saw a familiar shape. It was screaming and struggling and begging for help, unable to defend itself from the monster attacking it.

As the screams continued, the voice became more and more clear. Gine's vision of this person became more and more clear until it was perfectly in view. It was Gohan, her beloved grandson, and he was in the clutches of Garlic Junior.

This image, of the newest lovely addition to her life being brutally tortured, forcibly converted into a monster, resonated with Gine. And then, deep down, something burst forth within her. Gine's eyes snapped open under the water, filled with purpose. _She couldn't die yet!_

All at once, Spice's confidence faded. He stood there, his foot pressed to the back of Gine's head, and observed a sight that he had never seen before. Underneath the water, Gine began to glow with golden light. Spice spoke up. "What in the hell are you-"

And then the power burst forth. With a furious, primal scream, the water of the Hermit Spring was blown away and Spice was blown back, slamming back first into the stony wall of the cave. He snarled in frustration and shakily pushed himself up. He was ready to eviscerate Gine. But, as he prepared to strike, Spice was stunned still. Standing before him was not the same, broken woman that he had seen before. Instead, Gine towered over him. He hair was shining gold, flowing from the sheer energy radiating off of her. Her eyes, now a stunning emerald green, were intense, but seemingly quite disinterested in Spice himself.

Spice stood. "What have you-"

Gine spoke, her soft voice now as hard as steel. "You're in my way. _Move or I'll move you._ "

Spice snarled. "You! You think that you...can order me around?!"

Spice roared at the top of his lungs and lunged at Gine; his fist drawn. " _YOU K-CLASS SCU-_ "

Gine slammed her fist into Spice's face, the force of her punch collapsing and caving in the Makyan's features and making his eye pop from the socket. And then, forcing all of her energy into her fist, Gine engulfed Spice in burning light. Spice screamed in fear and pain, and then he disappeared. Cinders fell as the energy faded. Spice was incinerated by Gine's new Super Saiyan power.

Korin, Mr. Popo, and Kami all shakily looked up from their position on the ground, seeing the glowing, golden woman standing over them. And then they watched as, wordlessly, she took to the air and burst through the top of the cave.

Gine's next target was clear and she flew up towards the Lookout at top speed.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	50. Chapter 50: The Rebirth of Son Gine

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: And here we are. 225,000 views. 600 reviews. 254,000+ words. We've reached 50 chapters in this story! Thank you for sticking around and bearing with me for so long. I'm just getting started on where I want to take this story and I hope that I'm able to keep entertaining you all for another 50 to come. Come Chapter 52, we're getting into the Android Arc, the Cell Arc, and everything beyond that. I look forward to reading your kind reviews as we go along. Thank you all so much!_

 _P.S.: Sorry this one is late, I've been no-lifing Borderlands 3 for the past few days._

 **Chapter 50: The Rebirth of Son Gine**

 _On Kami's Lookout..._

Gohan screamed in anguish as Garlic Junior held him down, by the throat, and forced the spout of the bottle containing the rancid Blackwater Mist into his mouth. The boy could feel himself fading, as much as he tried to resist it. He knew that he couldn't take much more of this and the terror of his situation was setting in. Gohan was helpless at the moment, and as far as he knew no one was coming to save him.

Garlic Junior chuckled. "Yes boy. Just breathe it in. The less you resist, the quicker the pain ends and the quicker you can join up with the winning team~"

As the Makyan King continued to forcibly convert Gohan, however, a flash of brilliant, golden light shone out behind him. He turned towards the entrance to Kami's throne room and saw, in the inky black distance, a shining golden form that seemed to be staring right at him. "What in the hell?"

He looked around at his enthralled, Earthling subjects and saw the wavering fear in their eyes. Garlic Junior scowled. "Swallow those lumps in your throats and get out there to see what that is!"

Unable to defy their master, the vampirized Z-Fighters all marched out from the throne room, with Garlic Junior and the captive Gohan following behind.

Once they all stepped out, they came upon a truly marvelous, yet terrifying sight: Gine was standing there, wreathed in a pure, golden energy. The angels themselves seemed to sing at this mysterious new presence cutting through the darkness that had enveloped the entire planet. Garlic Junior snarled. "What is...?"

He looked and saw the wide-eyed expressions on each of his minions faces. "What is it?! What are you all gawking at?!"

None of them got a chance to answer as Gohan did in their place. There was whimsy in the boy's voice as he addressed the new, but quite familiar form standing before them all with a smile on his face. "S-Super Saiyan..."

Garlic Junior growled. "Super Saiyan?"

And then, missing the point, the imp chuckled. "Super Saiyan?! Is that what qualifies for 'super' nowadays?! Dyeing your hair?!"

Garlic spat. " _KRILLIN! YAMCHA! TEAR HER TO PIECES!_ "

Fearful as both were, neither Krillin nor Yamcha were in any position to resist Garlic Junior's orders. The two of them leapt in, each going for a strike at Gine. But, in one fluid motion, Gine avoided both strikes. Left hanging midair, neither vampirized warrior had any time to respond before Gine delivered her counterattack. The Saiyan woman charged energy into both of her fists and sent a golden shockwave through both Krillin and Yamcha, causing them each to expel a howling, black cloud of evil from their mouths.

As the demonic mist escaped both of their bodies, Krillin and Yamcha's eyes rolled back and they both fell unconscious onto the Lookout, totally purified of the Makyan influence that had turned them wicked.

Garlic Junior's eyes widened, his pupils practically burning with venom and hatred. "What?! H-How did...?! Wh-WH-WHAT THE HELL IS SPICE DOING?! _WHERE IS HE WHEN I NEED HIM?!_ "

" _Burning._ "

Garlic Junior flinched. "Wha-"

Gine stepped forward, causing the surface of the Lookout to crack under her feet. "Burning. Spice is burning in Hell. But don't worry, you will see him again soon."

Garlic Junior trembled, his flaming confidence dying down to a mere ember. "I-I..."

He stared into Gine's steely, emerald eyes and then, needing to escape from her reach, leapt back. Gohan gasped in pain, flailing like a ragdoll in Garlic Junior's grip. The Makyan shouted. "Tien! Chiaotzu! _Kill!_ "

The two of them flew in close, Tien readying a heavy strike and Chiaotzu using his full telekinetic power to envelope Gine. The Super Saiyan briefly paused in place. Tien and Chiaotzu both got in close to hit her, but then Gine shattered her way from Chiaotzu's mental grip. She delivered two more of the same punch from before, expelling the wicked energy from Tien and Chiaotzu's bodies and leaving them limp on the ground.

Gine focused her attention back on Garlic Junior, continuing her march forward. She stepped over Tien, and then over Chiaotzu, dropping a small portion of her energy onto the smaller warrior. This small action went unnoticed as Piccolo, with no prompting from Garlic Junior, stepped between Gine and his master. "That's far enough, Saiyan."

Gine sighed. "Come on, Piccolo. You have two whole other people in your soul, can't you all work together and just break this...?"

Piccolo assumed a fighting stance and Gine groaned, taking one right back at him. And then, the two of them clashed. Garlic Junior laughed as Gine and Piccolo fought, his confidence coming back to him. Yamcha and Krillin, Tien and Chiaotzu, all mere ants compared to his strongest puppet! Garlic laughed out loud. "You might as well roll over and die right now, Saiyan! You've no chance against him! He's much stronger than that weakling, idiot Spice!"

Gine wasn't listening to Garlic Junior prattle on. Not that his words mattered in any way whatsoever. He was totally wrong. Now, more than ever before, Gine had a chance. All of the fear in her heart, all of the angst and the self-loathing and the sadness, it had all vanished away in the Hermit Spring. And, as a result, Gine had never felt more ready to take on all of the challenges life could throw at her. She was lighter than air, free of the sins that she had felt crushing her before. Her strength had surged, the warrior within had risen to the top of her spirit. Gine was here, defending Earth with all of her might, and she had never felt more like a true warrior. A true Saiyan.

Her power flowed from her with each and every blow she gave and received in kind. Without her mental blocks, she was slightly above Gohan in terms of power. And now, in her Super Saiyan form, she felt almost unstoppable. Her fist smashed into Piccolo's and electric power flared out from the both of them, burning streaks across the ground.

Piccolo was still above her in strength, but that didn't matter to Gine. As it turned out, hardheaded grit was not just a trait that Bardock had given to Goku. Gine took each blow in stride, waiting for her opportunity to hit back and take Piccolo off the table. Once that situation came, via a fumbled punch from the Namekian, Gine charged in to deliver the final blow in this fight. Charging as much energy as she could muster into her fist, Gine delivered a devastating uppercut to Piccolo's chest. The dark mist went shooting from his mouth with an agony-laden shriek, and then Piccolo fell backwards into unconsciousness.

As Piccolo crashed onto the ground, Gine stepped forward. She wiped her bloody nose and spat another bit of blood from her mouth. And then, she continued her death march towards the horrified Garlic Junior. With no more obstacles in her way, Spice Boys and Z-Fighters alike having been felled, Gine stepped towards Garlic Junior radiating more killing intent than she had ever managed in her entire life prior.

Garlic Junior stepped back, his lips trembling, and desperately spat a tasteless threat. "You think this is the end?! Not a chance! _Let's see you hit your own flesh and blood that hard!_ "

The Makyan King opened his mouth wide, fangs glinting in the red moonlight, and started to bite down towards Gohan's neck. But, in a flash, this plan was totally foiled.

Feeling a sudden force snatch him away and hearing that force skid to a stop, Gohan weakly cracked his eyes open. She smiled as he felt a familiar, caring warmth pressed up against him and looked up to see the familiar face of his grandmother. Gohan smiled. "Grandma Gine...I... I knew that you wouldn't just...run away and leave us..."

Gine nodded, the beginnings of tears welling in her eyes. "No. Not again. _Never again._ "

Behind them, as the two Saiyans shared a moment, a bitter and pained shriek rang out into the empty air. It was Garlic Junior. And the Makyan King had a good reason to shriek in pain. In rushing to pull Gohan from the imp's grasp, Gine had blitzed into him at max speed. And that max speed blitz had taken Garlic Junior's entire left arm and a good portion of his torso with it. The Makyan King stood there, barely able to under his own power, and screams in rage and pain and frustration.

He turned, glowering at the woman that had so critically injured him, and charged at her like a freight train. In response, Gine stood and gave a punch of her own, sending Garlic shredding across the Lookout and into the side of Kami's castle. The castle crumbled on top of Garlic Junior as Gine stared on. And then, with one last sniffle, Gine wiped her eyes clear with her free hand. "The time for crying and tears is over."

Gine glanced over at the heap of fallen Z-Fighters and called out. " _CHIATOZU! GET UP!_ "

Snapping awake, Chiaotzu quickly sat up. "Y-Yes ma'am?!"

Gine marched over, placing Gohan at Chiaotzu's feet. She placed her hand on the human's shoulder and nodded. "Use your telekinesis and get everyone off of this Lookout. Go and find Kami and Master Korin. I, meanwhile, will end this Makyan nightmare for good."

Gine turned and started to walk back towards the ruins of Kami's castle. Chiaotzu called after her. "W-Wait! Shouldn't we wake everyone up?! If we all work together-"

Gine turned and glared at Chiaotzu, her steely eyes telling him straight away that this was not a debate. Chiaotzu instantly clammed up, swallowing a lump in his throat, and then did as he was told. He gathered Tien, Gohan, Yamcha, Krillin, and Piccolo with his telekinesis and then leapt over the side of the Lookout.

As he did that, Gine turned her attention back to the shaking rubble just in time to see Garlic Junior burst from it. The Makyan was fully healed and fully pissed off. He and Gine stared at each other, neither budging nor flinching. And then, as was characteristic for him, Garlic Junior broke into another psychotic rant. " _ **YOU SAIYANS! YOU MISERABLE SAIYANS! STEPPING INTO MAKYAN AFFAIRS EVERY STEP OF THE WAY! I AM GOING TO-**_ "

Gine cleared the distance between herself and Garlic Junior in a flash and delivered a massive boot to the imp's face. Garlic was sent sliding back, but he recovered quickly. He snarled at Gine, but Gine did not back down. Garlic Junior charged and levied a massive punch toward Gine, but she blocked and responded with an elbow to his throat.

Garlic Junior shrieked and went full-on insane in his fighting style. If one could even call it a fighting style. The imp lumbered at Gine, tossing sloppy hit after sloppy hit and managing to strike Gine a good few times, but Gine returned each hit with excessive force. At the end of the day, Garlic Junior really was little more than a spoiled brat throwing his weight around. _Spice was most likely stronger than him by all estimates_.

After tiring of his rampage, Gine lifted her foot into the air and drove it into the top of Garlic Junior's skull. The imp's eyes bugged out and blood spurted from his nose. And then, with all of her might, Gine levied a massive right hook across Garlic Junior's face, sending him tumbling backwards towards the edge of the Lookout. Garlic looked back, at the endless abyss stretching behind him, and then towards Gine. He screamed with rage. "Stupid bitch! Die!"

He pulled his hands to his side and charged the ultimate attack of the Makyan race. " _GARLIC GUN! FIRE!_ "

The blast came shooting right at Gine's face, but it did not phase her. Instead, the Saiyan woman merely raised a single hand and fired her own attack back. " _Mother's Blast._ "

Gine's attack struck into Garlic's and there was not even a beam struggle. Her attack pierced through his and crashed right into Garlic Junior's screaming face, pummeling the Makyan King to the ground and leaving him a smoking heap.

Gine stepped forward again, marching right up to what was left of Garlic Junior on the ground with a look of harsh anger in her eyes. Laying in a puddle at her feet, Garlic Junior fearfully cowered. As he trembled, Gine raised her hand and prepared to finish it.

But then, Garlic Junior began to grovel and beg. "P-Please! Don't kill me! Please! I... I don't mean to be the way that I am! I-I hate myself for all of this!"

Gine didn't lower her hand, but she did flinch a bit at this sudden turn of face. Garlic sniveled. "P-Please! I'm just a boy! You're a mother, yes?! C-Can't you sympathize?! I'm just a scared child! _I... I just...I just want my daddy back!_ "

All went silent. Garlic Junior's eyes filled with tears. " _Please..._ "

Gine closed her eyes and sighed through her nose. And then, she responded in a very calm tone. " _Bullshit._ "

Garlic Junior flinched, the tears in his eyes vanishing. "Wh-What?!"

Gine said it again, never lowering her hand. "Bullshit. Everything you just said. Next time you try to lie like that, at least try to make your eyes seem like they mean it. Because I can see through every bullshit-filled lie that you just spouted out!"

Garlic Junior sneered. Gine continued. "You're not a poor, lost child. You're a sociopathic, hateful, bitter little monster that acts like he has the right to be offended that his brutal tyrant of a father fell to bigger, badder, better, brutal tyrants! A twisted imp so far up his own ass that he can't just accept that his race was never going to rule the galaxy and is willing to bulldoze over billions of innocents just so he can think that he was right all along!"

The Makyan King snarled, regrowing an arm from his pile of melting flesh. " _How dare you speak to a King that way?!_ "

Before Garlic could do anything with that arm, however, Gine smashed it right back off with a single kick. And then, she fell to her knees and wrapped her left hand around Garlic Junior's throat. Gine raised her right hand high and scowled at the bastard. Garlic screamed at her. "You and your entire race! I swear it! I will darken every star in the Universe just so you miserable Saiyans can chill to death in my hatred! If it's the last thing I manage to do! _You will all pay!_ "

Gine gripped her fist tighter around Garlic's throat. She charged a blast in her free and then bent down closer. "You want the Saiyans to burn? Fine. Wish granted."

Garlic Junior flinched. "Wh-What?!"

Gine spat at the Makyan. "They're dead. All of them. The entire Saiyan empire. King Vegeta. Everyone on Planet Vegeta, other than my family, is long dead. For decades now."

Garlic Junior's jaw dropped. Gine continued. "They didn't last much longer than the Makyan Empire did, funnily enough."

The Makyan shrieked. "B-But King Cold-"

Gine's voice didn't waver as she spoke with total confidence. "He's dead too. My husband and my three sons...they went and got rid of him personally. Everything that you're trying to burn in your rage, Garlic Junior, is already burning. In Hell. And you are more than welcome to go and see for yourself."

Garlic Junior's pupils shrank. He looked from Gine to the blast in her hand and then back to Gine. He couldn't believe this. He couldn't fathom what he was hearing. He looked from Gine and to the blood-red moon high in the sky, and then he snarled and shrieked. " _ **No! Nononononononononononononononononono! NO! This isn't it! I won't let it be it! My revenge will not just be denied to me so easily! Something will die today to snuff out my rage and fury!"**_

Gine nodded. "Couldn't agree more. Goodbye, Garlic Junior."

She brought down her hand, bringing the killing blow closer and closer to Garlic Junior's face. But then, to her shock, Garlic managed to counter. His eyes opened wide and he fired two beams of energy from them, striking Gine in the face. She stumbled back and Garlic Junior got moving. The Makyan King shrank back into his normal state and took to the sky, shrieking like a madman as he flew upwards, towards the moon.

Gine regained herself and stared up at Garlic Junior. Garlic Junior turned and laughed at her. "You fool! I will not die alone! You and your ilk shall join me!"

He turned back around and blasted off into the sky. "I still have the Makyo Star! _And with that...I have the ability to break and opening into the Dead Zone! This entire miserable planet shall be swallowed whole!_ "

As Garlic Junior fled into the sky, cackling like a madman, Gine stood stalwart. Rather than give chase, the Saiyan woman began to build up her energy for one more attack. She felt the plight of the Earth as she did. Garlic Junior and his wicked ways had injured this poor, beautiful planet so badly. There wasn't even enough untainted energy left in the planet to make a Spirit Bomb. But, luckily, Gine had another idea in mind. It would have been poetic for the energy of the Earth to take out Garlic Junior, but Gine could spare some of her own to defend her new home. She brought her hand to her side and mumbled to herself. "How did that technique go again, Kakarot?"

Gine closed her eyes and pictured her son and how he would prep for the technique. "Ka...Me...Ha...Me..."

All of Gine's energy charged into her hands, forming a shining sphere. Gine took a deep breath, and then she sighed. " _HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!_ "

Unfurling all but her remaining energy at once, Gine fired a Kamehameha wave so large that it encompassed the entire top of the Lookout. The beam shot into the sky like a missile, plunging into the atmosphere and chasing after its wicked target.

 _On the Moon..._

Garlic Junior wickedly cackled as he landed on the Moon. The blood crystal that he and the Spice Boys had implanted into the rocky satellite hadn't fully charged, but it had charged enough. With the power contained in that crystal, Garlic Junior could easily ripe a hole in space and create a Dead Zone big enough to swallow all of his hated enemies for good!

The imp, in his psychosis, stopped to screamed with hatred one last time. He turned towards the Earth to gloat. "YOU CAN JOIN THEM! YOU HEAR ME SAIYAN! YOU CAN-"

Suddenly, to Garlic Junior's surprise and horror, a pure blue light shined directly into his eyes. Unable to dodge in time, Garlic Junior and the control console for the blood crystal were both swallowed up by Gine's Kamehameha and shredded off of the surface of the Moon. The imp screamed out in fear, attempting to escape the pull of the blast, but to no avail.

He and the Kamehameha went sailing in space, moving faster and faster and gaining speed as it did. Burning within the center of the blast, Garlic Junior screamed incoherently. His pain and anguish and hatred all coming out as one, massive scream. In his mind, Garlic Junior was screaming for one thing. " _FATHER! SPICE! ANYONE! SAVE ME! HELP ME! I DEMAND THAT THIS PAIN STOP AT ONCE!_ "

Garlic twisted in the blast, wondering when it would fade and he would be free to escape and plot further revenge. But, as he turned, a horrifying sight met him. It was the massive, flaming form of the Sun. Garlic's eyes widened and he screamed once more, and then the blast smashed him directly onto the Sun's surface. The flames of the star instantly began to roast Garlic Junior's flesh, eating away and burning at his form, so much faster than his own healing factor could compensate for. Garlic Junior screeched out loud, one last time. " _ **THIS CAN'T BE HOW IT ENDS!**_ "

And then, it ended. The fires of the Sun engulfed Garlic Junior's body and ate him alive, reducing him to cinders and slag and burning the last of the Makyans away for good.

 _Back on Kami's Lookout..._

Gine was heaving breaths by the time she was done with her attack. Her Super Saiyan form was totally spent and she was left standing in the rubble of the Lookout. Her arms fell limp and Gine smiled. "D-Damn...that...takes a lot out of a person..."

Gine fell flat onto her back, crashing to the ground like a stone. As she laid there, spent and exhausted, a piece of Kami's ruin castle shifted, and out from the rubble the Four-Star Dragon Ball came rolling. It gently collided into the side of Gine's face and she turned and stared at her reflection in it.

Up in the sky, Garlic Junior's blood red moon slowly faded away, overtaken by the light and warmth of the Sun that peaked out through the hole Gine had pierced in the Blackwater Mist. Gine smiled and had a lighthearted chuckle, and then she passed out from her fatigue.

 _Soon after that..._

It did not take long for the rest of the Z-Fighters to regroup and return to Kami's Lookout. Once there, they found not a single trace of Garlic Junior, but they did find the unconscious and smiling Gine. And next to her was the final Dragon Ball that they needed. Wasting no time, Kami and the rest immediately summoned Shenron and used their one wish to restore the Earth to the state it was in prior to the Makyan Attack.

Except for, by Piccolo's request, the modifications that Garlic Junior had made to the Moon. Even if the Makyan blood crystal had turned the Moon into a weapon that could potentially be detonated at any moment, Garlic Junior and his ilk were dead and they were the only ones that knew about it. Without them, the crystal in the Moon served a much better purpose: it absorbed Blutz Waves and allowed Gohan, Gine, and any other Saiyans with tails to go outside at night without fear of transforming into an out-of-control beast.

Kami acquiesced to this request with little provocation and, once he made the wish, Shenron did his magic and restored the Earth. After that, Master Korin and Yajirobe both made their way to the top of the Lookout and treated the injured Z-Fighters to a bag of Senzu Beans. Once those were ingested and each warrior was back on their feet, they all parted on good terms and got back to their normal, relatively mundane lives.

 _A week later, at Capsule Corporation..._

Sitting on the sun deck of the main Capsule Corp building, Yamcha and Bulma sat down together and watched the sunset. As the sun fell below the horizon and cars zoomed by on the road beneath them, they both sighed. Neither really knew what to say here. They both took a deep breath and frantically spoke. " **I think we should break up.** "

They both stared at each other and blushed and then fell silent again. Now, it was really hard to think of anything to say to one another.

But, remembering the talk he and Gine had a few days prior, Yamcha spoke up. "It...it was a nasty thing to do. To...to cheat on you like that. I'm not proud of it. And I'm so, so sorry. I just..."

Bulma interrupted. "Don't. You don't have to beat yourself up. I shouldn't have just shut you out like that. That was stupid and childish and I just..."

They both fell silent again and glanced away from one another. After another long silence, Yamcha nervously chuckled. "Damn. One of my oldest friendships...I never thought it would end like this..."

Bulma cocked her head and then, with all of her strength, punched Yamcha hard on the arm. "Shut up! We're not...not friends anymore. You'll always be my friend, Yamcha. I'll never let that go."

She smiled. "You're still the first boy that I fell for. I'll always treasure that."

Yamcha blushed and smiled back, pressing his index fingers together. "Th-That's great. That's such a relief."

Another silence. And then Yamcha spoke again. "So, can I still live he-"

Bulma cut him off. "We're going to go and find you an apartment tomorrow morning. You can sleep in the waiting room until then."

Yamcha nervously chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "G-Great. That's...great. Super...super great..."

Bulma chuckled and stood up, walking back inside. "Great~!"

And so, Yamcha was sitting there, watching the sunset alone. " _Great..._ "

 _At Kame House..._

Krillin shouted at the tops of his lungs as he sent another Kamehameha plunging into the waters of the ocean in front of him. To his surprise and genuine joy, the blast parted the waters in front of him all the way down to the seafloor for the tenth time in a row.

Krillin jumped up and down, singing his own praises and hooting as loud as he could. "Holy crap! I'm able to do it consistently! Holy crap!"

The monk stopped jumping and flexed his bicep as hard as he could, slapping it with his full strength. "Yeah! We're gettin' there all right! Let any threat come to Earth, I'll kick their butts and send 'em packin'!"

Krillin turned with the widest smile he could, calling over to his teacher. "Hey! Master Roshi! Didja see that?! Didja?!"

But, as Krillin tried to brag, he was left deflated. Rather than watching his pupil train, Master Roshi was just as focused on his exercise tapes as ever. The old pervert laughed out loud, staring and drooling at the bare legs on screen. Krillin blushed as he watched this shameless display. "C-Come on... _Master Roshi_..."

 _In an unnamed mountain range..._

Tien and Chiaotzu were both resting atop their mountain retreat. Chiaotzu was hard at work, tending their crops. Tien, meanwhile, was mediating atop a sheer rock. His mind being so easily overwhelmed by a simple bite to his neck did not sit well with the martial artist. So, now he was prepared to undertake even harsher training in order to seek an even greater depth of spiritual enlightenment.

Simply put, he would not allow something akin to that vampirization to happen to him again.

Unfortunately, Tien was pulled from his meditation as soon as he fell into it. Feeling several dozen ki signatures approaching at once, Tien was met by the sight of martial artists from the various schools that he and Chiaotzu had conquered.

The leader of the group, a student of the Zurin school, clenched his fist. "We've found you! And this time, we will not lose! You will return the emblems to all of our schools! Or we will make you!"

A smile on his face, Tien stood and took his normal Crane-style stance. "You may try if you wish. But, I will address each of you with the fury of a true martial artist!"

The various students all let loose war cries and charged towards Tien. Tien shouted right back at them. And then, a massive brawl broke out. All the while, Chiaotzu tended to his and Tien's crops with an easy-going smile on his face.

 _On Kami's Lookout..._

Kami stared over the side of the Lookout, watching the various humans live their lives, interconnected as one big functioning unit. They were together as a species, as a family. And this sight was resonating with Kami more than ever.

As Mr. Popo worked behind him, restoring the damaged Lookout that he had helped to build so long ago to its former glory, his current master and companion was stuck in a deep thought. Kami had been rather sullen since the visit to the Hermit Spring. In his long, hard look into the waters, Kami was forced to reflect on something that had been on his mind since the battle with Vegeta and Nappa so long ago. A truth that he had been dreading for quite a while now.

Kami was not a being of this Earth. As much as he loved them and cared for them, the humans were not his people. Somewhere out there, in space, Kami's home-world was still spinning. Still stoked by those of his kind that he had never had the pleasure to meet before.

And what was worse was that Kami could feel it in his bones. He did not have much time left in this world...and yet he still had so much left that he had to do.

The Guardian of the Earth stood there, wordlessly contemplative. And, as Mr. Popo fixed the Lookout up, he could not help but to spare a worry for Kami and a bit of wonder for what the old Namekian was thinking.

 _At the Son Family Household..._

On the grounds of the Son Family Household, Gine and Piccolo both took turns sparring with Gohan. Ever since the Makyan Incident, the three of them had taken to doing this every day together. Gine still felt lighter than air, all of the horrid moments in her past that had once weighed her down were little more than blips on her radar at this point. Memories and nothing more than that. And, as a result, she had gained a more wholesome appreciation for the things she was allowed to experience in the present.

Gone was the woman who would tear up at the slightest sentiment. And replacing her was Son Gine, a woman ready to experience her new life as an Earthbound Saiyan to the fullest. This included finding more enjoyment than ever before in training and sparring. For the first time, Gine could see why Bardock and Kakarot found this all so fun~

But no fun thing lasted forever. Soon enough, like clockwork, Chi-Chi emerged from the house and told Gohan that it was time to pick up the books again. Gohan usually did this with no fuss, and this time was no different. He bowed to Gine and Piccolo and then turned tail and ran inside, leaving the Saiyan woman and the Namekian to partake in some slightly more intense training together. As they were about to start, Chi-Chi chuckled and sighed. "Just don't get too banged up! Dinner is in thirty minutes!"

Once Chi-Chi had went back inside, the gloves came off. In an instant, Piccolo had removed his weighted clothing and unleashed his full power. And, with some effort, Gine had summoned her Super Saiyan power. The two of them went at it, clashing with supersonic speeds and wordless fists. They traded blows back and forth, eventually taking their spar into the air.

As that spar continued, Piccolo noticed something odd. He rolled his eyes. "Again? Really?"

He caught Gine's fist and grumbled with disdain as, once again, Gine was cheerfully laughing her head off. The Saiyan woman stifled a chuckle and shook her head. "S-Sorry. Sorry. It's just...Super Saiyan feels really good when you aren't angry. Like a happy little tickle going up and down your spine. And, well, you know..."

Piccolo groaned. "Super Saiyan feels good, eh? I swear...for being such a legend among your people, this form is starting to seem less and less legendary..."

The Namekian let Gine's hand go, and then he took another fighting stance and smiled. "So, how do you think your husband will react to this? Last time I check, he wasn't a Super Saiyan."

Gine shook her head and shrugged, as carefree as she could be. "I'unno. Guess I'll just have to gauge that out and play it by ear when the time comes, huh?"

Piccolo shrugged. "I guess that's one way to do it."

And then, without another word, the two warriors charged at one another again, each of them screaming at the top of their lungs. And, with a smile, they both clashed with one another as hard as they could. Until Goku and the gang came back from space, Piccolo and Gine were the defacto protectors of the Earth. So, they had to each make sure that the other was staying sharp.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	51. Chapter 51: Epilogue

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 51: Epilogue**

 _In a GalacTV broadcast station..._

Faline Phars put on a beaming smile as the camera started rolling, opening her broadcast with a usual flair. "Hello GalacTV nation! I'm your host, Faline Phars! Now let's get right into the news!"

Phars put her packet of papers down and began to speak. "It has been nearly 5 months since the fall of King Cold. And with the frigid tyrant long put on ice, the universe as a whole seems to be rebuilding. Crimes rates are reported to be on a slight up-rise, but the sense of freedom among the masses of our fair universe has reached an even greater high!"

She reached under her desk, pulling out a mug of coffee and taking a long sip. "The future is looking bright people. The tyrants are gone, now we just need to work together to pressure the Galactic Patrol to do a better job of doing their job. Always remember, your voice matters! If we all work together to demand a better quality of life, then the Galactic King will be forced to act!"

She set her mug down. "And... if he will not act, then we as a people can always find a better ruler to replace him~"

From behind the camera, Phars's producer spoke up. "A question coming in from the West Galaxy, Faline. While it true that King Cold and Frieza both appear to be gone for good, there is the matter of the other Prince. In your humble opinion, should the people of the universe fear retaliation from an as of yet unseen threat?"

Faline flinched, nearly choking on her coffee. "N-No. I do not think so. In my excursions to the Southern Galaxy...the other prince has all but faded from the public eye. I... I do not think that anyone has to worry about any measure of revenge from him..."

The producer responded. "A very reassuring answer."

She nodded. "I-Indeed. Now...over to Melissa for the weather! Melissa?"

 _Somewhere in the Western Galaxy..._

In an empty part of western space, a massive interstellar galleon loomed in the hidden haven of an asteroid field. Around this ship, the wrecked remains of several Galactic Patrol ships floated lifelessly. The crew of this ship hooted and hollered, scouring the vessels for parts and treasure, enjoying their haul. Meanwhile, on the deck of the ship, and older gentleman watched on.

On the man's hip, a communication device rang. He picked it up and answered it, seeing a teal skinned man with an orange mohawk and an orange beard on the other end. The older gentlemen spoke with a gruff, ragged voice. "Is your boss done twiddling his thumbs?"

The man on the other end snarled. "You will address the Master with due respect, Namekian."

The older man snarled back. "Stick that attitude up your ass or the deal is off. You and your Heran ilk can pull this job on your own."

The Heran sneered. The old Namekian sneered back. Finally, the Heran relented. "Yes. My Master is ready. Bring your army."

Without a word, the older Namekian closed his communicator and then marched his way into the ship. He walked down the corridors until coming upon the entrance to the Captain's Quarters. He opened the door, not bothering to knock, and found his "leader" sitting slack in his throne, watching the GalacTV news with a wicked smirk on his face. The older Namekian marched up. "If you have time to watch this garbage, then you should be out there commanding your men!"

The younger fellow in the chair chuckled. "Come on, old friend. Don't be sour. This newscast is actually pretty damn exciting~!"

The old Namekian rolled his eyes as his younger counterpart got up. The brash captain walked across the room, dressing himself up as he spoke. "She's right, ya know? Freedom is in the air! King Cold is dead and every person in the universe has never been freer to make their moves! The big fish is dead! Now...all of the sharks are going to rush in to eat its corpse~"

The elder groaned as his young charge went on. "That's great and all. But I feel the need to remind you that we have moves we could be making instead of watching TV. Our allies within the People of Hera, the..."

He spoke with a sarcastic growl, rolling his eyes at the ridiculous sounding name. " _The Galaxy Soldiers_...are ready to go. So, we should start making our way into the Core Galaxy to meet them."

The Captain chuckled, tapping his finger against the electronic piece on his left eye. "Right right. Shouldn't keep ol' Jackie-boy waiting too long. Besides... _I'm ready to rampage again~_ "

 _On an advanced planet in the Northern Galaxy..._

An elderly crone screamed at the top of his lungs, letting his frustration be known to every worker on the manufacturing floor below. "Damn it! Damn it all! I can't believe that he died! And in the middle of his order being filled out too! However shall we be paid now?!"

He slammed the tip of his cane onto the metal grating and made it dent inward. "So many resources wasted on so many good weapons! And King Cold has the absolute gall to be killed?!"

"Calm yourself, _Kochin_."

The crone turned and began to rant at the unseen source of the voice. "But sir! What will we do with these weapons now?! There is no other customer with a deep enough pocketbook to pay us for them!"

The sound of water bubbly erupted out, and then the deeper voice spoke again. "You are correct. However, I have been pondering our options. And, I have come to the conclusion that the cost of the weapons will not be a factor we have to consider...so long as the weapons are put to use in a productive way."

Kochin smiled. "Oh, I see. So, you are saying we use these wasted resources to gather new ones? Hmm?"

"Indeed Kochin. Indeed."

 _On a planet in the Southern Galaxy..._

Cranberry and his pet frog/brother Raspberry sat in a dank, back-alley office waiting for a meeting to secure Cranberry his new job. With the fall of the Cold Force, the brothers were both out of work and needed to find some way to make ends meet. And so, with a Galactic Patrol order out to arrest any members of the once mighty military force on sight, Cranberry had decided to seek out gainful employment as a petty thug for one of the universe's biggest loan sharks.

The door to the back room opened up and a petite woman with massive, thick, round glasses stepped out. "Boss Gryll will see you now."

Cranberry was ushered into a back room, filled wall-to-wall with various goons, and one large gentleman sitting at a desk in the back, reading a newspaper. He looked up from his paper and saw the fish tank in Cranberry's hands. "Who the hell told you that you could bring a damned pet into my establishment?"

Cranberry flinched. "S-Sorry, B-Boss Gryll. He's my...uh...brother..."

Gryll looked down at the frog and then at Cranberry, and then he chuckled. "You Cold Forcers...the big man dies and suddenly all of you weirdos want ol' Gryll to hand you work. Eh?"

The massive shark-man slammed his fist on the table. "Fine! You can join my gang, _Frog_ berry. But you'd best work your ass off to earn your keep!"

Cranberry receded into his chair. "Y-Yes sir, Boss Gryll. Of course, sir."

 _Finally, on the ruins of Planet Cold..._

On the busted ruins of the once mighty Planet Cold, things had degraded quite a bit since the four Saiyans had toppled the wicked King and his evil regime. While the universe as a whole was thankful that King Cold and his foul influence was gone, the people of Planet Cold were a different story.

The remainder of the lower class had no problem to adjusting to a life without King Cold's governance. With so little to lose, they were actually able to pull themselves up from the muck that was once their lives and start fresh and new. The upper class, meanwhile, lost everything. And, as a result, and much different type of war began to play out in the streets of the once proud empirical city.

On the streets, an old woman walked by with her bag of groceries. This walk, however, was interrupted as one of King Cold's former counts leapt from the shadows and shoved the woman to the ground. He pulled an ornate laser pistol from his coat and shouted. "Money! Now! Give it to me you old, gutter-scum, piece of garbage!"

The woman tried to stand. "P-Please...I have no money. Please don't-"

He kicked her in the side, sending her tumbling. "If you have no wealth, you're useless! Die!"

" _Arrêter!_ Cease zis wretched be'avior at once and bow your 'eads!"

The old woman and the former noble both turned to see a teal-skinned, blonde fellow wearing a rather unique take on the armor of an empire soldier: purple spandex with a green, asymmetric breast plate. The noble turned to the person and aimed his gun. "Who do you think you are?! Haven't you heard? King Cold is dead! You people have no power anymore!"

The man responded calmly. "Zink zis over, mon amie."

The noble pulled the trigger and fired a bolt directly at the soldier. In response, the soldier simply smacked the laser bolt into a nearby pile of rubble. The noble gasped, but was immediately seized from behind by two very large hands. These hands lifted him off the ground, pressing their thumbs into his eyes, and squeezed until a crack and a wet splatter rang out and his pitiable screaming stopped.

This new assailant, a large green hulk with long black hair, chuckle. "What a punk!"

He reached down to the bag of groceries on the ground and pulled out an onion, taking a hearty bite. "This planet has gone to shit, huh Sauza?"

A brown, lizard-like creature walked up, picking up the bag and rifling through it. "Dore's right! Look at the state of this place!"

Sauza flipped his hair from his face and sighed. "Quiet yourself, Neiz. You as well, Dore. And stop eating zat old crone's groceries! Return zem to her so zat she may remove 'erself from 'is paz!"

Dore rolled his eyes as he finished the onion. Neiz sighed and reached into his breast plate, pulling out a packet of fruit gummies and dropping them into the bag. "Here you go, lady! I even replaced the food that Dore ate! _Now get lost!_ "

Confused and scared, the old woman did as she was told. She took her bag and fled into a nearby alleyway. As she did, however, she heard those three strange men address their boss. She tried to continue to walk, but curiosity got the better of her. She turned around to see if she could sneak a look at this 'boss'. And, while she did not get to see his face, she was shocked at the brief flash of a purple tail waving back and forth across the ground.

 _Inside the ruins of Castle Cold..._

Cherry and Mato both sat around a fire that they had made, trying to huddle together for warmth. Neither of the hapless soldiers had enjoyed a comfortable night's sleep since the empire had fallen. Not that any of that was their fault with the people they were forced to hang around with.

Cherry grabbed a piece of a once luxurious tapestry and threw it into the waning flames, causing them to flare up again. This, however, drew the ire of one particular housemate. Kikono stepped forward and started to scold. "Soldier! How dare you burn the King's prized possessions?! How dare-"

Cherry held up her hand. "First off, my name isn't soldier. It's Cherry. Second off, shut the hell up Kikono, or I'll throw your ass into the fire next!"

Kikono flinched. "H-How dare you! I am King Cold's most loyal servant, and-"

Cherry snapped back. "King Cold is dead. And your robes smell like stale urine. _Shut the fuck up_ , or I'll make you."

Mato flinched, rubbing his hand over his broken leg. "Geez Cherry. You're in a bad mood, huh?"

Cherry buried her face in her knees. "I'm hungry. I just wanna go home and eat some of my Mom's home cooking..."

Mato frowned and reached over, giving Cherry a calming back rub. This tender moment, however, was interrupted by another fight breaking out between the other too. "Take that morbid crap down! I'm tired of looking at it!"

A large pile of rubble crashed over as Bonyu started to get angry again. "You're wasting time with that nonsense when you could be helping to find food! What is the matter with you?!"

On the other side of the argument, a despondent and teary-eyed Ginyu shouted back at Bonyu. "Mind your own damn business, traitor! Why don't you go back to answering phones or whatever it is you were doing?!"

Bonyu sneered. "I'd rather be answering phones than watching this weird-ass crap! You're worshipping a broken picture of two dead men! I'd almost prefer you going back to striking inane poses!"

Ginyu sounded broken. "What could you find wrong with honoring our fallen lords?!"

Bonyu shouted back. "You're bowing to their picture like it's going to bring them back! You're losing it Ginyu! Going nuts! And it's freaking the rest of us out!"

Ginyu stood. "Then why does no one else complain like you do?!"

Cherry, Mato, and even Kikono were all staying out of this one. They did not want to get between the tempers of the legendary Ginyu Force Captain and the legendary Call Center Captain. As they continued to be silent, Ginyu and Bonyu eventually came to blows, locking up and trying to wrestle one another to the ground.

This embarrassing display, however, was quickly broken up by the voice of an older woman. "Put an end to this miserable display at once! Can you two not see that you are in the presence of a Young Lord?!"

Ginyu and Bonyu both stopped and glanced toward the crumbled entrance to the throne room. Their pupils shrank. Cherry, Mato, and Kikono were all shocked totally speechless. And all five of them immediately kneeled at the sight of the person standing before them.

This person stepped forward, past the five transient soldiers. His tail dragged on the ground behind him as he stared at the shrine Ginyu had made to Frieza and Cold, his steely cold gaze staring at each of the dead tyrants.

Sauza stood to the side, giving his boss a moment, only moving when he scouter began to chirp at him. The soldier nodded and stepped forward, placing his hand over his chest. "My Lord. We 'ave received an encoded message from Faline Phars. She zanks for your concern about 'er well-being. She is fine and looks forward to sitting down and 'aving another private discussion with you."

"Hm."

Sauza continued. "And she insists zat she pay for ze next meal."

After Sauza finished, Ginyu could finally hold his tongue no longer. He rocketed to his feet and stepped up to the Young Lord in front of him. "S-Sir! I am so sorry for my inability to prevent the demise of your father and brother! P-Please! I know where those filthy monkeys are hiding! I can lead them to you so that you may avenge-"

The Young Lord, seemingly ignoring Ginyu, began to glow at the eyes and fired two sets of energy beams towards the portrait. One set of beams burning through King Cold's face and the second set burned through Frieza's. Ginyu gasped and fell backward, landing on his ass.

The others did little more than flinch, staying supplanted at this person's feet. The old woman, a blue alien with pink hair, chuckled. "I see that you have come to a decision Cooler? Have you finally decided how you'll act upon Frieza and Cold's deaths?"

Cooler cracked his neck, stepping forward and surprising everyone by reaching down and offering Ginyu a hand to stand up with. Ginyu took the hand and stepped aside as Cooler continued to walk forward. The brother of Frieza and son of Cold stood where his father's throne once stood and looked through the broken ceiling to the sky above. "Yes Berryblue...I think I have..."

Cooler smiled a very...unreadable smile. "Allowing oneself to be mired in the past halts forward momentum. So... I do believe that we will respond to this loss by advancing in a new direction."

 _ **NEXT TIME, IN CHAPTER 52, THE TRUNKS SAGA BEGINS!**_


	52. Chapter 52: A New Invasion

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: And here we are in a new saga. Please let me know what you think of this one, I would love some feedback on the direction I've chosen for this._

 _Also, because I probably won't have another chapter out before it happens, we're nearing the one year anniversary since I started this. I wonder where we'll be at the end of year two?_

 **Chapter 52: A New Invasion**

 _Mt. Paozu, the Son Family Household_

Two months had passed since the Makyan Invasion of Earth and all had been peaceful since then. Sitting in Gohan's room, a ceiling fan rotating above head and two glasses of iced tea sitting on the nearby table, grandmother and grandson were having a pleasant time working on his schoolwork together.

Gine stroked her chin. "So...X would equal...12?"

Gohan shook his head. "No Grandma. You have to multiply to solve for X, not divide. X would equal 48 in this case."

Gine nodded. "Ah. Sorry. I... uh...rank-and-file soldiers and meat depot workers don't really require this sort of math..."

Gine blushed. Gohan chuckled. "It's fine. You're still really good at geometry~"

Gine sheepishly nodded. "Mhm. _That_ kind of math, right there, is something I used a lot back in the day..."

She leaned back as Gohan continued to scribble down notes and solve problems. "This is nice, ya know?"

Gohan turned to her. "Hmm?"

Gine blissfully smiled. "All of this. Sitting here with you and helping you learn this sort of stuff. I could, you know, get used to this sort of thing. Settle down and learn how to help other children with this kind of stuff~"

Gohan chuckled. "I could see you being a teacher, Grandma! I bet you'd be great with kids."

Gine smiled at her grandson. "Ya think so?"

Gohan nodded. "I know so~!"

 _All around the Earth..._

Peace had set in all around the Earth, the Makyan Invasion being little more than a night terror in most peoples' minds. A quaint air set over the entire planet.

Krillin was still diligently training at Kame House. Yamcha was on the baseball field, developing a new type of pitch. Tien and Chiaotzu sat atop their secluded mountain retreat, taking turns farming and meditating to increase their spiritual might.

And, at Capsule Corporation, Bulma was busily working on a new Capsule vehicle: The Stomp Cycle. Bulma held a cigarette between her lips and fiddled with the hydraulics on the legs. She mumbled to herself as she worked. "Gotta make the legs stiffer...not suitable for mountainous navigation yet...damned weak hydraulics..."

Bulma tightened the bolt holding the hydraulic line in place and, to her shock and annoyance, the line burst from the excess pressure and sprayed hydraulic fluid in her face. Bulma groaned, tossing her ruined cigarette aside. "Ugh...damned hydraulic fluid on everything..."

She turned with a ragged sigh and walked over to her desk, picking up a towel to wipe the greasy fluid from her face. As she did though, a sudden alarm caught Bulma's ear. She looked down at her laptop, touching her finger to the screen and pulling up her special monitoring program. "What the hell?"

Bulma watched the program, her specially develop Capsule SpaceGRiD program, and flinched back as the satellite near Mars sent an alarm signal. "Something is coming towards the Earth. And it's coming really fast too..."

 _In the arctic..._

Piccolo opened his eyes, rousing from a deep meditation. The Namekian warrior glared up into the sky and sensed more deeply the mass of power levels approaching the Earth. "One...no, _two_ -hundred! Two-hundred...and two power levels approaching the Earth."

The Namekian floated into the air and sighed. "It never ends. _I don't know how Goku has the patience for this crap..._ "

 _Back at Mt. Paozu..._

Gohan, Gine, and Chi-Chi all stood outside, staring up into the sky. Gine was absolutely flummoxed. "Two-hundred people?! That's..."

Chi-Chi turned to Gine, worried. "Is it that King Cold guy?"

Gine shook her head. "Definitely not. King Cold wouldn't invade with any less than 10,000. Unless he had one of his sons with him. But, Frieza's dead and I definitely don't sense Cooler on that ship..."

She cocked her head. "As a matter of fact, I don't sense anything close to a member of Frieza's clan on board. But...there are two Ginyu Force caliber power levels..."

Gohan walked up to his grandmother. "So, what do we do Grandma Gine?!"

Gine sighed. "Well...an army of two-hundred is an army of two-hundred. So, I would say that studying and housework should be put on the backburner at the moment."

She turned to her grandson and daughter-in-law. "You two up for a little side trip?"

Gohan smirked, looking excited for a little bit of action. "Yeah! I'm ready! Just let me go and change really quick!"

Gohan ran back inside, his yellow overcoat billowing around as he did. Chi-Chi and Gine looked at each other. Chi-Chi seemed worried. "Are...Are you sure this isn't too dangerous, Gine?"

Gine shook her head. "It's fine. There are a lot of them, but most of them don't even top 800 from the feel of things. They could do some damage if they're allowed to run loose, but..."

Gine winked and shot a finger gun at Chi-Chi. "I think we got this."

Chi-Chi flinched back, but then she smiled and let loose a playful chuckle. "Well, if that's the case, then..."

Chi-Chi unclasped her house dress, tossing it aside to reveal her training outfit underneath. She chuckled and started stretching her arms. "You said they're at an average of 800, right? I think I'll come along and have a nice, little workout."

"You're coming too, Mom?"

Gine and Chi-Chi turned to see that Gohan had returned, dressed in his freshly repaired Saiyan armor. The boy had a cheerful smile on his face. "You're going to come and fight alongside us?"

Chi-Chi nodded with a smile. "Of course, I am! I can't just let my family go out and have all the fun! Not again! Unless I'm turned into a vampire again, of course..."

Chi-Chi's face turned into worry. "...they aren't going to turn me into a vampire again, are they?"

Gine rolled her eyes and chuckled, rising into the air with Gohan and Chi-Chi following behind her. Chi-Chi sounded a bit panicked. "G-Gine?!"

Gine shook her head. "No, Chi-Chi, there are no Makyans in the Frieza For-"

Gine paused. "...Oh, hey Piccolo! You sense it too?"

Chi-Chi cocked her head. Gohan turned to his mother. "Mr. Piccolo is speaking to Grandma Gine with telepathy."

She nodded. "Oh, okay. Telepathy. I always forget that Piccolo can do that."

Meanwhile, Gine continued her mental conversation with Piccolo. " _So yeah, nobody in this sudden army can even TOUCH us, much less cause any sort of harm._ "

Piccolo responded. " _Agreed. I contacted all of the others to tell them to get to the spot it seems like they're going land. If we can all meet this head on, these invaders don't stand a chance._ "

Gine smiled. " _Yeah. Gohan and Chi-Chi are coming too. So, everything should be fine._ "

 _A bit later, in the Northern Wastelands..._

Gine, Gohan, and Chi-Chi all landed onto a nearby rocky platform, finding that the others had already arrived on the scene. Gohan immediately ran up to Piccolo and began to chat with him and Krillin. Gine and Chi-Chi, meanwhile, started a chat with Tien and Chiaotzu.

After a few minutes, Yamcha finally joined them. "S-Sorry guys! The team manager wouldn't let me leave right away."

Piccolo rolled his eyes, grumbling under his breath. "Well, now that we're all here, it's time to discuss a battle plan."

The Namekian warrior turned to address his fellow fighters. "Nobody on that ship is that much of a threat, battle power-wise. So, it should be simple enough to...what the hell are _you_ doing here?!"

Everyone flinched at Piccolo's sudden, harsh tone. They all turned to see who he was talking to and were collectively shocked to see Bulma riding up on her Capsule Cycle. She stopped the bike and stepped off, pulling off her helmet and waving at her friends. "Hey guys! Wassup!"

Yamcha flinched and stammered. "H-Hey Bulma. What are you doing here?"

Bulma flipped her hair. "My sensors went off to tell me that a ship of some kind was approaching. I tried to call ahead, but none of you answered your phones, so I assumed you were all here."

She reached into her back pocket and pulled out Capsule Case. Bulma pulled a pink-labelled capsule. With a click and a poof, a camera appeared in Bulma's hand. She chuckled. "I'm here because it seems like some cool alien tech is about to land!"

Piccolo growled. "That's a stupid reason to be here. Get lost."

Bulma planted her fists onto her hips. "Why should I? You just said that no one on that ship is any sort of threat to you guys, right? So, it's simple! While you all fight, I can sneak around and stea... _examine_ the stuff that these guys have brought with them~"

Piccolo rolled his eyes and turned away from the group, marching away from the group. "Whatever."

Gohan called out and gave chase. "Mr. Piccolo! Wait!"

Krillin chuckled as the kid chased after the Namekian. And then, he turned to Bulma. "Hey. It might get a bit hairy with all of the people on that ship, Bulma. Are you sure you wanna be hear for all of that?"

Bulma shrugged. "I was on the frontlines for the fight with Frieza, right? I should be alright here."

Tien cocked his head. "What is it you even hope to gain from this?"

Bulma fiddled with her camera. "There were all sorts of technology on Frieza's ship that I wanted to take, but it was all ruined when Frieza blasted the damned thing. A lot of that stuff could be used to make life better for people here on Earth. Make some real leaps and bounds in the technology department, ya know?"

Gine smiled. "That's pretty noble Bulma. I think you could-"

All at once, all of the warriors snapped their attention to the sky above. After a moment, a Frieza Force ship broke through the cloud high above and coasted through the sky, landing over some mountains in the distance. Gine nodded. "Okay, time to get serious."

She pointed at the others, one-by-one. "Krillin, Gohan, Chi-Chi, Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu. You all split up and be prepared to welcome the soldiers aboard that ship. They're probably going to split up and try to go and destroy the nearest cities they can. So be prepared for that!"

Chiaotzu nodded. "Y-Yes ma'am! And what about those two big powers?"

Gine pointed to Piccolo. "He and I will take care of them."

The Saiyan mother started walking over to Piccolo. She turned and called back to the last member of their group. "Bulma! You can stick around to harvest technology if you want. Just try to stay out of trouble. I don't want you getting hurt or killed, okay?"

Bulma nodded. "Yes ma'am, Miss Gine!"

Gine clapped her hands. "Okay everybody! Break!"

 _Over the mountain, at the landing sight..._

Coming to a rest upon the barren ground, the Frieza Force ship opened up and all two-hundred troops immediately filed out, forming five, single-file lines of forty troops each. They all stood in attention, waiting for their commanders to emerge.

Both of the commanders emerged from the ship, the sun shiny down on their round, somewhat gelatinous forms. The two of them stood side-by-side, one blue and one red, and observed their men. The blue one looked up and squinted at the sun. "The day-star on this planet is unbearable..."

The red one chuckled. "Well Bro, look on the bright side. At least we won't be here long."

The blue one nodded. "True. Very true."

And then, he thrust his hand out towards his men. "Okay troops! You know what we're here for! We're going to avenge Lord Frieza's death! Blood for blood!"

The red one thrust out his hand. "Oh yeah! So, you all know what to do! Go into every Earth city you can find and raze it to the ground! Don't leave a single piece of Earthling scum left alive!"

They both withdrew their hands and then thrust them forward again, this time with their pointer fingers extended. The two spoke in tandem. " _Now get going!_ "

The troops all howled in pleasure and immediately split into four groups of fifty, each speeding off in a different cardinal direction. The blue one turned to the red one. "Now then, Kado. How about we go and hunt down some Saiyan filth~"

Kado chuckled. "Oh yeah! Let's go smash 'em, Abo!"

Abo began to step forward, his brother following. But he quickly came to a stop. "Wait! We forgot the secret weapon!"

Kado gasped. "That's right! We can't forget that!"

They both turned and started walking back to the ship, but then a feminine voice called out to them. "Hey, you two!"

Abo and Kado both turned to see Gine and Piccolo standing atop a nearby rock pillar. Abo stared at the two of them for a second, noticing the green skin and the freely moving tail. He chuckled. "Hey Kado! We don't even have to go and look! _They came to us~_ "

Kado scratched the back of his head. "Y-You think they got the others?"

Abo shook his head. "Nah! The Scouters would have picked that up. I'm sure the others are slaughtering Earthlings as we speak!"

 _To the North..._

One of the troops cried out as suddenly his movements were totally halted. "What kind of Guldo bullshit is thi-"

Chiaotzu cut him off with a sharp kick to the throat before slapping him to the ground below. Off in the distance, Tien's multiform clones were each handing an individual beatdown to several soldiers at once. The primary Tien grabbed one of them by the side of the head and smashed him hard against his knee.

Tien dropped the unconscious soldier to the ground. "This is easy. _Too easy_. Something about all of this feels off..."

 _To the West..._

A soldier charged, screaming at the top of his lungs. He threw a punch at the Earthling that had dared to impede their destructive campaign, and was met by a harsh fist to the gut for his troubles. He buckled to the ground and Yamcha smirked, rubbing his thumb across his nose. "Come on, guys! You can do better than that!"

Another charged and he and Yamcha began to spar, it immediately becoming clear who the better man was. While this was happening, a soldier with a hand blaster scaled to the top of some nearby rocks and pointed his target reticle directly at Yamcha's head. "Time to die, Earth scum~"

He fired his shot but then, to his shock, Yamcha caught the energy bolt, winded up, and pitched it straight back into his face. The soldier fell from the rock to the ground below and Yamcha chuckled to himself. "Damn I'm good~"

 _To the East..._

Krillin landed on top of a soldier's head, reaching down and knocking on the glass of his helmet visor. The perplexed soldier looked up and tried to swipe at Krillin, but the monk easily dodged and sent him flying into his comrades with a harsh kick.

A big, brutish soldier came rushing in from the back, but Krillin was ready. Quick as lightning, he delivered seven kicks, a punch to the face, and then an overhead axe-kick to bring the oaf down. Krillin cracked his neck and leapt into the air to dodge several blasts. "This is pathetic. Is this, like, Frieza's C-Team or what?"

 _To the South..._

A soldier screamed in frustration as he was sent skidding backwards with a fresh boot mark across his face. "It's just a woman, guys! How are we having this much trouble with a wo-"

Immediately, all of the air was pushed from his lungs. His feet slid out from under him and he was sent flying back with a palm thrust to his chin. The other soldiers all stood in a circle, unnerved by their opponent. Chi-Chi stood between them all, her left hand gripped into a fist at her side and her right hand fully extended and ready to strike. "Come on! Who's next? I've been training with my mother-in-law for months for something like this! I'll take all of you on!"

One of the soldiers buried his face in his hands. "What the hell is going on this planet?!"

Immediately, he was bowled over by one of his comrades crashing into him from behind. Chi-Chi turned and glared. "Gohan!"

Gohan flinched, he himself surrounded by a circle of angry and confused troops. "S-Sorry Mom! Did I hit one of yours?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yes, you did! And I know I taught you better than that, young man! We share equally in our household! So, what do we do now?"

Gohan pressed his fingers together. "Umm...you get one of my twenty-five?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "That's right! Good boy!"

One of Chi-Chi's opponents slumped over, his face looking hollow. "No, _seriously_! What the hell is going on here?!"

 _Back at the ship landing..._

Gine cocked her head. The longer she stared at these two...the more and more familiar they started to look. The Saiyan woman stroked her chin and mumbled to herself. "I... I know that I know these two from... _somewhere_..."

Piccolo was stern and silent. He whipped his cape and turban off and tossed them to the side.

As the two of them stood there, their opponents immediately made their presence known. The blue on struck a pose, splaying his hands out in a pathetic imitation of Captain Ginyu's signature flair. "Traitors to Frieza beware! For I am the almighty, aggressive arbitrator! I am Abo!"

The red one did a similar, awkward pose. "Offenders to Frieza beware! For I am the kingly cream of the crop! I am Kado!"

The spoke in tandem, both of them adopting an evil, cocky smile. "We are the leaders of the Avocado Special Squad!"

Abo chuckled. "Lord Frieza's second most decorated field unit!"

Kado pumped his fists. "Second only to the overrated Ginyu Force in terms of value to the almighty Frieza!"

They spoke in tandem again. "And we are here to rain a mass extinction down upon this miserable planet!"

Gine flinched back. "A-Abo and Kado...I..."

She cocked her head. " _I still don't remember who these two creeps are..._ "

Piccolo growled, cracking his neck. "I still don't care."

Gine tapped her finger to her lower lip. "I... I'm pretty sure King Cold had two bootlicking yes-men that were blue and red... a couple of decades ago... I think..."

She scratched her head. "I don't remember them being anywhere near Captain Ginyu though..."

A vein popped out of Abo's head. "Speak ill while you still have a tongue, monkey! That won't be for much longer!"

Kado snarled. "Yeah! Cuz we're gonna tear you apart!"

One again, speaking in tandem. " _Because we are the leaders of the Avocad-_ "

They were both cut off by a sudden assault. Abo was slugged across the face by a brutal left hook from Piccolo and Kado was sent flying by a hefty punch to the chest from Gine. The two of them went flying back, their fat, jiggly bodies bouncing across the ground until the both smashed into the side of their ship.

Gine flinched as the two of them crashed through the side. "T-That felt like a cheap shot..."

Piccolo shook his head. "What is this, a tournament? There are no cheap shots in a desert fight. Especially when your opponents are threatening a mass genocide."

Gine nodded. "I know. I know. It's just...they're so outmatched. Like...going Super Saiyan for this would be overkill..."

Abo and Kado both shakily stood, Abo spitting a tooth out and snarling. "Y-You think just because the two of you got a lucky shot that you're suddenly on top in this fight?!"

Kado was wheezing. "Y-Yeah. Wh-What he said. Y-You haven't w-won this y-yet..."

The two of them went charging again, but Piccolo and Gine barely had to react. Piccolo slammed his elbow down on Abo's head, brutally smashing him into the ground and making the earth shatter beneath him. Kado gasped, his eyes bugging out, and Gine caught him with a gentle, but forceful kick to the face. Kado fell back and instantly began to shake in fear. "Wh-What the hell is going on here?!"

Abo pushed himself up, his face streaked with fear. "How are you two so strong?!"

Piccolo cocked his head incredulously. "How do you idiots think Frieza was defeated? Common cold? Poisoned soup? Did you come here thinking we snuck up behind him and pushed him down a flight of stairs?"

Gine nervously smiled, a sweat drop sliding down the side of her head. "I... I don't really know what to say. He's got a point. What did you two really think was going to happen when you came here?"

Abo chuckled. "You think that we weren't prepared for a bit of resistance?! Puh-lease!"

The rotund, blue alien pressed his finger against his Scouter, the lens completely broken off but the communicator still functioning. "Everyone! Scrap the genocide plan for now! Get back here and assist us in killing Lord Frieza's murderers!"

No response. Abo pressed the button again. "Men? Hello?!"

Kado pressed the button on his Scouter. "G-Guys?!"

 _At various points across the wasteland..._

Abo and Kado's men all lay prostrate at various points across the wasteland. Yamcha sat atop a rock, admiring his work. Krillin had his hands clasped in front of him, honoring his fallen enemies with a little prayer. Tien stood stalwart as Chiaotzu bound their fallen foes with a rope behind him. He was still uneasy about something in all of this. Chi-Chi was squat down in the middle of a ring of fallen soldiers, gently assuring Gohan that she was okay as her son doted on a bruise on Chi-Chi's cheek.

It was a total defeat for the Avocado Special Squad.

 _Back at the spaceship landing site..._

Abo and Kado were both speechless as they sat there, Gine and Piccolo standing victorious over them. They both suddenly felt very, very small. Gine sighed, putting on her best smile in spite of the awkward situation, and tried to be civil. "So, where do we go from here fellas?"

Piccolo extended his hand, pointing it at Abo. "Let's just kill them and get it over with."

Gine calmly reached out, placing her hand on top of Piccolo's wrist and pushing it down. "Let's not be so quick with the violence."

She stepped forward, kneeling down. "Abo, Kado, listen to me. You came here to avenge Frieza, right?"

Kado stammered. "H-Him and King Cold..."

Gine flinched back a bit, her eyebrows raising. But she continued on. "Well, just think about it this way. You've been working under Frieza and his family for the longest time. Committing acts of cruelty and hatred. Wouldn't just be nice to, ya know, not do that anymore."

The both of them flinched. Gine continued. "I'm not one for bloodshed. I'd prefer not to kill or harm unless it's absolutely necessary. You too aren't threats. Not on this planet. Not with us here. So... why not just leave? Go and start a new, peaceful life somewhere. It's such a beautiful universe out there. Surely...you could find something to do other than seek revenge for a tyrant that wouldn't do the same for you if you were the ones who died..."

Both of them were silent. Gine shot them a sympathetic smile. "No one has to be what Frieza or King Cold made them be. It's never too late to change. So... just go and gather your men and leave. Okay?"

Abo and Kado looked long and hard at Gine's sympathetic smile. And then they looked past her at Piccolo's grim expression, their faces reflected in the steely eyes of a killer. And then, the two of them looked at one another. Kado sighed. "O-Okay..."

Abo stood. "We will now retreat back to our ship."

And, with that, the two of them both marched directly back to their ship, and disappeared into the doorway.

Gine turned to Piccolo, a cheerful smile on her face. "See? Everything ended peacefully and uneventful. And it doesn't feel like anyone had to die either. Now Abo and Kado can just gather their troops and leave and we'll never have to hear from them again!"

Piccolo skeptically stared over at Abo and Kado's ship, noticing that the door hatch had yet to close. "Uh-huh..."

Gine was upbeat. "Piccolo. Come on. You have to appreciate the little things in life. We managed to solve this problem without having to take any lives. Doesn't that feel good?"

Piccolo remained silent. Gine asked again. "Doesn't it?"

And then an energy blast hit Gine dead center in the back. Gine tensed up, her eyes squinted, and let loose a sharp, annoyed burst of air from her nose. Gine let loose a ragged sigh. "That...wasn't one of our friends playing a joke, was it?"

Piccolo smirked, amusement in his voice. "What do you think?"

Gine opened her eyes and turned, glaring back at Abo and Kado. The two of them stood there, in front of their ship, with dreadful smirks on their faces. Gine sighed. "Really?! What was the point of that?!"

Abo chuckled. "The point, monkey, was to let you know that we aren't finished yet!"

Kado chuckled as well. "We still have a secret weapon that you couldn't possibly imagine!"

Piccolo shook his head. "A secret weapon? Like what? Unless you happen to have a couple of clones of Frieza on that little ship of yours, I guarantee that this little resurgence isn't going to end well for you."

Abo chuckled. "We might not have an clones of Lord Frieza on our ship, Namekian..."

Kado sneered. "...but we have something that's going to throw you for a loop~"

Piccolo and Gine noticed the unshaken amount of confidence in both Abo and Kado's voices and, using caution, they each took a fighting stance. Abo and Kado both let loose one more hearty laugh, and then Kado produced a bag. They both reached into the bag and then, to Gine and Piccolo's confusion, the two Frieza Forcers each pulled out a massive, lumpy red fruit, almost resembling a rotten lychee.

Gine cocked her head. "Your secret weapon is a fruit?"

Abo smirked. " _YES, IT IS!_ "

He took a massive bite. Kado snarled. " _NOW DIE YOU PIECES OF TRASH!_ "

He bit into the fruit as well. The two of them both finished their meal and, for a brief moment, it seemed like nothing had changed. And then the two of them began to erupt with dark energy, their power levels sky-rocketing!

Piccolo and Gine both flinched back. This was an unexpected turn of events. Suddenly, Abo and Kado went from being slightly weaker than Captain Ginyu to above the power of Frieza's First Form. And their power only continued to rise from there! A malevolent, howling aura surrounded the two of them, sounding like an embittered shriek directly from Hell. Abo and Kado both smirked, and then they launched themselves forward and clashed with Piccolo and Gine once more.

This time, the battle was not quite so one-sided. Abo and Kado were much faster and much stronger than before, their blows actually having some impact on Gine and Piccolo. Kado roared, his knew power sending him into a blind rage, and kicked Gine in the face. She stumbled back and he leapt into the air, slamming down on her and stomping her face into the rock. Abo drew his arm back and, with a scream of his own, chopped Piccolo's left forearm off in one swift motion. Piccolo roared in pain and frustration, doubling over in pain as Abo and Kado leapt back.

The two of them were satisfied at their first assault, glowering at Piccolo and Gine as their power levels continued to scale up.

As Abo and Kado shuddered under the heft of their steadily rising power levels, Piccolo and Gine regrouped. Gine stood, coughing up a bit of blood and shooting a bit more out of her left nostril. "Damn it..."

Piccolo roared in anger and regrew his missing arm. The two of them looked at one another, to their increasingly stronger foes, and then back to one another. They both nodded. It was time to end this quickly. And so, with that, Piccolo unfurled his full power and Gine went Super Saiyan. And then the four fighters all charged at one another. The battle continued on.

 _Meanwhile, across the wasteland..._

Everyone felt it all at once. Yamcha, Krillin, Tien and Chiaotzu, Gohan and Chi-Chi. They all felt that same, sudden snap back towards Abo and Kado's ship. Out of nowhere, the pressure of the two aliens power levels became as heavy as a boulder, pressuring down upon the entire Northern Wasteland.

Krillin stared into the distance, his jaw slack in disbelief. "Wh-What the hell?! Where did those guys get all of that power from?"

One the ground, one of Abo and Kado's men gasped as his Scouter started to beep. Krillin looked down and saw that the soldier's face was as white as a sheet. "N-No way...did those two really eat that shady fruit?!"

Krillin flinched. " _Sh-Shady fruit?_ "

 _Back at the battlefield..._

Radiating with golden light, Gine clashed with Abo. Their fists smashed into one another and sent out a sonic boom so powerful it fissured the ground beneath their feet. Gine's empathy and caring nature had to, as much as she hated it, take a backseat for now. This fight somehow just went from one of the easiest victories of the poor woman's life to one of the most challenging fights she had ever actively participated in. Gine slugged Abo across the face, but the blue blimp responded with a vicious headbutt right to the center of Gine's forehead.

Piccolo, meanwhile, had shifted his attention over to Kado. The two of them fought, with Kado's power steadily getting closer to Frieza at 100%. Piccolo was furious that they hadn't just killed these two when he wanted to, having to deal with this foolishness as a result.

Taking another heavy shot to the face, Gine snarled. "That's it!"

She returned with several heavy hits of her own, drawing strength from deep down, before thrusting her hands into Abo's face. " _NUTURE CANNON!_ "

The giant blast engulfed Abo, who screamed in pain, and shot him directly downwards and into the ground. Kado gasped, glancing over at Gine's massive blast. "B-Brother!"

Piccolo took immediately advantage, punching Kado in the throat before firing a Destructive Wave pointblank. Kado was engulfed and his body sent flying backwards, crashing into Gine's massive blast and creating an even bigger explosion in the process. The massive explosion not only swallowed Abo and Kado deep within, but also swallowed up their spaceship along with them. Once all was said and done, only a massive, smoking crater remained where the ship once stood.

Piccolo sighed in relief. He could no longer feel Abo or Kado's energy. It seemed as if it was all over. Gine landed next to her Namekian comrade, letting her Super Saiyan form disperse. She was exhausted. "That was...that was a... that was a lot of energy to expend all at once..."

Piccolo glanced down into the crater. "At least it seems to have killed them."

As the two of them glanced down into the crater, their comrades all started flocking back towards them. Krillin arrived first, looking frantic. This was followed by Yamcha, and then Tien and Chiaotzu, and finally Gohan and Chi-Chi. All of the warriors of Earth gathered around the crater and stared into it cautiously. Yamcha spoke up. "Y-You think they're both dead? They felt super powerful when I was rushing back over here, so-"

As Yamcha was saying that, two massive blasts shot out from beneath the rubble in the crater. One was red, the other blue. Following this, a red flash and a blue flash leapt from the bottom of the crater and stood on the other side. It was Abo and Kado, both heavily damaged.

The two aliens glared at their enemies, standing on the far side of the crater from them. Abo snarled in frustration. "D-Dammit! That damned, lying Namekian bastard! He told us that these fruit would make us invincible when he sold them to us!"

Piccolo flinched. " _Namekian?_ "

Kado placed his hand on his brother's shoulder. "It's not over bro! Not yet! I can...I can still feel so much power inside of me! The Namekian didn't lie to us! We have the power! We just have to let it all out, all at once!"

Abo turned to Kado. "You think so?"

Kado smirked. "Yeah! Let's give it our all and kill these maggots!"

The both of them started screaming again, making their full battle power rise to the surface. The Z-Fighters on the other side of the crater all took fighting stances. Gine summoned her Super Saiyan power once again. Piccolo sneered. "Come on already! This is getting ridiculous!"

Abo shouted, a hurricane of dark energy forming around him. " _FOR THE GLORY OF LORD FRIEZA!_ "

Kado shouted as well, a vortex of wicked power engulfing him. " _FOR THE GLORY OF KING COLD!_ "

The both spoke in tandem, their unnatural power pouring from them. " _ **WE WILL NOW END YOUR MISERABLE LIVES!**_ "

And then, once again, something strange and unexpected occurred. Suddenly, Abo and Kado's power went from so high it seemed to eclipse Frieza, to nearly zero. Both of them began to tremble, the dark energy still flaring out from them in small bursts. Abo shakily looked down at his hand. "Wh-What?"

And then his hand began to melt, flesh and muscle and bone all reduced to one, unidentifiable, blue slurry. Abo screeched in fear. " _WHAT?!_ "

Abo fell to his knees, screeching and screaming in shock and horror and pain. Kado ran over to his brother. "Abo! What's wrong?"

Kado placed his hand on his brother's shoulder, only for it to ripple and pop like a ketchup-filled balloon. Kado screamed in confusion. " _Wh-Wh-Wh-WHAT THE HELL?!_ "

On the other side of the crater, the Z-Fighters could only watch on in confusion and horror as their newest foes seemingly melted in front of them. Chi-Chi, feeling as if she was going to be sick, clamped her hands over Gohan's eyes. "What's happening to them?!"

Chiaotzu stammered. "They're...they're turning into puddles..."

Piccolo sneered. "Those fruit that they ate...whatever those fruit were granted them so much power. Too much power it seems. Their bodies weren't ready for the strain. And now..."

Gine finished. "They're paying the price..."

Abo and Kado had both lost most of their physical forms. They were both still erupting with the power that the fruit had provided, but they were both also reduced to little more than quivering puddles of red and blue jelly at this point. Kado weakly called out, the fear in his voice overpowering all else. " _M-Mama! Mama...help...me..._ "

Abo screamed in pain and fear one last time, still unable to comprehend what was happening to him. " _W-What the hell...was...that...f..ru...it...?_ "

All went quiet, Abo and Kado were both gone. Reduced to puddles that were still shooting off dark energy. The red and blue piles of liquid flesh that had once composed them was sliding down the edge of the crater, melding together in purple as it pooled at the very bottom. Everyone was stunned speechless as they watched this all happen. Gine stared horrified at the massive puddle of liquid flesh, still shooting off a column of black energy.

As everyone stood there, struggling to form any sort of words to describe what they had just been forced to witness, they were suddenly met by the shrill sound of a familiar voice. " _WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON OVER HERE?!_ "

Krillin and Yamcha both turned to see Bulma pulling up on her Capsule Bike. She dismounted and ran up to the group, frantically looking around. "Guys! Where's the ship?! Please don't tell me it got caught in whatever the hell that explosion was!"

Yamcha shook his head. "B-Bulma. Not now, okay? We...uh..."

Bulma looked down the line, seeing that everyone was slightly green in the face. "What's the problem guys? What happened?"

Tien's mouth was dry. He swallowed a massive lump in his throat and turned to Bulma. "Please. Just...stop for a second, okay? We all just had to watch-"

With an audible frothing noise, the purple goo at the bottom of the crater sudden began to violently spasm and twitch. Everyone flinched back in shock. Piccolo snarled. "Oh hell, what could it possibly be now?!"

Gohan pulled Chi-Chi's hands from over his eyes. "What?! What's going on?!"

The purple goo began to twitch more and more, twitch and spasm violently. It rose up into a column and then fell. And then it tried to rise up again. At this point, alongside the unnatural movement, the puddle of melted flesh began to scream as, to the horror of everyone above it, it began to take a vaguely person-shaped form. The mass of flesh gurgled and screeched in pain, arms and legs roughly forming from it.

Soon after, more detailed features began to emerge. Eyes caved in and a massive hole in the round mound atop the puddle's shoulders formed a mouth that more clearly allowed the sounds of screaming to come through. Pretty soon after, the two distinct screaming voices merged into one screaming voice. And finally, it all began to solidify back into a singular being.

This new creature stood there, a column of black energy still erupting from its body. It had a distorted, bottom-heavy frame with a massive, bloated jaw covered in fleshy spikes. It was naked, but featured no genitalia. And the spaces where eyes were supposed to go were little more than pitch-black pits. This being threw its head back, looking at nobody in particular, and then it screamed in a distorted, hellish voice at the top of its lungs. " _ **A-KAH!**_ "

And with that scream came a massive explosion. A wave of energy shredded all across the Northern Wasteland, swallowing and killing all of Abo and Kado's beaten troops along with it. The blast could be seen from space as a massive cone of black energy erupted from the Earth.

A few minute later, about a mile away from the battlefield...

Shakily, Bulma pushed herself up from beneath the pile of sand that she had been buried under. In her mind, the last flashes of what she saw before the explosion went through her mind. She groaned. "My head..."

She recalled Chiaotzu screaming about what to do, and someone screaming that herself and Chi-Chi needed to be shielded from the blast. And then she felt the cold snap of Chiaotzu's psychic energy around her. And then it was blank.

Bulma looked up. "What ha-"

She was rendered speechless. Bulma shakily stood up and saw, to her shock and horror, a massive mushroom cloud rising from the center of the explosion. "Oh no..."

Bulma frantically started dashing towards it. " _EVERYONE!_ "

 _Back on the battlefield..._

Everyone laid around the now much larger than before crater, most of them buried to some degree in sand. Chi-Chi groaned, feeling the warm trickle of blood pouring down her head. She shakily sat up and found, to her shock, a damaged Piccolo lying atop her. "You shielded me from the blast..."

She gave him a shake. "Piccolo...thank you..."

She looked over, across the battlefield, and saw that everyone else was pretty banged up as well. Tien and Yamcha and Krillin and Chiaotzu all laid, half-buried. Gine was embedded in a nearby rock, her head hanging limp. And Gohan was lying a bit of a way away, nearer to the mushroom cloud than any of them. Chi-Chi struggled to push Piccolo off of herself. " _Gohan..._ "

As Chi-Chi struggled to move, however, the sound of a deep, bellowing laugh made her blood run ice cold. From within the plume of smoke, that purple monster, Akah, stepped out. He still had that column of sickly, black power rising from his body. His footsteps, as he walked, seemed to make the entire Earth quake under the sheer force of his rancid, overflowing might.

The beast sniffed the air, and then he smiled. He immediately turned and began to plod towards Gohan, the boy being the closest to him. Chi-Chi's pupils shrunk. " _Gohan..._ "

Akah reached down and grabbed Gohan by the ankle, plucking him from the sand like a carrot. Chi-Chi tried to stand, but her legs felt like jelly. " _Gohan!_ "

Gohan was still dazed, unsure of what was happening. Akah held his open palm next to the boy's head and began to charge a blast. Chi-Chi felt the power in the blast and shuddered. That was enough power to kill her son. " _GOHAN! GOHAN NO! WAKE UP! GOHAN!_ "

The sound of Chi-Chi's frantic screeches made the others all slowly stir. Shakily, each of them pushed themselves up and looked towards the source of the power. And they all caught an eye-full of Akah readying himself to blow Gohan's head off.

Krillin gasped and got to his feet. "No!"

Yamcha did as well. "Dammit!"

Tien as well. "Put him down you bastard!"

And Chiaotzu. "Stop!"

And Gine. "No! Please don't!"

And finally, Piccolo. " _ **GOHAN!**_ "

Akah bellowed, his laugh demonic, and prepared to fire the blast that would end Gohan's life.

 _ ***SLASH***_

Akah screamed in pain, the arm charging the blast suddenly no longer in place. As they purple appendage flopped to the floor and exploded into a purple puddle, the monster stumbled back. Rancid, black energy streamed from his arm like a faucet and, in his pained confusion, Akah let loose his grip on Gohan.

The boy fell, still not entirely aware of what was going on, only to be caught and held close. Whoever was holding him felt warm, but Gohan didn't recognize them. Not the energy signature, nor the scent, nor the feeling of denim against his skin.

Hearing the piercing sound of Akah screaming in the background, Gohan looked up and observed an unfamiliar face: a fairly strong-looking young man with a mop of neatly trimmed purple hair and piercing blue eyes.

Gohan was confused, but the young man smiled warmly down at him. "It's okay. You're okay, Gohan."

Gently, the purple-haired young man set Gohan down in the sand before carefully stepping over him and marching directly towards the beast. Gohan looked towards his savior and got a better view: a blue, denim jacket with Capsule Corp patches on the shoulder, a pair of baggy, gray pants with yellow work boots, a massive, sword sheath strapped tightly to his back which he gingerly deposited his blade into as he approached the vile Akah.

Just who was this person?

The purple-haired youth walked up to Akah and placed his hands into his pockets. The monster responded by screaming right in his face. The youth responded with a smile and a chuckle. "You're Akah huh? I've heard about you in stories..."

The boy's eyes were closed. He shook his head. "You can roar in my face all you want to, monster..."

He opened his eyes to reveal that they had shifted from a piercing blue to a distinctive emerald green. "This will all be over in a flash!"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	53. Chapter 53: Premonitions of the Future

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 53: Premonitions of the Future**

 _In the Northern Wastelands..._

With a mighty shout, the mysterious young man with the sword unleashed his full power. The Z-Fighters all shielded themselves as the boy kicked up dust. He was quite strong. Yamcha chuckled. "Well, isn't this nice! We have someone strong coming to help us for once!"

Yamcha's joke went over everyone's heads as they were all distracted. Tien, Chiaotzu, and Krillin all stared on as the boy's power surged. Chi-Chi braced herself, as she ran up to Gohan, laying over him to protect him from debris. Piccolo and Gine, meanwhile, both attuned their senses to feel out this stranger's power. Something about this all felt strange...and yet so familiar.

And then, the boy shouted even louder and let his full power explode out. The brightness of the energy surge forced all of the Z-Fighters to shield their eyes and the force knocked the confused and furious Akah onto his back. After this, all fell silent.

The Z-Fighters slowly opened their eyes and Akah leapt back to his feet. And what the Z-Fighters saw threw them all for a loop. Gine gasped. " _Wh-What the heck?!_ "

The humans all gasped. Piccolo braced himself. "Well...this is certainly unexpected..."

Standing before them, glowing with golden light, was the mysterious youth. His hair flickered above his head like shining fire, his aura surging around him. Whoever this boy was, one thing was apparent: somehow, he was a Super Saiyan.

Akah snarled, hot breath hissing from his mouth. He glowered over the boy; the boy didn't falter. He held up with hand and gave a "come hither" gesture. "Bring it on, big guy."

And bring it on he did. Akah furiously roared and charged at the mysterious boy like an unrelenting freight train. He crashed his spiky forearms into the boy, but was stopped dead in his tracks. The youth smirked at Akah and Akah snarled back at him. The massive brute reared back and threw a punch, wildly missing and collapsing to his knees. The boy responded with a heavy kick to the back of the neck that sent the beast tumbling across the desert.

Akah stood back up, frustrated and angry, and charged again. He threw punch after punch after punch, each missing and leaving him open to another strike from the unknown Saiyan in front of him. The boy leapt back with a chuckle and smirked. "Come on, big guy! I heard that you were supposed to be a real nightmare! Show me something scary!"

Akah screeched at the boy and raised his remaining hand into the air, charging a blast made out of that noxious black energy that had been billowing from his body. With a hideous shriek, he threw the energy ball at his opponent, but the boy simply chuckled in response. He reached out, touching the palm of his hand to Akah's blast, and then grabbed a hold of it and tossed it behind him, allowing it to crash harmlessly into a mountain in the distance.

The boy nodded. "So, we're throwing blasts now? Fine."

He extended his hand, holding his palm flat. "Take this! _God Breaker!_ "

A massive beam of energy went shooting from the boy's hand, directly towards Akah. The monster snarled, rearing his fist back, and tried to punch the attack. But then, to his and the Z-Fighter's surprise, the attack shot straight through his appendage and exploded. Akah screamed as his destroyed arm melted in purple goo, stomping backwards and recoiling from the pain.

Akah glared at the boy and the boy glared right back at him. Armless, the beast had little that it could do to actually defend itself. But then, Akah began to laugh. " _Wa...Ha...Ha..._ "

The boy cocked his head. "Something funny over there?"

Akah got louder. " _WA! HA! HA!_ "

The Z-Fighters all became tense. That monster was up to something. The boy, however, seemed perfectly calm. Akah shouted at the top of his lungs. " _WA! HAHA!_ _ **WAHAHA NO HAHHHHH!**_ "

The massive monster opened his mouth wide and fired a supremely powerful beam of black energy directly at the boy. The boy was unfazed. "I see..."

And then, quick as a flash, the boy reached behind and grabbed his sword, pulling the weapon from its sheath, and then used the blade to cleave Akah's beam in two. The two sides of the blast went flying in two different directions and exploded. Akah flinched in shock at how easily the boy had managed to combat his maximum power output. The boy responded by heaving his arm up and tossing his sword high into the air.

The boy smirked again and began to motion his hand in front, gathering energy. "Try this on for size!"

He held up both hands, in the shape of a diamond, and shouted. "Burning Attack!"

The boy launched a compressed energy blast from his hands directly at Akah. The beast snarled. He tried to fire a blast of his own at the boy's attack, but all of his own blasts were ineffective. At the last moment, with little else to do, Akah leapt into the air to evade the oncoming attack. As it exploded under him, the beast scanned the ground for any signs of his foe, but found nothing. It growled in confusion.

A growl which was immediately answered by an almighty shout. Akah flinched and looked around for the source of the noise, eventually looking up to find that his youthful foe was barreling down upon him, sword in hand. Akah roared and fired another energy beam from his mouth, but with a swing of his sword, the boy cleaved the attack in two.

And Akah was sliced right along with it.

The hideous amalgamate split in twain, a hideous screech still echoing from both sides of its unstable frame. The boy, visibly disgusted, sliced at the monster again. And again. And several more times after that, rendering the lumbering purple beast as little more than a floating cloud of fleshy blobs.

He thrust his hand at the somehow still screaming monstrosity and, with one last burst of power, incinerated the creature into ash.

Watching as the ashes of his former foe drifted away in the wind, the boy landed on the sandy, desert floor. He breathed a heavy sigh of relief. And then his golden hair reverted back to its normal, purple shade.

The mysterious boy turned to the others, all of them staring back at him with confusion and awe, and he chuckled. "Well...I can't say I was expecting to meet all of you. Not quite like this anyway..."

The Z-Fighters all stood up, facing their mysterious new ally with looks of confusion and consternation on their faces. The boy held out his hand towards them, perhaps expecting one of them to shake his hand in return. "It's an honor to meet you all."

Gine returned the gesture, slowly reaching out to shake the boy's hand. "N-Nice to meet you too..."

A long, awkward silence. And then Gine spoke again. "Wh-Who are you exactly?"

The boy flinched. He began to stammer, suddenly seeming quite nervous. "Um. I... I um... _can't say_..."

This instantly raised a red flag for a lot of people. Instantly, Tien and Piccolo were both on the heavy defensive while the others all seemed to put on an air of caution. Piccolo growled. "Can't say? What do you mean 'can't say'?"

Tien followed up, narrowing his eyes. "That monster was ready to destroy the planet, and then you show up and kill it that quickly? And yet you can't tell us who you are?! That's rather suspicious, if you were to ask me."

As tension quickly began to rise, however, a sudden voice spoke up and tried to bring things back down. Gohan spoke. "H-Hey guys! Come on. Let's not be too hard on the guy..."

Chi-Chi, in spite of her own reservations, slowly nodded in agreement. "G-Gohan is right. This boy...he saved Gohan's life from that monster. He...I mean...he can't be all that bad if he went out of his way to do that, right?"

Gine and Piccolo both turned to look at one another, and then back to the boy. Gine let out a sigh, her face softening just a bit. Piccolo, meanwhile, was still unconvinced. The Namekian stepped forward, his larger frame allowing him to tower over the boy.

He and the boy stared into each-other's eyes for a moment. Piccolo's glare was harsh, but not malicious. The boy's glare was steely, but non-aggressive. As they stared, Piccolo's ears twitched. He looked away from the boy and into the distance. A bead of sweat ran down the side of the mysterious youth's face. But then, Piccolo relented. "Fine. You saved Gohan's life. You've earned a pass. _For now._ "

Piccolo turned, a flash of energy erupting from his body and producing a new cape and turban. The boy breathed a sigh of relief. "Th-Thank you..."

Regathering himself, the boy cleared his throat and spoke to the Z-Fighters. "I can understand why you wouldn't trust me straight out. Me not wanting to reveal my identity must seem bizarre to all of you, but I assure you that I have my reasons for keeping it mum. What I can let you all in on, however, is the reason I am here. And it is something that you are all going to want to stick around for."

Piccolo stopped in his tracks, turning to glare at the boy once more. The boy smiled. "I have good news for all of you. Goku and Vegeta and the others will all be returning from Planet Cold within the next three hours. And they will land not too far from here. If you'd be up to following me, I could lead you to where they would all be and we could wait for them together."

Once again, the Z-Fighters were all cut off-guard by this. Still skeptical of this stranger, Tien spoke up again. "And just how in the hell could you possibly know that?"

Once again, the mood had shifted. Disgruntled murmuring started amongst the Z-Fighters. The boy's face sunk, he clearly realized that he could have been more subtle in how he phrased that. Gine looked to her paranoia-stricken friends and then to the boy. She didn't exactly trust him either, but there was a look of earnestness and honesty on his face. After a moment, Gine spoke up. "Hey!"

Her calling out gathered everyone's attention. Gine spoke gently, trying to hide her own qualms in all of this. "Guys. Let's all just calm down, okay? It doesn't really matter whether we know he's telling the truth or not...all we have to do is wait three hours to see for ourselves, right?"

Everyone went quiet. Eventually, Krillin spoke up. "B-But Miss Gine...what if this is a trap or something?"

Gine shrugged. "Personally, I don't think it is. Call it a gut feeling or whatever, but I don't feel like this young man is the type to lead people into traps. But if that does happen to be the case somehow...Piccolo and I could probably handle him. Right Piccolo?"

Off to the side, Piccolo was still staring out into the distance. He didn't respond to Gine, seemingly focused on something else entirely. Gine turned to the others. "It'll be fine guys. We..."

Gine paused. As she searched for the words to say, Yamcha spoke up. "Look everyone, Miss Gine just wants her husband and Goku and the others to be home already. I don't necessarily believe that this stranger dude is telling the truth...but it would be worth it to wait just to make Miss Gine feel better, right?"

Chiaotzu scratched the back of his head. "Y-Yeah, I guess so..."

The others all nodded along, if rather reluctantly. Gine smiled. "Thank you Yamcha! Now then, everyone, let's all play nice and follow our mysterious friend here!"

She turned and nodded to the boy. "Lead the way."

Once again, the boy breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't expecting things to go this way. He turned in the opposite direction and waved his hand. "Okay, everyone. Follow m-"

" _GUYS!_ "

The boy flinched, hearing a brash voice that he recognized nearly immediately. Slowly, he turned his head and saw Bulma running up to the rest of the group. And, immediately, his face turned just the slightest shade of blue.

Bulma cried out as she came to a stop. "What happened?! What's going on?! Where is that monster?!"

Gently, Chi-Chi placed a hand on Bulma's shoulder to calm the frantic scientist. Gine sighed. "For such a short amount of time...that is still quite a lot to explain Bulma. Perhaps we could fill you in on the way?"

Bulma nodded. "O-Okay."

She looked over and saw the mysterious youth standing in the distance. "Ooh, hey~! Who's the hunk?"

A shiver ran down the boy's spine. His face went from blue to bright red. His voice high-pitched, he spoke up. "Everyone follow me to the l-landing site, please!"

 _A few kilometers away, near the proposed landing site..._

Hugging his knee close, the mysterious youth sat silently on a rock. About thirty minutes had passed since he and his accompaniment had arrived at the proper coordinates. As he sat there, contemplating to himself, the others around him found ways to entertain themselves. Tien, Krillin, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu played cards, with Tien taking the game far more seriously than the others seemed to be. Gine, Bulma, and Chi-Chi discussed throwing a party for the returning men while Gohan sat on a nearby rock and did homework that Chi-Chi had brought along in a Capsule. Piccolo, meanwhile, stood off to the side and stared into the distance, his focus seeming to be on something else entirely.

After a bit more waiting, Gohan's mind began to wander from his schoolwork. He looked up from his book and towards the young man that had saved his life. Gohan thought about it for a moment and he came to a decision: schoolwork could wait, he wanted to learn more about this guy.

The young boy stood, catching the attention of his mother and grandmother, and walked over to where the mysterious youth was. Gohan and the stranger soon locked eyes, staring at one another for a moment, before Gohan finally spoke. "Th-Thank you for saving my life."

The young man chuckled. "You don't...you don't have to thank me. Why would I hesitate to save someone's life?"

Gohan smiled. "That's what my Dad always used to say back when we'd go for walks together. He always used to say that he wasn't a superhero, but he wouldn't just walk away if someone needed his help."

The young man smiled wistfully. "Yeah. I've...heard a lot about Goku growing up. Everyone I've always talked to said he was a great guy. And an awesome warrior."

Gohan chuckled. "That's exactly what I tell everyone who asks me about him~"

The young man nodded. Gohan sat on a rock near him and coughed. The young man flinched. "You doing okay?"

Gohan nodded. "Y-Yeah. It's just really, really dry out here. I could use a drink..."

The young man quickly reached into his jacket. "How rude of me! I forgot..."

He pulled out a case of Capsules and clicked one, tossing it to the ground and producing a miniature refrigerator. He called over to the others. "H-Hey! Everyone! I know it's hot out so, uh, feel free to come and get a drink it you'd like!"

Gohan was ecstatic, opening the fridge and grabbing a grape soda for himself. He also grabbed a can of sparkling water and ran over to Piccolo. As Gohan delivered the beverage to his mentor, the others slowly came forth and grabbed drinks of their own, expressing uneasy gratitude toward the mysterious young man. The boy mumbled some form of reply to each of them, and then went back to his silent contemplation.

As Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu walked back over to the cards, Krillin paused. He looked at the young man and gave a small, pity-filled sigh. "Hey guys...I think I'm going to bow out for a couple rounds."

Yamcha threw his hand up. "Up to you man."

Slowly, Krillin made his way back over to the mysterious youth, sitting down next to Gohan right as the young boy returned. The mysterious youth looked up, a bit confused, and Krillin and Gohan responded with welcoming smiles. And, after that, light conversation began to occur.

It didn't take long for Gine, Chi-Chi, and Bulma to notice this. The three of them looked to one another and nodded, and then they got up and walked over to Gohan, Krillin, and the mysterious youth. The purple-haired young man watched as the three women sat on the ground around him, eventually managing to stammer a greeting. "H-Hello..."

An awkward silence.

Eventually, Bulma responded in a way. "So... I see you have a Capsule Fridge..."

She examined the fridge, noticing that it was one of their more recent models. She ran her hands over the dents and scratches. "It's nice to see that these things are so durable. My Dad and I spent hours trying to make a travel fridge that would be able to survive all sorts of damage."

She looked to him. "Did you drop it down a mountain or something?"

The young man shook his head. "Y-Yeah. Something like that."

She looked him over a bit more, finally noticing the patch on his shoulder. "Oh! That's a Capsule Corp employee jacket. We...we normally only had those out to employees with tenure. Do you, uh, work for one of our branches? Or maybe...one of your parents?"

The youth swallowed a lump in his throat. "My mother. She worked for Capsule Corp a while ago. She gave me this jacket before I came here..."

Bulma nodded. "Okay. So...what's her name? I might have met her..."

The youth went silent. Clearly, they had hit a roadblock on what he was willing to divulge. Chi-Chi cocked her head. "So, is your mother or father the Saiyan?"

The youth flinched. "P-Pardon me?"

Chi-Chi took another sip of her drink. "You're a Super Saiyan. Like Gine and my husband and Vegeta. So, which one of your parents is the Saiyan? Mother or Father?"

He was flustered. "M-My parents are both Saiyans. So, you know, they both-"

Gine interrupted. "No they aren't."

The boy flinched. He looked over at Gine, who was staring at him with a questioning look on her face. "Pure-blooded Saiyans have black eyes and black hair. All of them do. Fasha had purple eyes, but that's only because she had to get ocular implants to see properly."

She placed her face into her open palms. "So, unless you dye your hair and wear blue contacts, I'm going to say that you definitely are not a pure-blooded Saiyan."

The boy swallowed a lump in his throat. "M-My father came to Earth just a couple of years before I was born. But...he died when I was fairly young, so I never got a chance to meet him."

Gine pursed her lips. But she nodded. "Oh, I see. I'm sorry to hear that."

The youth sighed. "It's alright. I might never have met him, but my mother told me all about him while I was growing up..."

After that, the conversation went elsewhere. As everyone else talked on, however, Gine thought to herself. This young man was clearly younger than Kakarot. That would mean that his father would have had to come to the Earth after Kakarot had arrived. But there were problems with this story. Most of the Saiyans would have been dead by that point. And, more importantly, the only Saiyans who really knew about Earth were herself, Bardock, and Raditz. So, no Saiyan old enough to breed would have been able to locate this place, given what Gine knew.

The Saiyan Mother remained quiet and placid, not raising too much of a fuss. But, in the back of her mind, she knew that something about that young man's story didn't pass the smell test.

 _The 3 hours pass..._

Piccolo growled to himself, tapping his index finger impatiently against his bicep. He was not prepared to go along with this charade for much longer. Off to the side, the mysterious youth could see this. On the outside, he remained cool. But, on the inside, he was panicking. Piccolo kept staring in that direction. That specific direction. And it made the youth incredibly nervous.

Finally, after a few more minutes of waiting, someone spoke up. "Hey man! Just what are we playing here?!"

The mysterious youth looked over to see that Yamcha and Tien had both stood, the cards there were playing with being gathered by Chiaotzu. Yamcha cocked his head. "It's been nearly 3 and a half hours, man. You told us Goku and the others would be here by now."

Tien stared sternly. "And yet they aren't here. So, you'll forgive us for thinking that you might be trying to deceive us in some way."

The youth shook his head. "N-No, I'm not. It should have been about three hours! They should be arriving any minute now!"

Yamcha rolled his eyes. " _Uh-huh..._ "

Chiaotzu joined up with Tien, looking just as incredulous as his best friend did. Tien gripped his fists. "Piccolo! What do you think?"

Piccolo remained silent, his gaze having moved from the direction it had been glued to and up towards the sky. Yamcha shook his head. "This is ridiculous. I'm leaving."

Tien, meanwhile, marched towards the youth. "I'm not. This guy is hiding something, I can feel it. Super Saiyan or not, I'd rather work this out now than wait for it to bite us all later."

The youth flinched back. Krillin, seeing this, stood up and got between the two. "Come on, Tien! No reason to start getting violent! Sure, the kid has his secrets, but I don't think he wants to hurt us. He did save Gohan after all!"

Tien narrowed his eyes. "Yeah. And I'm sure Garlic Junior would have done the same. After all, he had a use for poor Gohan..."

Krillin flinched. "I..."

The aggression between the two sides was about to reach a breaking point when, to everyone's surprise, Bulma's watch began to let loose a loud, shrieking ping noise. Everyone turned to her, Piccolo plugging his ears in frustration, and tried to figure out just what the noise was. Bulma looked to her watch and gasp. "Something just passed the SpaceGRID! And it's coming towards Earth really fast! It'll be here any second!"

Piccolo spoke up. "It's already here!"

Krillin turned his attention to the sky. "What is it...?"

Everyone else looked to the sky as well. And then, a split second later, a sonic burst made a massive, circular hole in the cloud. Nothing appeared at first, but then the light seemed to catch up with the craft and it all came into view. It was a massive ship, similar to Frieza's but far more ornate. It had that same symbol on it that Bardock, Raditz, and Vegeta were so scared of on Namek: the symbol of King Cold.

The Z-Fighters watched as the ship deployed its legs, making a slowly descent to the ground below. Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu all took fighting stances, ready to face whatever foe might pop out of this alien vessel. Krillin, meanwhile, stood wide-eyed. "Th-The power levels on that ship are massive? C-Could it be...?"

Gohan smiled, instantly feeling three very familiar energy signatures aboard the ship. Chi-Chi smiled as well, feeling out one signature in particular and blushing. Gine chuckled, small tears welling up in her eyes. "It took you idiots long enough..."

And finally, Piccolo spoke up, dropping his tight guard. "Everyone stand down. It looks like our mysterious friend was telling the truth. It looks like..."

The hatch on the front of the ship lifted up, a ramp lowering to the ground below. And, from within, four familiar faces emerged. Goku, Raditz, Bardock, and Vegeta all stared down from their stolen ship, dressed in a strange-looking alien garb, looking rather confused to see a welcoming party. Piccolo smirked. "...they're home."

The four Saiyans leapt down from their higher vantage, landing amidst the welcoming party. Immediately, Goku was set upon by his wife and his son. The two of them were thrilled, hugging him tight. Goku was all too happy to accept this. "Hey guys! It's been a while! How have you all been?!"

Gohan cried out. "Daddy! I missed you!"

Chi-Chi wrapped her arms around her husband's neck. "Goku! My Goku~!"

Goku chuckled. "How did you guys know that we would land here any-"

Goku's eyes landed upon his son and he was caught off-guard. He stared down at Gohan for a minute, just looking his son over as if he saw something that no one else could see. Gohan cocked his head. "D-Daddy? Is everything okay?"

Goku chuckled, hugging his son close. "Everything's fine Gohan. It looks like you've grown quite a bit since I last saw you."

Gine chuckled, stepping up to her youngest son. "We've been training together every day after his lessons. He's been wanting to get stronger and stronger to surprise you when you came back."

Goku looked over to his mother and, again, was thrown for a loop. "W-Wow Mom...what happened to you?!"

Gine flinched. "What do you mean? Is...is something..."

Gine began to check herself out, seeing if something was wrong. But Chi-Chi quickly interrupted that. "Don't worry about that right now Gine! Get over here!"

The Saiyan Mother nodded and complied, walking over and immediately being absorbed into the big, family hug. Raditz rolled his eyes. "This is all so-"

Chi-Chi didn't even wait for him to finish, reaching out and pulling him in as well. Raditz was caught off-guard, not exactly knowing how to react. But he didn't try to escape it. Chi-Chi glared over at Bardock. " _You_! You get over here too!"

Bardock shook his head. "Nah. Not into that sort of lovey-dovey crap. Sorry."

Gine pulled herself from her family, walking up to her estranged husband and forcing an awkward smile. "H-Hey Bardock..."

Bardock's face turned red, he glanced away from his wife. "Hey..."

Silence. A harsh wind blew. Gine turned away and sighed. "H-Hey Vegeta! Nice to see that you're still around!"

Vegeta, while the others all regrouped, wandered off to the side. In his distraction, the Saiyan Prince had discovered something halfway buried in the sand. Gine quickly joined him to get away from...all of that.

Meanwhile, Goku and Piccolo regrouped with one another. The two rivals gripped each other's hands tight in a respectful handshake. Goku chuckled. "Nice to see that the Earth is still in one piece~"

Piccolo chuckled. "Eh. It was a group effort. Like I said back on Namek, everyone is looking to take that title of Strongest from you. You'd better watch your back, Monkey Boy."

Goku and Piccolo squeezed each other's hands tighter. Goku winced and chuckled at the sight of Piccolo doing the same. "Man, between you and Vegeta I don't think I'm gonna ever have a chance to sleep again. Sounds exciting!"

Tien smirked, smashing his fists together. "Don't you all count me out of this contest just yet."

Krillin seemed a bit nervous. "Come on, guys! Goku _just_ got back. Can we not get into a brawl with each other for at least a day?"

Raditz chuckled, scanning around the area as Goku and Piccolo tried to out muscle one another. "I mean, the planet is in one piece. But what the hell happened around here? This place looks like a bomb went off..."

Vegeta chimed in. "Maybe it did."

Everyone turned in the direction of Vegeta's voice, finding the Saiyan Prince to have dug up a blown-up piece of scrap from Abo and Kado's former ship. The Prince turned. "This is a piece of a hull from a Stealth Invader. Where did this come from?"

Yamcha spoke up, puffing up his chest at Vegeta. "Yeah! Some of your alien space invader pals came here and tried to act like they could hang! So, we sent 'em packing. You should take notes, bud."

Vegeta snort-laughed and shook his head. "Yeah. Okay. Sure. And who were these 'space invader pals' of mine?"

He turned to Gine. "Hmm? Did you happen to recognize them?"

Gine nodded. "Y-Yeah. It was Abo and Kado of the Avocado Special Squad."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Oh yes. _My best pals Abo and Kado_. Two of the strongest soldiers you'll ever face!"

He mumbled to himself. " _If you're my washout of a brother..._ "

Yamcha gripped his fist at Vegeta. "Yeah, play coy all you want! When those two fused they were as strong as Frieza and we still kicked their asses!"

Vegeta cocked his head. "Fused? What the hell are you on about?"

Goku nodded. "Oh! So, they, like, became one strong guy and started wrecking the place up? That's neat. So... you defeated them I guess, Piccolo?"

Piccolo shook his head. "No. Probably could have with enough effort, but it wasn't me. That honor would go to the nameless person standing off to the side."

Goku, Vegeta, Raditz, and Bardock all turned their attention over to the mysterious youth. He stood there, his hands in his pockets, politely waiting for the reunion to finish. Vegeta stared intently. Bardock stared indifferently. Raditz stared confusedly. And Goku gave the exact same reaction he had given to Gohan and Gine. "Wh-Whoa! What the heck has been happening here while I've been gone?"

Chi-Chi looked to Goku with concern. "Why do you keep reacting to people like that?"

Goku cocked his head. "I...I dunno. It's just weird, ya know? It's like...they're all putting off something unique in their ki that no one else here is. I don't know how to really describe it..."

Bardock and Vegeta both stepped up on either side of Goku. He looked at the both of them and thoughtfully stroked his chin. "Huh...?"

Raditz, standing in the background next to Chi-Chi, posed the question. "As nice as it is to hear that someone stepped in to help stop an invasion or Earth... _who are you exactly?_ "

The young man spoke. "I'm sorry to keep you all in suspense. I will explain everything, including the reason I'm here, in a minute. I just have one more thing to do first. And... I need you all to step back..."

Chiaotzu reacted in confusion. "Wh-What? What do you mean...?"

The young man focused his steely-eyed stare on Bardock, then Vegeta, then Goku. And then, in a rush of Super Saiyan might, the boy's hair exploded into a raging golden fire, he drew his sword, and he charged. This sudden aggression caught everyone by surprise. Everyone except Bardock, Vegeta, and Goku.

A quickly as the boy had transformed, the three of them transformed in turn. The boy roared at the top of his lungs and swung his sword wildly at the three. But each and every sword strike was deflected away with minimal effort by the three clearly more experienced warriors. The rest of the Z-Fighters stared in awe at this display. Gine stared wide-eyed at her Super Saiyan husband. Silently, she whispered to herself. "Y-You too?"

Eventually, the display of Super Saiyan power came to a close. Bardock, annoyed, simply faded back from the reach of the blade. Goku, with a serious look in his eye, deflected the blade away with his index finger. And Vegeta, returning the aggression, gave the boy a solid punch to the mouth, sending him sliding back across the ground.

Everyone who witnessed the display reacted in awe. Yamcha was stunned. "D-Damn..."

Chiaotzu gasped. "Too fast to even follow along..."

Tien gripped his fists tight. "So, the gap has become that large, has it?"

Chi-Chi, on the other hand, began to scold the mysterious youth. "Hey! Who do you think you are trying to cheap shot my husband and father-in-law like that?"

Piccolo held out his hand. "Stop."

Chi-Chi glared at him. "Didn't you see what he just did?"

Piccolo nodded. "I did. But I have more than just my eyes to work with. Next time you should try to feel for the intent, Chi-Chi. The only person in that entire exchange who meant to cause any harm was Vegeta."

Vegeta smirked. The boy stood up, wiping blood from the side of his mouth. "I suppose I deserve that for attacking with so little warning. Forgive me."

He stood, stowing his sword away. "I just had to see for myself if all of the stories I had been told about the Super Saiyans were true."

Bardock cocked his head. "That's a pretty strange thing to say. Coming from a fellow Super Saiyan, at least..."

The boy chuckled. "I'm still sorta new to it. Not many people to train the power against where I come from."

His smile faded. "But, now, I can finally do what I set out to do. I can finally reveal the reason I came here."

The mysterious youth turned to Goku and put his hands in his pockets. "Goku, may I please speak to you in private for a moment? Forgive me, but-"

Yamcha cried out. "Are you kidding me?! What the hell is your problem, guy?!"

Vegeta sneered, glaring at Trunks. "What game are you trying to play here, boy?"

The young man sighed, clearly flustered with all of this. "P-Please forgive me. I just...I..."

Goku smiled. "That's fine. We can talk for a minute."

The young man flinched back; everyone else's eyes fell on Goku. Goku chuckled. "It's just a small talk, guys. If he says anything important or interesting, I'll let y'all know. Okay?"

Krillin sounded nervous. "You sure about this, Goku?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. This guy doesn't seem like a bad person. So, I think it'll be fine to hear what he has to say."

And, with that, Goku and the mysterious youth walked away from the others. They marched a few meters across the desert until their conversation was well out of earshot.

With Goku and their new guest gone, the rest of the Z-Fighters started to talk among themselves. Gine, swallowing the dry lump in her throat, tried to initiate a conversation again. "S-So Bardock. I see that you, uh...you're a Super...Saiyan now..."

Gine glanced up at her husband, but it was clear that he wasn't listening. Bardock was staring off towards Goku and the boy, his intense gaze focused on the mysterious youth. Gine glanced away, sighing. "Oh...okay. We can try this again later, I guess..."

Vegeta growled under his breath. He was clearly furious about being left out of whatever this conversation was. "Damned brat. How dare he ignore me?!"

Tien rolled his eyes. "Who knows Vegeta. You're such an approachable, friendly face. I just can't see why he wouldn't want to talk to you..."

Yamcha snorted. "Maybe he just doesn't have a Capsule step-ladder. Can't have a conversation with someone if they're too short to look you in the eye..."

Vegeta chuckled. "Oh, I see...you both are trying to be biting. That's fine. Perhaps you could show me around this planet later? The sights, the cities, the ditch your corpses were laying in while the rest of us fought Frieza?"

Raditz rolled his eyes as Vegeta, Tien, and Yamcha exchanged pleasantries. "Nice to see he's getting along with people..."

The older brother turned to Krillin, Gohan, and Chi-Chi and smiled. "It's nice to see that you're all in one piece. And so much stronger to boot."

Krillin smirked and scratched the back of his head. "I mean...we're trying at least. I don't think you'd be able to knock me as far away if you slapped me with your tail this time~"

Raditz chuckled. Gohan stepped up to him. "I've gotten a lot stronger, Uncle Raditz! We should have a spar later!"

Chi-Chi smiled warmly. "You can both do that after dinner tonight. I'm sure that Uncle Raditz misses my cooking. Right, Raditz?"

Raditz sighed. "Well, after months of MRE's and Yardrat cuisine, I must admit that I'm certainly ready to eat something palatable again. Maybe we could have a... family...meal..."

Raditz looked over towards his parents to see Gine standing there, looking downcast, and Bardock standing next to her, totally distracted. Briefly, the eldest son flashed back to just a few days ago, when he accidentally walked in on his father nervously mumbling to himself, practicing what to say to Gine after all this time. Raditz groaned and shook his head. " _Dammit Dad..._ "

Not wanting to step into that minefield, Raditz instead turned his attention to Piccolo. He walked up to the Namekian with a smirk and a cheery tone. "Well hello there, my big green friend. How have you been?"

Piccolo responded with a grunt, catching Raditz off-guard. The elder brother stood there for a moment, observing Piccolo. It was clear that the Namekian was concentrating on something. And then, Raditz immediately caught on upon seeing Piccolo's pointy, green ear twitch.

 _Meanwhile, over with Goku and the Mysterious Youth..._

Goku chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "Okay. Before we start, lemme just say thank you. I just started being able to feel whatever that monster was when you showed up. So, I appreciate you stepping in to save my friends from it."

The youth nodded, keeping his tone casual. "Of course. I would step in anytime to save lives like that. E-Especially Gohan's. That Akah beast would have killed Gohan if I didn't step in and do something..."

Goku nodded. "Yeah, from what I felt he probably would have hurt Gohan pretty bad..."

The youth shook his head. "No, you don't understand. When I say that Akah would have killed Gohan, I mean it. If I hadn't have stepped in, then Gohan would have met his end at the hands of that beast."

Goku cocked his head. "H-How can you be sure of that?"

He sighed. "Because, Goku...I come from the future. 17 years in the future to be precise. And I have been told the story, many times, of the shocking death of Son Gohan."

Goku flinched. "F-Future?! You're from the future?!"

The Saiyan from Earth cocked his head, a bit skeptical. "C-Can you prove that? Not saying that I think you're dishonest or anything, this is just a bit hard to believe, ya know?"

The youth nodded. "I understand. Allow me to provide you some proof."

He reached into his jacket, producing what appeared to be an old photograph. Goku looked at the picture and gasped. He didn't recognize many people in the photo, but a few faces were ones he couldn't forget. Bulma was dead center, her arms around the mysterious youth's shoulder. And standing behind them was a face that Goku would know, no matter what age. That was his son, Gohan. Except much older than he currently was.

Goku gasped. "Wh-Whoa..."

The youth smiled. "Yes sir. That's a picture of me with my mother and my mentor, Bulma and Gohan."

Goku nodded. "S-So that monster that was here. He really..."

The youth nodded. "Yes. If I hadn't have stepped in when I did, that monster would have killed Gohan right then and there. He wouldn't have lasted much longer than that, in my timeline Piccolo and Gine both go berserk and tear Akah apart in overwhelming rage and sorrow..."

The youth gripped his fists. "But after everything your son has done for me, in my life, I couldn't just sit back and allow that to happen. _Proper timeline be damned_..."

The boy's voice cracked. Goku took a deep breath, and then he sighed. With a smile, the Saiyan from Earth clapped his hands in front of himself and bowed to the mysterious stranger. "Seriously. Thank you so much for saving my son. I'll be forever grateful to you for that."

Goku smiled at the boy and the boy smiled back. Goku chuckled. "So, uh, what's your name anyway? You never told me."

The boy flinched. "O-Oh! Forgive me for being so rude. My name is Trunks."

Goku chuckled. "Hehehe, Trunks huh? Yeah...you're definitely Bulma's kid."

He folded his arms behind his head. "So, you just hopped back in time to save Gohan from being killed by a monster?"

And, with that, Trunks's tone went from jovial to grim. "No. Unfortunately not."

Goku's arms dropped. "That was...a pretty big tone shift. What's up?"

Trunks took a deep breath. "I will be blunt, Goku. Two years from this moment, on an Amenbo Island, 9 miles southwest of South City, at precisely 9 am, a pair of wicked Androids will show up and start a campaign of terror that will begin the slow extinction of every living being on Earth."

Goku flinched. "Wh-What?! Androids?! Where the heck would Androids come from?!"

Trunks frowned. "Do you remember the Red Ribbon Army, Goku?"

Goku thought for a minute. "Oh yeah, I remember those guys. I kicked their butts back when I was searching for the Dragon Balls."

Trunks shook his head. "They weren't kicked well enough, unfortunately. One member of that heinous group survived. His name was Dr. Gero. And, for reasons we aren't quite sure of, he sought bloody revenge against you for what you did."

Goku cocked his head. "You think he was just mad at me for destroying the Red Ribbon Army?"

Trunks nodded. "That's what we always assumed. And, for that transgression Goku, the Earth paid the price. On that day, two years from now, Dr. Gero's wicked Androids showed up and their reign of terror began. It all started with Piccolo...and then Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu, and Krillin...and then Bardock and Gine both fell...and then they slaughtered my Father...and then Raditz went...and then, eventually, even Gohan met his end at their hands..."

Trunks gripped his fists tightly. "Everyone. Everyone that my mother ever knew died one after the other and the Earth was left totally defenseless as a result. And, once that was the case, those Androids stopped killing on such a wide scale and turned what was left of the Earth into their own twisted playground..."

He lowered his head. "By the time my mother found out where Doctor Gero was, it was too late. His monsters had already slaughtered him just as they had anyone else they'd come across. And now...the future is overrun and we can't stop them..."

Goku rubbed the back of his neck. "Jeez. B-But...what about me? Where was I in all of this? Did the Androids get me too?"

Trunks shook his head. "No. Prior to the Androids arriving, Goku, you die in a different way..."

Goku cocked his head. "Which is...?"

Trunks began to dig in his jacket pocket. "A heart virus. One that the Earth had never seen before. Alien in origin. My Mother has theorized that you caught it during your travels in space, your immune system not being prepared for alien bacteria the same way the other three's would have been..."

Trunks smiled. "But, that's the benefit of coming from the future. My Mother has had over a decade to study the virus that took your life. And so..."

He produced a medium-sized bottle of pills. "An antidote has been discovered. One that will allow you to live through the virus and join your friends in facing the Androids head-on!"

Trunks offered the bottle and Goku took it, looking it over. "Huh, so Bulma made this...?"

Trunks nodded. "Yes. She made it and sent me back here with it. She told me to save her best friend and to save the world as a result."

Goku smiled and quickly glanced back, catching sight of Bulma trying to stop Yamcha and Vegeta from getting into a fistfight. He chuckled. "That Bulma. She's always looking out for me."

But then, something caught Goku's attention. He looked back again, seeing Bulma still standing between Vegeta and Yamcha. Trunks, noticing the look on Goku's face, nervously spoke. "G-Goku...is something-"

Goku spoke to himself. "You said that Bulma is your mother. You're a half-Saiyan. Me and Dad are both married. You called Raditz by his name and mentioned your Father as someone else. So..."

Goku looked back again, seeing Bulma and Vegeta shouting in each other's faces. And then, the realization hit him like a truck. " _HOLY CRAP! VEGETA IS-_ "

Trunks panicked, rushing forward and clamping his hand over Goku's mouth. The two of them looked at each other and Trunks made the shushing motion with his finger. They both looked back towards the others and saw Vegeta staring right at them, an annoyed and confused look on his face. Slowly, the both looked away and resumed their conversation. Trunks was flustered. "P-Please! Please don't tell him or my mother about me! Not even my name, okay?! I... I might not be born if they know..."

Goku scratched the back of his head. "That's...gonna be hard. Vegeta and Bulma are two of the nosiest, most hardheaded people I know..."

Trunks was practically begging. " _Please..._ "

Goku nodded and chuckled. "It's fine. I won't let 'em know. Your secret is safe with me."

Goku looked at Trunks once again, this time noticing something a bit off. "Wait..."

Trunks flinched. "Wh-What is it?"

Goku's tail unraveled from around his waist, flicking back and forth in the air. "Where's your tail? If you're Vegeta's son I don't think he would have it removed."

Trunks's face was immediately flushed with pain as he seemed to flashback to something in his mind. Goku cocked his head. "Are you okay?"

Trunks sighed. "I... I just don't wanna talk about it. Sorry."

Goku saw that the boy from the future was concerned, perhaps even a bit frightened. But, the Saiyan from Earth smiled. Gently, but firmly, he placed his hand on Trunks's shoulder and smiled. "Hey, it'll all be alright. You don't have to be scared or get worried. We'll put a stop to those Androids and make everything okay."

Trunks's pained expression faded. He looked into Goku's eyes and smiled, feeling relieved. Goku chuckled. "And hey, just to say it one more time, thank you for saving my son's life~"

Trunks chuckled. "You don't have to thank me, Goku. I owe Gohan more than he might ever know."

The boy from the future turned, his business concluded. "Take care, Goku. I'll come back in 2 years to check-up on things and make sure that everything is square."

As he walked away though, a sudden question popped into Trunks's mind. He turned back around. "Hey Goku."

Goku nodded. "Sup?"

Trunks cleared his throat. "Just, uh, one other thing that I'm curious about. In my timeline, when you came back and saw that Gohan had died, in addition to being furious over what had happened, you were also upset about not being able to wish for something that you wanted on the Dragon Balls according to my Mother. So, um, she was curious and wanted me to ask...what exactly were you planning on using that wish on anyway?"

Goku seemed stumped for a second. But then, it dawned on him. "Oh! That! W-Well...I felt really guilty about how our fight with King Cold got so many innocent people killed. So, I was planning on gathering up the Dragon Balls in my spare time and wishing everyone who died back."

A bead of sweat ran down Goku's face, a nervous smile spread across his face as he guiltily pressed his index fingers together. Trunks, in response to this, smiled. "You really are as good of a man as I've always been told you were, Goku."

Trunks took to the air, flying off into the distance. "I look forward to talking to you more later!"

Watching Trunks leave, Goku chuckled. "What a good kid."

But then, Goku turned and stared back over at his group of friends. "Now...how do I tell them that without spoiling to much..."

Goku walked back over to his friends, deep in thought, trying his best to sum up everything that he had been told. He was so lost in thought that, as he got closer, he didn't notice someone standing in his path and ran into them on accident. Goku was startled and looked down to see the sour face of Vegeta.

Vegeta glared at Goku. "I'm _what_?"

Goku gasped, flinching back as if he had just seen a ghost. Near instantly, Vegeta was joined by Bulma. "Okay Goku, explanation time! Who the heck was that, why was he here, and what's going on?!"

Goku frantically shifted his focus from Bulma to Vegeta and back and forth between the two. He didn't know what to say to either one of these demanding friends of his. Goku struggled to formulate the words. "I...uh...well...ya see...um..."

" _Both of you calm the hell down._ "

Bulma and Vegeta both turned to face Bardock, who was standing there with his arms crossed. Piccolo glanced over at Bardock. "So, you heard too?"

Bardock shook his head. "Didn't hear. I'm not a Namekian with super hearing. But reading lips was something I learned to do fairly quickly back when I was growing up in the gutter."

Piccolo nodded. "So, I guess it's up to us to explain everything?"

Bardock nodded back. "Looks like it."

Goku held up his hands. "N-Now guys! Wait just a second..."

Piccolo held up his hand. "Don't worry about it. We aren't going to say anything that will endanger our new friend. I've actually had a pretty good idea of what was going on for a while now, so I've been thinking of how to say it."

Bardock cracked his neck. "Let's just start by laying out the basic shit: evil Androids are going to show up and kill all of us in two years. That brat came from the future to let us all know."

Tien stared for a second, having an honest-to-goodness double-take. "Time Travel. You're telling us that...Time Travel is real?"

Goku nodded. "Y-Yeah. He had some pretty compelling proof too."

Piccolo continued. "Apparently the Red Ribbon Army is at fault here. A man named Dr. Gero is currently constructing the means to close a seeming blood grudge he holds against Goku. But, in our friend's timeline, Goku died of a heart virus so we all paid the price in his stead."

Krillin flinched. "The Red Ribbon Army?!"

Bulma flinched as well. "Dr. Gero?!"

Chi-Chi, meanwhile, was horrified. "My Goku dies of a heart virus?!"

Piccolo nodded. "Yes to all three."

Raditz groaned and shook his head. "Damn it Kakarot. This is why we wanted to immunize you before you got off the ship. You've never been in space before! I knew you'd catch something..."

Goku shivered. "N-No way man. You're not getting anywhere near me with a needle..."

Vegeta growled. "I still want to know what was said about me. Tell me or I'll rip your tail off!"

Bulma cut in. "F-Forget that for a second! We need to worry about the killer Androids! Dr. Gero's a pretty famous scientist! So, why don't we go and find out where he is and then put a stop to this before it becomes a problem?"

No response. Nervously, Yamcha stepped up. "I-I agree with Bulma. Better to stop a threat before it becomes one, right guys?"

Krillin looked to Goku and sighed. Chiaotzu looked to Tien and shook his head. They both could already see where this was going. Raditz spoke up. "I think that it would be smart to-"

"Absolutely not."

Raditz flinched and looked over to Vegeta. "What?!"

Vegeta smirked. "These Androids killed me in the future, and you just expect me to sit back and not face that challenge head on?"

Piccolo smile wide, baring his fangs. "Agreed. The prospect of the challenge is thrilling, no? We have a benchmark to chase after now..."

Tien chuckled. "A new height to reach. Can we train and grow to fight against what fate has already set out?"

Goku was pumped, slamming his fist into his chest. "The thought of it gets my blood pumping!"

Bardock, dour as he had been so far, smirked as well. "And here I thought retirement would be boring."

The energy within the group changed. Krillin and Chiaotzu were resigned to this being the way things were going to go. Yamcha stood there, mouth agape. Chi-Chi shrugged and sighed, Gine shook her head, burying her face into her palm, and Gohan chuckled. Bulma, however, quickly made her opinion known. " _ARE THE FIVE OF YOU OUT OF YOUR DAMNED MINDS?!_ "

Piccolo shrugged. "Possibly. But, possibly not. We know they're coming. So now we know that we have to compile fresh, new strength. And we even know the time."

Goku smirked. "Two years from now. On an island south west of South City~"

Seeing the gleam in the warrior's eyes, Bulma sighed. "Dammit. Why can't I live on a normal planet with normal people...?"

Krillin quickly got over all of it, mentally aspiring to become stronger as well. And, with that mental affirmation, he decided to try and catch up with his best friend. "So Goku, why the heck were the four of you gone so long anyway? Was that King Cold guy that tough?"

Goku chuckled. "I mean...he was pretty strong, but we still managed to beat him down pretty quickly~"

Chi-Chi puffed out her cheek, angry. "Then why were you gone so long? We've been worried sick?"

Goku chuckled, a nervous bead of sweat rolling down his face. "Now come on Chi-Chi! Don't get angry! You know I-"

Vegeta cut in. "We would have been here two months ago if Kakarot and Raditz didn't want to stick around and mingle with the Yardrats."

Krillin nodded. "Oh, I see..."

He narrowed his eyes. "So, I take it you've learned a new technique, huh Goku?"

Goku gasped. "How did you know?!"

Krillin shook his head. "Because 'I disappeared for a long time to go learn a new fighting technique' is the most Goku sentence I can think of."

Gohan smiled, looking excited. "What's the new technique, Dad? I wanna see it!"

Goku chuckled. "Okay son! We'll both show you, me and your Uncle Raditz. We both learned something new on Planet Yardrat!"

Gohan turned to his uncle, staring with stars in his eyes. "You too, Uncle Raditz?"

Raditz smirked, chuckling. "Indeed. Because unlike Vegeta, I'm not too self-conscious to go and learn new things!"

And then, with a quick pop, Raditz immediately disappeared from everyone's sight. Gohan was confused. "Where did-"

"Isn't that right, Vegeta?"

Everyone gasped and turned to see Raditz standing behind Vegeta, poking the Saiyan Prince's cheek. Vegeta snarled and tried to punch Raditz, but the elder brother popped out of reality again, this time appearing on top of the ship that had all arrived home in. Gohan cried out. "Whoa! So cool!"

Raditz chuckled. "This technique is called Instant Warp. Any place that is within my line of sight, I can immediately teleport to with no delay~"

Chiaotzu gasped. "W-Wow!"

Krillin, meanwhile, turned to Goku. "So, if Raditz learned that, then what did you learn?"

Goku chuckled. "Well..."

He pressed his fingers to his forehead, disappearing from sight in a small flash of light. After a moment, Goku returned to the group, except now he was wearing a very familiar pair of sunglasses. "This technique is called Instant Transmission! It's not as fast as Raditz's Instant Warp, but it allows me to travel much farther distances. All I have to do is be able to sense the energy signature I wanna go to and I can be there super quick!"

Yamcha was impressed. "Whoa! That's amazing Goku!"

Tien chuckled. "Always learning new techniques. It's admirable."

Standing off in the distance, Bardock rolled his eyes. "Meaningless parlor tricks."

Vegeta snorted. "No Saiyan with any sense of pride would go about learning techniques from inferior species like the Yardrats."

As everyone else marveled over Goku and Raditz's new tricks, however, Bulma was focused on something else. With a thoughtful hand, she examined the exterior if King Cold's flagship. "So, uh, what exactly were you guys planning on doing with this thing anyway? Cuz, if you didn't have any plans for it..."

Bardock looked over to Bulma. "Oh, that's right. I nearly forgot..."

He dug into his chest piece and produced a strange-looking, alien key. "That's not just any ship. It was King Cold's personal ship. It's probably the single most technologically advanced vessel in all of the Cold Empire. Feel free to scrap it for parts and tech."

Bulma's eyes lit up at Bardock tossed her the key. All of the fear and thoughts of Dr. Gero were gone, now replaced with genuine wonder and amazement. "Oh yes! Oh, hell yes! Advanced alien tech~!"

Bulma was practically drooling as she pulled out her phone. "Oh, I have to get a team out here right away to come and collect this thing! Oh~! I can't wait~!"

As Bulma celebrated to herself, everyone else lightened up as well. Oncoming threats or not, they were all just happy to be back together again. The Z-Fighters were fully reunited, back on Earth where they belonged. Even Vegeta, as alien as he was to all of this, seemed happy to have a planet to firmly set his feet on.

They all started to walk away, ready to head out of the Northern Wasteland and back to Capsule Corp. Chi-Chi was already announcing a big party and feast for all of them. Bardock watched on as everyone mingled. His eyes fell on Gine and he took a deep breath. Now was his chance.

Bardock stepped forward. "Gi-"

And then, with a shudder, a vision of the future exploded into Bardock's mind.

 _Within Bardock's subconscious..._

Screaming. So much screaming. Men, women, children. All of them screaming in fear and terror and pain. And Bardock heard it all set to the loudest volume possible. All of those screams of fear and agony. And, alongside them, heavy, thudding footsteps. With a metallic ring to them no less. The sound of a needle piercing flesh, the sound of something... _drinking something?_

And then everything was silent.

Bardock mumbled to himself. "What the hell...?"

And then the laughter started. A deep, beastly laughter of a predator holding a prey in its grasp. Bardock looked around, trying to find the threat. He looked to the ground, only to realize that it was no ground he was standing on. It was soft, but rough. It was... _skin?!_

Bardock looked up and what he saw chilled him to the bone. He couldn't make out exactly what it was staring down at him. But it was huge, its bloodshot eyes were locked onto him, and its slit pupils were radiating pure malice. And then, it opened its mouth, a sort of deformed beak, and lunged down at him with a ghastly roar.

 _Back in reality..._

" _BARDOCK!_ "

Bardock gasped as Gine gave him a hard shove. He stumbled back, sweat flying off of his brow. The older Saiyan breathed heavily as he stood there, breaths heaving in and out of his chest with enough force to nearly capsize Bardock. "G-Gine..."

Bardock looked around and saw everyone staring at him, their eyes wide with concern and confusion. Still wheezing, Bardock snapped at them. " _What?! What are you all looking at?!_ "

With a bit of hesitation, Raditz reached up and wiped his hand under his nose. Bardock, getting the message, did the same. He looked down at his hand after and, to his shock, saw that his entire palm had been stained crimson.

Everyone stared at Bardock, blood pouring from his flushed face like a faucet. None of them knew what to say. Finally, however, Bulma stepped up and spoke. "Yeah, that reminds me...there's something we need to discuss, Bardock."

 _Meanwhile, on the far side of the Northern Wasteland..._

Trunks spoke bluntly as he inserted a fuel cell into the side of his massive, bright yellow Time Machine. "Look, I know it wasn't the best option for me to just rush in like that, but it's not like I had a choice. I couldn't just stand by and let him die. N-Not again..."

A female voice spoke back. "Look, I don't disagree. I'm just saying that it was risky Trunks. That's all..."

Trunks nodded. "At least be happy that the two of you didn't have to face all of them all at once. Mom wasn't lying when she said that they were good people, but some of them were so... _intense_..."

A male voice spoke up. "At least you didn't have Piccolo staring directly at you for three hours. I swear, those eyes are exactly like Gohan used to describe them."

The female voice spoke again. "He was only looking this way because you kept whispering to me. You know how good Namekian hearing is, Miss Bulma told us that before we came here."

The girl, a young woman with blue-tinted, black hair pulled up into a ponytail and a machine gun strapped to her side, turned to Trunks. "So, how did it feel meeting your Dad for the first time? Is your face okay?"

Trunks shrugged. "Mom always warned me he was the type to lash out at the unknown. But, for what it's worth...she wasn't lying when she talked about how overwhelming his presence was..."

The boy, a young man with jet black hair and what appeared to be the Power Pole strapped to his back, spoke again. "Man... I wish I could've gotten to meet them..."

Trunks sighed. "We'll see them again. And hopefully...hopefully all of our problems will somehow be fixed..."

The other two nodded, following behind Trunks as he leapt into the Time Machine. With all three of them packed into the vessel, it lifted off. The three of them all wistfully stared out over the vast horizon at a world not yet ruined by the tyranny of the Androids. And then the Time Machine vanished, taking them back to their own, dark era.

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	54. Chapter 54: The Training Begins

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: By somewhat popular demand, this chapter is going to start a string of five chapters focusing not on intense battles or villainous threats, but on slice-of-life interactions between the various characters in Dragon Ball Z. This is something that I've wanted to do for a while now, but didn't feel tonally appropriate up until this point. So, I hope you all enjoy my take on what is essentially anime filler._

 **Chapter 54: The Training Begins**

 _At Capsule Corp..._

Bulma tapped her chin as she examined the latest readouts from one of Bardock's future vision episodes. The scientist tapped her pencil against the screen at one particular point of Bardock's brain-scan. "There it is. That particular spot, rooted into your brain stem, growing into your cerebellum, and transmitting to your cerebrum...that's what's causing all of these visions..."

Bardock rubbed the back of his neck. "Damned Kanassan bastard..."

Gine looked worried, her hand rested atop Bardock's. "C-Can you remove it?"

Bulma sighed, plopping into her chair. "Gine, I wear a lot of different hats...but I'm not a brain surgeon. Not yet anyway..."

She leaned back, grabbing a bottle of water from the minifridge under her desk. "I've been examining your husband for three days. I've watched that thing become hot enough that his grey matter was convulsing like eggs in a frying pan. It looks like it's rooted in there so deeply that removing it would kill him. The only thing I can suggest is the Dragon Balls, but those are still months away from returning. So that's out for now..."

Gine spoke up. "What about Planet Namek?"

Bulma shook her head. "Do you know where they are? Because I don't..."

Gine gripped her fists tight. "Maybe we could ask King Kai to-"

Bardock spoke up. "Can't you just make something that makes them stop happening at random? Huh Bulma?"

Gine and Bulma both looked over at Bardock. There was a strange sort of resigned look on his face. "I don't wanna get into it, but I don't want it removed. Having the ability to see threats coming like that is, basically, the only reason I'm sitting here right now. As much as I hate that Kanassan bastard that put it there without my permission...I don't wanna have it taken away..."

Gine mumbled to herself. "Bardock..."

Bulma stood. "Fine. Gimme a minute."

She began to dig in her drawer, finding several bits and parts to put together some kind of device. Bulma walked over to Bardock, snatching the bandana from his head, and moving back over to her desk. "While I'm working on this, I have a question..."

Bardock narrowed his eyes. "What?"

Bulma began to solder parts together. "How old were the two of you when you died?"

Bardock and Gine looked at each other and then back at Bulma. Bardock spoke. "33."

Gine crossed her arms in front of her. "28...w-why?"

Bulma reached into her bag, pulling out a needle and thread. "I've been examining certain aspects of Gine's body over the past months, bone marrow and stuff. Been doing the same to Bardock for the past three days."

Bardock cocked his head. " _Why...?_ "

Bulma scratched the back of her head. "I've been curious about how being dead for so long would impact you guys. And, from what I've observed, Gine has been rapidly aging over the past few months. Like, not to any detriment. It just looks like all of those years' dead are applying themselves now that you're alive again. I don't know why...I'm guessing it's because Shenron is just recreating your bodies from before Frieza incinerated them and the due course of time lost is taking its toll..."

Bardock shook his head. "You lost me."

Gine nodded. "Me too."

Bulma sighed. "Basically, you two have had the entirety of Goku's life on Earth applied onto your bodies all at once. That would make you 53 and Bardock 58. It's...amazing that you both still look so young..."

Gine smiled. "Saiyans age different from humans. We stay fighting fit for the first 70-80 years of our lives!"

Her smile faded slightly. "...and then we crash hard."

Bardock glanced over at Bulma. "Why exactly do you know this anyway?"

Bulma turned, now brandish a newly modified bandana for Bardock to wear. "I've been looking into theoretical physics recently. Time Travel and stuff. Time law would suggest that all beings living within the space-time continuum are bound to a standard flow of how time works. It would theorize that the only way time wouldn't affect you was if you were to battle against the flow of time or if you were to step out of the normal space-time continuum altogether. That would-"

Bardock groaned. "Enough, enough. You're starting to sound like my brother. Gimme the short version."

Bulma rolled her eyes. She knotted Bardock's bandana tight around his head. "Big tough Bardock not tough enough to fight time! _That clear enough for you?_ "

Bardock adjusted the bandana. "Crystal. Thanks."

Gine examined the bandana. "What did you do to it?"

Bulma poked a small bulge on the right side of Bardock's head, just behind his ear. "That device I made it a signal jammer. It's going to constantly transmit a benign signal into Bardock's brain that runs counter to the signal that that growth is sending out. It won't prevent the growth from acting, but it will prevent it from exciting all of Bardock's brain matter at once."

The scientist bent over, whispering into Bardock's ear. "Hey Bardock. How about those Androids slaughtering us all, huh?"

Bardock winced, feeling a pinch at the base of his neck, but nothing followed. Bulma smiled. "There! Problem solved. Now you can live another ten decades and be a pain in my ass the entire time."

The older Saiyan stood, scratching the back of his head with a smirk. "Don't act like you wouldn't miss me~"

Bulma drank more of her water, and then she shot Bardock a genuine smile. "Stop in every so often, okay? I wanna make sure that you stay healthy."

 _Just outside of Bulma's office..._

Launch, her hair a golden as a field of wheat, had a stunned Raditz held tightly by the collar of his shirt, pressed against a wall. The Saiyan could force her off of him anytime he wanted to, but something in his chest prevented him from doing so. Raditz was blushing from ear-to-ear as Launch shouted in his face. " _DON'T YOU TRY TO SKIP OUT ON ME! I NEVER FORGET A FACE, BUD!_ "

She poked her finger into Raditz's chest. "You promised me a dinner date. And I've already made and paid for a reservation! You'd better show up tonight or I'll come and find your hair-metal ass and drag you to dinner, got it?"

Raditz swallowed a massive lump in his throat. He didn't have it in him to say no. Not because he lacked a backbone...but because this woman, this bold and brash human woman, was supremely attractive to him. The door to Bulma's office clicked open and Bulma, Bardock, and Gine filed out. The three of them paused and stared over at Raditz and Launch. Raditz glanced over at his parents and Bulma. Launch glared.

A long silence played out, and the Launch turned back to Raditz. "Well?!"

Raditz spoke in a quiet voice. "Yes ma'am. I would be honored to go out for a meal with you..."

Blonde Launch chuckled. That chuckle quickly turned into a massive sneeze, and then Blue Launch came back to the forefront. She smiled and giggled. "Here you go~"

Launch pressed a card into Raditz's hand. "That's the address of the restaurant. Our address is for 8:00 pm. I'll call you when I'm ready! See you tonight~"

The four of them watched as Launch went skipping off and Raditz breathed a sigh of relief. Bardock shook his head. " _Earth women..._ "

He turned to Gine. "So, how is she going to call for Raditz anyway? Do the three of us have a communicator? Or even, like, a house?"

Gine glanced away. "W-Well...I've just been living with Chi-Chi and Gohan since we got to Earth. So, I suppose..."

Bardock shook his head. "Hell no. Not even a fraction of a chance. I'm not going to mooch off of my youngest son! I'll sleep outside first!"

Gine sighed. "I mean...we have to think of something different. Chi-Chi is hospitable...but her house is meant for four people at best..."

Raditz didn't speak, his mind clearly elsewhere. Luckily, Bulma spoke up. "You three don't have to worry. I've already worked out where you guys will live~"

 _The next day, Mt. Paozu..._

Goku and Gohan were both pressed into the kitchen window, watching what was happening outside with childlike wonder. Bulma's workers from Capsule Corp had arrived early that morning. They were careful, taking the utmost care to gently uproot and relocate each and every piece of plantlife, moving them out of the way until only a cleared-out field remained.

Once that was all finished, Bulma walked up and gave one final inspection. Satisfied, she reached into her shirt pocket and produced a Capsule. And, with a click and a toss and a massive, Bardock and Gine's house was now in place, mere yards away from Goku's house.

It was a basic home, Bardock would accept nothing more than that. Two bedrooms, a single bathroom, a den, and a kitchen. Chi-Chi and Gine both cheered as the house appeared in front of them, rushing as a Bulma followed, chuckling to herself.

Goku turned to Gohan and smiled. "Now you have your Grandpa Ox and my parents both close by. Ain't it exciting?!"

Gohan smiled wide, nodding with excited fervor. "Uh-huh~!"

Goku and Gohan both chuckled and made their way back over to the dining-room table. Gohan immediately got back to his schoolwork, scrawling down math problems and working them out with great speed. Goku sat as well, across the table from a meditating Piccolo. The Saiyan from Earth leaned his head onto his open palm and smiled. "I can't wait to start training! The four of us are gonna have such a blast! It's exciting~!"

But then, Goku's trademark impatience began to bubble up just a bit. "So Gohan...how close are you to being done...?"

One of Piccolo's eyes cracked open. "Your wife is going to kill you if you mess up his studies."

Goku groaned and smacked his head against the table. "I knooooooooooooooooooooow! But I just wanna get started! The Androids are going to be here any minute!"

Piccolo rolled his eyes. "Three days have passed since future boy came by. I think we have time, Goku."

Gohan, seeing his father's eagerness to get started, began to work through the math even faster. "Don't worry, Dad. This won't take long!"

With a flush of a toilet, the bathroom door flew open and Bardock came out, whistling a jaunty tune. He looked over at Gohan and spoke in his normal, blunt manner. "Yo, kid! Don't rush through your book learnin'! Your Mom'll kill us all."

Goku sighed a long, ragged sigh. As Bardock sat down, he lifted his head from the spot on the table. He looked from his father, to Piccolo, to his son. Gohan glanced up at him and smirked. With one last pencil stroke, the boy was done. He closed his workbook with aplomb, and the competitive fire sparked in Goku's eyes. "Hehehe~"

As the four of them stood, ready to head out and begin training, the front door opened and Chi-Chi, Gine, and Bulma stepped through. Bulma marched up to Bardock and gave him a slap on the back. "Your house is all set up, big man! I think you're going to like it when you get inside~!"

Bardock sighed. "It'd better not be too fancy. I can't stand handouts."

Bulma waved his concerns off. "Don't worry. It's the basic model... _with option to augment in the future should Gine want a bigger house_..."

She shook her head. "Don't get bent out of shape, Bardock. If you're that upset about the house, just think of it like this: you brought me a one-of-a-kind piece of uber-advanced alien transportation tech that was stocked to the brim with countless other technologies; I gave you a standard model house that my company makes for coins to the Zeni. _I'd say we're even_."

Bardock shrugged. "Whatever. Thanks for the house, _I guess_."

As the Bardock and Bulma had what had become their standard, sarcastic interaction, Gine and Chi-Chi celebrated in the corner. The two of them were neighbors! They could do all sorts of neighborly things: borrow cups of sugar, complement each other's gardens, complain about their husbands! The world was their mundane oyster and that made both women very happy!

Everything was peaceful within the entire Son Clan.

As their jubilation continued, Raditz finally emerged from upstairs. The elder brother looked quite uncomfortable, dressed in a bespoke suit that was normally meant for Goku to go to important educational meetings involving Gohan. It didn't exactly fit the slightly taller Raditz and it showed when he walked, but it was the only piece of fancy wear available to him on short notice.

Bulma cocked her head. "Are you sure you don't want me to ask Launch to hold off until tomorrow. I could have you a suit made by then."

Raditz shook his head. "N-No thank you. I did make a promise to her that I would go out for dinner with her when I got back from Namek. It would be a mark against my honor as a Saiyan to keep her waiting any longer."

Gine sighed and shook her head. "Son. You need to relax, okay? You look so tense. It's nothing to be worried about or get excited over. It's just a date."

Blonde Launch and her seemingly endless supply of guns flashed through Raditz's mind and he groaned. "I'm not sure that this can count as something to not be worried about..."

Goku spoke up in his normal, cheerful way. "You could always just not go! Come train with us instead!"

Chi-Chi slapped her husband across the back of his head. "Goku! Be quiet!"

Raditz sighed. "I'll make sure to come and join in on the training when I can..."

He looked around. "Speaking of training, where the hell is Vegeta?! Why isn't he here to train with you?"

Bulma sighed. "Vegeta is currently at Capsule Corp. My father is letting him train in the stationary gravity chamber in exchange for Vegeta allowing him to observe his training. So, Vegeta's jumping around in 150 times Earth's Gravity and my dad and his friends are watching and taking notes."

Goku gasped. "He's already at 150?!"

Bulma shrugged. "Last time I checked. He might have gone up since then. I haven't really been paying attention."

Goku chuckled and rubbed his finger under his nose. "Wow! I bet everyone is getting a lot of good training in to prepare for the Androids! We need to get started so that we aren't all left behind!"

Raditz shrugged. "I wish you the best. And I swear I'll join you soon. But, for now..."

Raditz chuckled at his younger brother. "You have a relationship with an Earth woman Kakarot...any advice for your older brother?"

Goku shrugged. "I dunno. Chi-Chi and I fought each other and then the next thing I knew, I was married. Maybe...try punching Launch and see what happens?"

Raditz's shoulders sagged, the bags under his eyes seemingly becoming deeper. "I... _don't know what I was really expecting you to say there_..."

He turned to leave, but flinched at seeing Chi-Chi in front of him. With a sigh, Chi-Chi reached up and grabbed the band holding her hair bun in place. Her hair cascaded down to her shoulders. Chi-Chi blew her bangs out of her face and reached up, grabbing Raditz's long, shaggy mane into a bundle and tying it into a semi-contained ponytail. Chi-Chi smiled and whispered. "Your brother is an idiot, but I fell in love with him because he had a good heart. You do too, Raditz. So just show that to Launch and I'm sure everything will be fine~"

With that confidence boost, some of the doubt clouding Raditz's mind cleared away. He smiled gently at his sister-in-law and nodded. "Thank you, Chi-Chi."

Raditz took off out the front door, flying in the direction of West City. Bulma sighed and turned. "Guess I should be headed out too. I'll catch you guys around!"

She threw up the peace sign and then walked across the yard to her Capsule Plane. Once Bulma was gone, the others were finally ready. Goku cried out, his voice light. "Training time! I'm so excited!"

He ran from the door and took off, followed by Gohan, excited to train with his father, Bardock, eager to get into a fight, and Piccolo, who abandoned his weighted cape and turban a few feet in front of the front door. As the four of them flew off, Chi-Chi ran out after them. "Hey! Make sure you're keeping an eye on the time! Don't be late for dinner!"

Chi-Chi sighed as the four of them vanished into the distance. "None of them heard me, did they?"

Gine smiled, speaking honestly. "Probably not."

Chi-Chi groaned and reached down, picking up Piccolo's weighted cape with some effort. "Damned, green bastard...just leaving his heavy clothes lying about..."

Gine picked up the turban, twirling it carelessly on her finger. "So, what are we going to make for dinner?"

And thus, the training of the Z-Fighter began!

 _At Kame House..._

Yamcha and Krillin sparred back-and-forth, hitting each other with all they had. For once, rather than paying attention to the TV or one of his girly magazines, Master Roshi was paying close attention to his two pupils. As they continued to hit each other with all of they had, the Turtle Hermit took careful note of each, individual move. He marked each and every imperfection that he saw. Krillin and Yamcha both leapt back from each other, and then they charged forward to strike.

However, they both came to a stop when Master Roshi slammed his staff against the ground. Both students immediately kneeled for their latest lesson.

Roshi pointed his staff at Yamcha. "Yamcha! Your shoulders are too heavy! A sign that your mind is not totally focused on the fight at hand! Clear your thoughts when you go into battle!"

Yamcha nodded. "Y-Yessir..."

Roshi pointed his staff at Krillin. "Krillin! You aren't being careful enough with your leg movements! As a result, your footsteps are loose and sloppy! A subtle sign that you are showing fear towards every attack that comes at you! That will cost you in a serious fight!"

Krillin nodded his head. "Yes, Master Roshi."

Roshi was stern, glaring at his two students. But then, a smile spread across the old man's face. "My, oh my. This takes me back. I remember when you both showed up to me, asking for martial arts teachings. It warms my heart to see that the students of my Turtle School are still reaching for even greater heights~"

Yamcha smirked. "Yeah. It certainly takes you back, huh?"

Krillin smiled. "If only Goku were here, it would be a full-on reunion..."

Roshi chuckled. "You boys just missed him when you first came over here. Goku used that Instant Transmission of his to bring me back my sunglasses. And when he did he asked me for a lot of advice! I tell ya, that boy is going to leave you two in the dust if you don't keep cracking at it!"

Yamcha stood up, gripping his fist. "Wh-What?! No way!"

Krillin stood as well. "I'm not just going to sit by and let that happen so easily!"

And then, taking Roshi's criticism into account, the two of them went back to sparring with even more ferocity than before. Roshi chuckled as he watched them fight, pulling out a pipe and lighting it. The Turtle Hermit thought back onto the advice Goku had asked of him when he came: nothing about how to get personally stronger, but a lot on how to draw out more and more of his young son's potential!

 _In the mountains..._

Tien and Chiaotzu were both focused hard on the raging fire within. Just as they had done when they were but novices, the two former students of the Crane School meditated on their bid for even greater strength. They looked deep within themselves, drawing for power yet unrealized.

Chiaotzu was exerting himself as hard as he could. He remembered all of the teaching that he had received in his life: King Kai, Kami, Master Roshi, and even Master Shen to some extent. He knew that, even if it was just a shred, there was more in there that he could dig up. More that he could offer to help his friends stop the threats that kept coming to attack the Earth.

In his mental plane, Chiaotzu envisioned the fire that represented his spirit. He held his hands up to it, feeling its warmth and taking it all in. He reached his hands into the fire and gripped it tight, drawing from it and pulling it all out.

Chiaotzu's eyes snapped open and he shouted at the top of his lungs. With all of the effort his could muster, the little human managed to reach a new level of Kaioken. The Kaioken Times Five!

With the red aura surging around him, Chiaotzu turned to look over at Tien, ready to brag at his new gain in strength. But, what Chiaotzu saw made his jaw drop. Tien was hovering there, a veil of energy surging around him: Kaioken Times Twenty!

Chiaotzu could barely speak. "T-Tien..."

And then, to Chiaotzu's even greater surprise, Tien's aura flared out even more, to _Kaioken Times Twenty-Five!_

 _West City, Terrace to the West Café..._

While Raditz's date with Launch started out tense and overly formal, it did not take long for Launch's cheerful, bubbly personality to break through the shell that kept Raditz quiet and subdued. The elder brother was actually starting to enjoy himself as the date continued on, eating his meal with gusto and happily obliging when Launch offered to split a dessert with him.

The dessert didn't take long to arrive, a piece of chocolate cakes with two cups of coffee accompanying it. As they ate the dessert, Raditz spoke up. "This...this has been nice. It has been quite enjoyable to...spend an evening with you, Launch..."

Launch smiled. "I'm just glad that a busy man like you kept his promise to come out on a dinner date with lil' ol' me. I mean, you're Goku's brother. I imagine your life is pretty exciting~"

Raditz chuckled. "W-Well...to a fault, yes..."

Launch chuckled as well. Raditz took a sip of his coffee. "So, I hope that it is not rude of me to ask but...when you sneeze..."

Launch sighed. "She wasn't mean to you, was she?"

Raditz flinched. "O-Oh! No! Of course not..."

A brief pause. "You're...aware of her?"

Launch nodded. "Yeah. Bulma made me aware of her once I started working for her. It made a lot of sense when I heard about it. It explained so much about all of the weird things in my life. The police always being mad at me, waking up surrounded by strange money and stolen property, having just blanked out for six months and joined that army..."

Raditz nodded. "Oh! You were part of an army? That's neat. So was I."

Launch blushed, a smile spreading across her face. "Y-Yeah. I was always a good shot, even when Blonde me wasn't in control. I had always wanted to go and try to join the Royal Army or something... _but I guess Blonde me just found the Red Ribbon Army more appealing or something, I dunno_..."

Raditz and Launch both ate a bite of the cake. Raditz smiled. "So, uh, what rank did you make it to before you left?"

Launch nodded. "I was a Sergeant, First Class in the Red Ribbon Military Police. Or... _she_ was, at least..."

She smiled. "I stuck around for a bit after Blonde me sneezed and I came back. It was fun until I saw all the terrible things that the army was actually doing..."

Launch looked over to Raditz. "What about you? You have the look of a soldier in your eye. What was your rank?"

Raditz cleared his throat, sipping his coffee. "Oh, uh...Vegeta likes to call me a low-class, _because he's Vegeta_ , but I actually made it all the way to mid-class warrior rankings in the Saiyan army. Not as good as a Lesser Elite like Nappa or a Royal Elite like the previously mentioned royal pain in the ass, but I'm proud of it for the most part..."

Launch chuckled. "That sounds cool. I think you could have become an Elite, or whatever, with more time."

Raditz smiled. "That...means a lot. Thanks..."

The two of them finished their dessert. With Launch having pre-paid for the meal, the two of them stood and left, Launch leaving a 30 Zeni tip behind on the way out. Stepping out from within the café, the two of them stared up into the night sky, at the twinkling stars above. Raditz smiled a small, hopeful smile. "I think I could get used to this planet..."

Launch giggled and leaned her head against Raditz's arm. "There are a lot of nice things here. We have good movies and lots of great TV shows."

She glanced up at him. "If you'd like, we could go back to my apartment and watch some things together. Unless you're busy..."

Raditz smiled, reaching down and gently grabbing Launch's hand. "I think I can spare some time to get to know you a little more. Who knows, we might even discuss a second date."

Launch chuckled as she and Raditz started walking down the sidewalk. "Well aren't you just a charmer~?"

 _At Capsule Corp..._

Late into the evening, far beyond the time when her employees had gone home to be with their families, Bulma was still hunkered down in the Capsule Corp garage, spending away her hours by stripping the former flagship of King Cold to pieces. A playlist of her favorite songs rang through the once mighty vessel as she worked.

Each panel she removed produced another surprise for Bulma, tech nerd that she was, to fully enjoy. It was truly a golden egg that Bardock and the others had brought her on their return trip home. And it was nice for her that they had. Anything to keep her mind busy.

Bulma reached over and grabbed an open, half-empty bottle of red wine. She brought the spout to her lips and chugged down three or four gulps of it before grabbing her rivet gun and removing another massive wall of paneling.

Within the walls of this particular room, Bulma found yet another gravity stabilizer, an extra module for maintaining equilibrium when stopped in dead space. Her mind buzzed at all of the potential innovations she could make with this. And then, Bulma stumbled over to a power mecha, most likely used for moving cargo, and leaned against it. "M-Maybe I drank just a bit too much..."

As she slumped there, a song suddenly started playing from Bulma's playlist that had fallen out of her favor long ago. "Dammit! Why haven't I taken that one out...?"

Bulma pulled out her Capsule Phone, opening the lock screen and seeing a picture of her and Yamcha together at one of his first baseball games. Bulma grimaced and changed the song. " _Not drunk enough for this shit..._ "

She lifted the bottle of wine to her lips and finished it off. And then, deleting the hated song from her playlist, Bulma went back to working on tearing the ship to pieces.

 _In the Capsule Corp Gravity Chamber..._

Even late into the night, Vegeta could not force himself to stop training. His previous limit of 180 times Earth's normal gravity had stopped having the desired effect the Prince wanted, so he bumped it up to 190 times for that extra pressure.

Vegeta swung his hand, forward and launched a spate of ki blasts. Those blasts quickly made their rounds in the circular room and Vegeta turned to face them. Moving as fast as he could muster in the hostile conditions, Vegeta swiped at each blast, missing two and allowing them to collide into him. Vegeta withstood, in spite of the pain, and roared in fury. The golden light of his Super Saiyan form shined bright and Vegeta continued to output power. This time around, he managed 20 seconds of maximum Super Saiyan output in 190 times Earth's gravity before the form gave out and he fell to his knees.

Sweat poured from Vegeta's face, but the Saiyan Prince merely laughed it off. "No. Not even close. I can still do more. I know I can!"

Vegeta stood and put up his fists. In front of himself he pictured Kakarot and Bardock and that Namekian. Vegeta threw three punches and dispelled each image. "No! You will all know the great Prince of all Saiyans as Number One!"

Vegeta threw a massive blast, allowing it to circle the room before catching it and holding it. Vegeta strained against the force of the blast, but he did not give ground. In the months since they had left Yardrat, the Prince had managed to fill in the gap between himself and Kakarot by quite a bit. He would not be caught slacking now, not when he was so close!

Vegeta screamed at the top of his lungs and dispelled the massive blast. "Let the Androids come! I will scrap them all personally! _I am the strongest warrior this Universe has ever known!_ "

 _On Kami's Lookout..._

Kami stood on the edge of the Lookout, dour and silent as Mr. Popo continued a carefree existence behind him. The attendant to the Lookout was happily frolicking among the butterflies, watering the plants as he went along.

Kami would normally appreciate his comrade's joy, but these were dark times. Ever since Trunks and his companions had come from the future bearing that dreadful message, Kami had been observing the planet he watched over with even greater focus.

In his gazing, the elder Namekian had managed to locate Dr. Gero. He had tried to talk Piccolo into going and handling the matter immediately, but the stubborn, younger Namekian vehemently refused to do that. Kami sneered. " _Damned arrogant fool..._ "

He wished that he could go and handle the matter himself, but Dr. Gero had already built up creations that far surpassed the mere God in power level. And the creations to follow these were going to be even stronger than that, by Kami's estimations.

But, in spite of all of that, it was not Dr. Gero's work that bothered Kami. It was something far more sinister than that. He hadn't noticed it prior, due to the Saiyan attacks keeping him distracted, but an oddity had managed to sneak its way onto the Earth, ducking Kami's normally all-encompassing gaze.

He could feel it now, buried deep within the Earth, far out of the Guardian's reach. An even greater evil was festering below the Earth's crust, writhing and waiting for its chance to emerge. And Kami feared that this feeling that he was suffering was simply the calm before a uniquely destructive storm.

 _Back at Goku's House..._

Chi-Chi and Gine both slaved over the hot stove, sweat pouring down their faces as they prepared that evening's meal. It took a lot of effort to prepare enough food for four Saiyans and a human. Gine chuckled as she began to chop the beef for the Paozu Rice Bowl. "You know, we should thank Piccolo for not being the eating type. He's technically making our jobs easier~"

Chi-Chi rolled her eyes, but laughed regardless. "So, a lot is going to happen within the next couple of years, huh?"

Gine nodded. "Sounds like it, yeah."

Chi-Chi pulled out a handful of leeks, chopping them fine and adding them to the pot of gravy she was stirring. "So, are you going to join the fight against the Androids? Gine?"

Gine sighed and shrugged. "I... honestly don't know yet. If I'm needed, then definitely. If I'm not needed, then probably not. I'm with everyone else in the opinion that we should just find that Dr. Gero and put a stop to him now, but you know Saiyan men and their desire for a greater challenge. Bardock, Kakarot, and Vegeta thirst for a fight. I could genuinely never be involved in a real fight again and be satisfied for the rest of my life..."

Gine smiled, turning to Chi-Chi as she fluffed the rice. "So, what about you tiger? You plan on following everyone else into the fight?"

Chi-Chi solemnly chuckled. "I really want to. I think it would require more training than I have time for though. I'm really far behind everyone else. But I plan on sticking be my family regardless of the threat! I want to help wherever I can!"

With a sigh both women set down their utensils, Chi-Chi her knife and Gine her wooden spoon, and then they through a strike at one another. Chi-Chi's fist struck against Gine's palm and the two women struggled against one another. Chi-Chi confidently smirked. "I know you're holding back."

Gine winked. "And I know that if you keep at it, I won't have to someday~"

Chi-Chi stared out into the dark, night sky. "Well, I think it's safe to say they won't be coming home anytime soon..."

As she walked across the room, Gine gave the meat a final searing. "So, what do we do? It would be a waste to let all of this go cold."

Chi-Chi returned with several large container and a duffel bag. "We'll just have to do like I did when I was pregnant. If they're all too busy fooling around to be home on time, we just bring the food to them~"

 _Far away from Goku's House, on the Mt. Paozu outskirts..._

Goku, Bardock, Piccolo, and Gohan were embroiled in a four-way brawl for supremacy against one another. It was an intense affair, with each of them striking at the other three as hard as they could. Not a single strike was held back on in this fight.

Goku and Bardock were both shining, golden beacons in the sky. Their light complemented the stars, the golden glow adding onto the luster of the celestial bodies. The two of them were locked in a rather intense exchange. Goku went for a punch, but Bardock leapt over it, ramming his fingers into his son's mouth and overhead tossing him across the sky.

Piccolo appeared behind Goku in a flash, kicking the Saiyan from Earth back towards Bardock and giving chase. Bardock slapped Goku out of the way and he and Piccolo started going at it. Goku recovered and chuckled, rubbing his aching jaw. "Man, I knew that Dad hit hard but Piccolo certainly hasn't been slacking..."

With a shout, Gohan appeared behind Goku. The child kicked at his father, but Goku dodged and grabbed Gohan by the ankle. "Hey son!"

Goku whipped Gohan in the air and tossed him towards the ground. But, Gohan was able to catch himself and halt his fall. He looked up to his father and started to charge a blast, but Bardock appeared out of nowhere and jabbed the boy across the face. "Focus up, kid! You're not paying attention to your surroundings!"

Gohan skidded across the ground, but stood up unharmed. He wiped his mouth and charged at his grandfather again. The two of them prepared to fight one another, but both dodged away when Piccolo started spamming destructive energy blasts at them. Goku chuckled. "Looks like you both-"

A blast smashed into the side of Goku's face and he yelped in pain. And then, he quickly joined his father and son in hiding behind a tree. Goku looked over at Bardock and shot him a big, goofy grin. Bardock rolled his eyes. "Damned fool."

Bardock charged an energy ball into his hands. He counted in his head, waiting until he felt the time was right, and then he tossed it from behind cover. The orb of energy bounced across the ground, ricocheting off of anything it touched until it reached Piccolo up in the sky, and then it exploded right in the Namekian's face.

Goku nodded. "Nice attack."

And then he cocked his head. "But hey, I've noticed something. Why don't you use your Riot Thingy anymore?"

Bardock grumbled. "Shut up Kakarot. I-"

Piccolo appeared out of the massive cloud of smoke that Bardock's attack made and tried to kick the older Saiyan. Bardock blocked it with his forearm and then he and Piccolo started to fistfight across the forest. Goku stretched his shoulders as he watched this fight play out in front of him. "Man, I'm starting to get hungry. We've been doing this for a few hours now, so we...should..."

Goku looked over to see Gohan struggling to push himself up. He walked over and knelt down next to the boy. "Hey Gohan, maybe you should take a break. You aren't as used to this sort of stuff as me and Piccolo and your Grandpa."

Gohan glanced up at Goku, and then responded to him by lunging and throwing a punch. Goku dodged, but Gohan managed to hook his tail around Goku's and bring himself to a halt. He and Goku stopped for a moment and stared at one another. Gohan had a determined smile on his face. "I don't wanna fall behind everyone else. I can still train!"

Goku stared intently at his son, seeing that same, seemingly invisible to everyone else, glimmer that he had before. Goku chuckled and smiled. "You're going to be so great once you get older, son~!"

Gohan struck a fighting stance. "Only if I keep training!"

Goku struck a stance right back. "That's my boy!"

Father and Son sparred with one another for a brief time. It was not as intense as before, just an affectionate exchange of blows between two fighters. Their fight eventually carried them into the air where, in a stroke of luck, they collided with the other fight going on between Bardock and Piccolo. The four warriors all scramble, regrouping on opposite sides into teams of two: Gohan and Piccolo on one side, Goku and Bardock on the other.

The boy nodded to the Namekian. The older Saiyan nodded to his youngest son. And then the four of them all charged at one another once more.

Eventually, as this fight continued, Gine and Chi-Chi both arrived, toting a massive dinner with them. Chi-Chi stared up into the sky with a sigh. "Hey! Everyone get down here an eat!"

They either couldn't hear her or didn't care to at the moment. An annoyed vein popped up on Chi-Chi's head. Gine gave her a calming pat on the back. "Don't worry, I'll fetch them."

The sparring match continued in the sky, punches and kicks being thrown hard enough to make miniature sonic booms. But, it was all quickly broken up by a third, golden visage flying into matters. Gine, in her Super Saiyan form, caught Goku and Bardock's fists and forced them both back. "Enough fighting for now! Chi-Chi and I spent hours on this dinner, we expect you four to come and enjoy it."

She glanced over to Piccolo. "We brought water for you."

Goku stared in awe at his mother. "M-Mom! _Nobody told me that you were a Super Saiyan!_ "

Bardock was absolutely stunned. "What the hell happened on the Earth while we were all gone?"

Piccolo pressed his hand to his chest, restoring his clothes to their normal condition as well as summoning a cape and turban. "Lots of things happened while you all were gone..."

Gine smiled wide. "Yep. Come and join us for dinner and I might just tell you about them~"

Gine and Piccolo, along with Gohan, descended down to the nearby cliffside where Chi-Chi was setting up the dinner picnic. Goku and Bardock exchanged confused looks and then followed.

On the ground, it was dinner time. Chi-Chi laid out a bowl for each and every guest, even Piccolo just to be polite, and ladled in the various parts of that evening's meal. "Just keep in mind, we made a lot. So feel free to eat your fill."

As they ate, Bardock had so many questions he now wanted to ask. He stared over a Gine, remembering the golden luster that Gine's hair had taken just a few minutes prior. He glanced from her, up into the sky, and saw that the Earth's Moon was nearly full. "So..."

Bardock sighed. "What are we going to do about that? We'll have to all plan to stay inside on Full Moon nights, right?"

Gine shook her head, dishing out what would be her third bowl. "Nah. Garlic Junior took care of that for us. The Moon here doesn't produce Blutz Waves anymore."

Bardock nearly choked on his meal, punching himself in the chest to clear it up. "Garlic Junior?! _Makyan_ Garlic Junior?!"

Goku cocked his head in confusion. "What's a Garlic Junior?"

Gine chuckled at her son's naivety. "How about this, Kakarot. I'll agree to tell you everything about our long history with the Makyans. But you have to tell us what all happened on Planet Cold. Deal?"

Goku smiled wide. "Deal!"

And so, that's how the evening was spent. The Son Clan sat there, enjoying a meal under the stars, regaling one another with various stories or battles fought and adventures had. In two years' time, the Androids would strike and, once again, the Earth would not know peace. But, for now, the family got to spend time on a rather novel concept with one another, one that various intruders and catastrophes had robbed them of for so long: _actually being a family_.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	55. Chapter 55: Saiyan Love, Part 1

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: This was originally going to be one, massive chapter. But I decided to break it up into two because I feel like it would make the story I'm trying to tell flow better. So, Chapter 56 shouldn't take long for me to post. I hope you all enjoy my first take on "Filler" here~_

 **Chapter 55: Saiyan Love, Part 1**

 _Mt. Paozu, Bardock and Gine's house (16 months until the Android Attack) …_

Raditz stood in front of the mirror atop his dresser and looked himself up and down. Tonight was, arguably, in the top five of the most important nights of his life. Tonight, he had something special planned. Tonight, he was taking the next step towards the rest of his hopefully peaceful life.

Raditz traced his finger over a scar on his side, a stab wound from a former invasion. "Hmm..."

His body was covered in old scars, proof of his long life as a soldier and a Saiyan. He smiled as he thought back over his past few months with Launch. Spending time with her, getting to know her, growing to love her. She had seen all of his scars, and she had even shown him a few of hers too. She was everything he wanted in a woman. She saw those scars and wasn't repelled by the violence that had filled Raditz's past, she simply said that they gave him character.

Launch had given Raditz something that he had never been allowed to experience in his life prior: self-confidence.

Raditz blushed as he reached over, picking up a small box and gripping it tight. Chi-Chi had gone through the trouble of helping him pick this out. She had even taken the time to coach him on what to say. Raditz nervously cleared his throat. "Launch, would you..."

"L-Launch, will you..."

"Launch, I would be honored if you would..."

Raditz pursed his lips, unsure of how to word it. He gripped the box tighter and closed his eyes. As he began to play the scene out in his head, Raditz was caught off-guard by his cell phone ringing in his pocket. He pulled it out and answered. "H-Hello?"

He smiled happily. "Oh, hey Launch! What's up?"

As Launch spoke, Raditz's smile faded. He wasn't unhappy, just confused by what she had to say to him. "Say again...?"

 _Meanwhile, at Chi-Chi and Goku's house..._

Chi-Chi held the opening to her backpack open, stuffing as many of her pre-prepared meals into the bag as she could manage. The look on her face was one of intense focus, as she had a plan for today. Chi-Chi wordlessly packed the bag, working out a strategy in her head as she did so.

Standing in her kitchen, dressed in her fighting clothes, she knew that she only had one shot to get this right or the entire thing would be a bust. Chi-Chi picked up the satellite television that she had bought the last time she went into town and stuffed it into a protective pocket. "Okay, the bag is all packed. Now...I just have to set the trap..."

Chi-Chi flinched as she heard thunderous footsteps cascading down the stairs. "Okay. _Show time_."

Chi-Chi immediately made a showing of doing warm-up stretches. She worked her legs and her arms, grunting and groaning to put on a big display. Goku and Gohan rushed into the kitchen. "Okay Gohan! So, I was thinking that today we would-"

Goku paused, seeing his wife warming up. "Hey Chi-Chi. Whatcha doin'?"

Chi-Chi spoke bluntly, knowing that short sentences were key to keep her target's attention. "Gonna go kill a monster!"

Gohan cocked his head. "Monster? What monster?"

Goku was curious as well, his excitement bubbling forth. "There's a monster?!"

Chi-Chi smiled and nodded. "Yep. Been causing earthquakes near the top of the mountain. Landslides have been ruining my attempts to start growing crops in the nearby fields."

She smirked and grabbed her backpack, slinging it onto her back. "Gonna go find it and beat the crap out of it."

Goku was giddy. "Hey! Wait! _I wanna come!_ "

Chi-Chi smirked; the trap had snapped. "Well Goku...I guess you could come along~"

Goku smiled wide, stars shining in his eyes. Gohan spoke up. "Ooh! Can I come too?"

Chi-Chi had to stifle a gasp. Putting on a serious face, she shook her head. "No. Too dangerous. But don't worry, son. I've found someone to watch you while your Dad and I are gone."

 _Back in Bardock and Gine's house..._

Bardock and Gine had both found contentment on Earth. The two of them had fully settled into retired life and were both all the better for it. Resting in his lazy chair, snoring like a bear, Bardock was enjoying a peaceful, afternoon nap. Meanwhile, Gine stood in the kitchen and found herself indulging in the simple pleasures of housework.

Gine whistled a merry tune as she stared out the window, watching birds flap about between the tree branches. She carefully dried each individual dish and, once that was done, gathered them all up to put them away. She glanced into the den at her slumbering husband, opening the china cabinet to put the plates away.

In the back of her mind, Gine knew that something had to give. In spite of their peaceful life, in spite of reconnecting after that long year, she and Bardock had still not discussed what had happened between them after the fight with Frieza. Gine wanted to wait and allow Bardock to approach her when he was ready. But it was becoming clearer and clearer to her that Bardock was never going to bring it up on his own. It was down to her to address the problem.

But, that could all wait. She and Bardock had a more important duty at the moment. Gine glanced out the window and saw Goku, Chi-Chi, and Gohan all walking over. Moving quickly, she dashed into the den and shook her husband's chair. "Bardock! They're coming!"

Bardock snorted as he was jolted awake. "Wh-What?!"

Gine was positively giddy. "Chi-Chi and Kakarot are bringing Gohan over! We get to babysit Bardock! _Get excited~!_ "

Bardock shook his head and chuckled. "I'm excited. Calm down, Gine..."

Gine ran across the room, opening the door on the first knock. She smiled wide at her son, daughter-in-law, and grandson. "Hey Gohan!"

Gohan smiled and jumped into a hug. "Hey Grandma!"

Bardock stood up, scratching the back of his head and belching. "Sup kid."

Gohan waved. "Hey Grandpa Bardock!"

Gine set Gohan down and he went running into the kitchen. She turned to Goku and Chi-Chi and gently smiled. "So, we're watching him for the day while you guys go on a da-"

Chi-Chi rose her voice, overtaking Gine. " _DAY_ TIME MONSTER HUNT! Yes Gine! Daytime Monster Hunt!"

Goku pumped his fists into the air. "Heck yeah! _Daytime Monster Hunt!_ "

Bardock rolled his eyes and chuckled. And then, Raditz surprised everyone by barreling down the stairs. The elder brother looked as if he was trying to stay calm, but his eyes were frantic. He nearly tripped as he arrived at the bottom of the stairs, but managed to catch himself. Bardock turned to his son. "What's up with you?"

Raditz shook his head. "N-Nothing. Nothing. It's nothing."

Gine narrowed her eyes. "Uh-huh. It sure looks like nothing. What's going on, son?"

Raditz shook his head again. "Nothing. I swear. It's just-"

Chi-Chi stepped up, placing her hand onto Raditz's chest. "Raditz."

Raditz glanced into Chi-Chi's eyes. Chi-Chi gently smiled. "You and Launch have a healthy relationship. I know what you're worried about, but don't panic. Everything is going to be fine."

Gine stood on her tiptoes, giving Raditz a peck on the cheek. "Just stay calm, Raditz."

Even Bardock stepped up, giving Raditz a fatherly pat on the back. Raditz looked towards his father, seeing a confident smirk on the man's face. He turned to Goku and received a cheerful thumbs up from his brother. Raditz took a deep breath and let it out. "Thank you all. I appreciate it."

And then, without another word, Raditz ran out the door and took off into the sky.

Chi-Chi chuckled and grabbed Goku by the arm. "Okay then Goku, let's hurry up! We have a monster to take down!"

Goku smiled wide. "Heck yeah! Let's do it!"

The two of them both turned and started marching towards the forest. Gine followed them out of the house and waved goodbye. "Have fun you two!"

Chi-Chi turned to wave goodbye as well and the two women shared a sly wink. Goku was excited to go and hunt down a monster, seemingly none the wiser to what was going on. Chi-Chi was thrilled to have a day with her husband. And Gine and Bardock got to spend a day with their beloved grandson. Gine happily strolled back into her house, walking into the kitchen and finding Bardock and Gohan already bonding just as they had before. Bardock smashed his fist against his bare chest. "Alright boy! Let's get down to it! Daily chores and training time!"

Gohan was pumped. "Yes sir! Let's get to it!"

Gine leaned against the doorway with a warm grin. This was going to be a good day for everyone, it seemed.

 _In the sky, on the way to West City..._

Raditz sped through the air on his way to West City. The elder brother had a lot on his mind as he streaked across the sky. With a concerned scowl on his face, he thought back to his phone call with Launch just a few minutes earlier.

 _Earlier, on the phone..._

Launch sighed. "So that's the way it is. I'm sorry, Raditz."

Raditz was speechless. Not out of any sort of anger, but more out of confusion. "One more time. Slowly. I'm still not fully grasping what you're saying..."

Launch buried her face in her free hand. "I went to check on Bulma before I went home last night. I found her three cases of beer and 48 hours into a work binge. She hasn't been sleeping or eating properly."

Raditz nodded. "R-Right..."

Launch cocked her head. "So... I asked her to join us on our date tonight. Because she needs it, Raditz. She needs to get out. Her and Yamcha's break-up staggered her and she's only been getting worse as time has gone on. And... she's my best friend, so I have to do _something_. You know?"

Raditz nodded again. "I get all of that. I'm confused as to what my part in this is meant to be..."

Launch sighed. "I need you to find someone to bring along to join us on this double date, Raditz."

Raditz groaned. "And just how am I supposed to do that. All of the people I spend my time with are either taken or asexual."

Launch sighed even louder. "Look. I'm sorry. I didn't think about that when I did it. I just...I _... ah...Ah...AH..._ "

Raditz cringed. "Oh no..."

A sneeze echoed through the phone, and then the gruffer voice of Blonde Launch began to shout. " _HOW THE HELL SHOULD I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO DO?! JUST DO SOMETHING RADITZ! YOU'RE AN ADULT, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO FIND SOMEONE!_ "

Raditz groaned. "Okay, okay. Quit yelling. I'll...find _someone_..."

 _Back in the present..._

Raditz continued to speed along in the air, deep in thought. "Tien isn't romantic, Krillin is in the friend-zone, Chiaotzu _might_ be a child..."

He turned over mid-air, stroking his chin. "Kakarot is married, Dad is married, Piccolo's kind doesn't participate in romantic relationships..."

He thought harder. "That leaves...that...leaves..."

Raditz shuddered. "No... _Noooooo_..."

He groaned at the top of his lungs, ruffling his hair in frustration. "You must be joking. What kind of merciless God do I have watching over me to leave me in this kind of position! Surely I must know someone else..."

After thinking for a minute, Raditz realized he had no other choice. "Dammit. Dammit all! Dammit all to Hell!"

Raditz adjusted his tie and sighed. "I guess...I have no other choice..."

And then, after taking a moment to feel out his energy, Raditz sped off in a slightly altered direction.

 _Back on Mt. Paozu..._

Goku and Chi-Chi hiked along, higher and higher into the wilds of Mt. Paozu. The two of them leapt up to the top of a sheer cliff and Goku cocked his head. "It's weird though..."

Chi-Chi turned to him. "What do you mean?"

Goku chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "I thought I tamed everything on this mountain after Gohan was born. I guess it doesn't take monster's long to show up and start trouble again, huh?"

A bead of sweat ran down the side of Chi-Chi's face. "Goku...you do realize that you were gone for over two years, right? That's kind of a long time..."

Goku nodded. "Y-Yeah...I guess so..."

His mind seemed to wander. "Wow... _two years?!_ Where does the time go...?"

Chi-Chi sighed. "It just flows Goku. It flows on and on and on. Gohan is _seven_."

Goku chuckled. "He sure is getting big, huh?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yep. Our little boy is growing up into a little man before our very eyes. It's almost enough to make a mother want to cry..."

She wiped a tear from her eyes and chuckled. "But, Gine has been helping me deal with all of that. So, I fine with it. I look forward to watching our baby grow into a fine young man."

Goku smiled. "Me too~"

The two of them soon came upon the trunk of a massive tree, standing in the middle of their path. Chi-Chi smirked and leapt onto the root, slowly making her way around the side of the tree hanging over a sheer cliff. Goku called out to her. "Hey, Chi-Chi! You can just fly, ya know?"

Chi-Chi called back. "Where's the fun in that?"

Goku chuckled. "That's a good point."

He leapt onto the roots and followed along behind his wife. Once they made it to the other side, they leapt back onto the path and stared out at the vast forests and valleys of Mt. Paozu. Chi-Chi smiled wide, shielding her eyes from the Sun. "You know why I want to come up here and stop this monster from making earthquakes?"

Goku shrugged. "I dunno. Cuz it's fun?"

Chi-Chi sighed, sitting down and letting her legs hang over the edge of the cliff. "No Goku. Fun aside, I have a much more important reason."

Goku sat down next to Chi-Chi. She reached into her backpack and pulled out two bottles of water. She drank down half of hers in one gulp and pointed out to the vast, rolling valleys. "I want to start a farm. A nice, little farm for our family to tend and enjoy for generations to come. You know what I mean? I want something for us to be happy with, for when we grow old. Something you and I can retire with once Gohan is grown up and out of the house."

Goku smiled. "I get what ya mean."

He chuckled and nodded. "I'd love to do that, Chi-Chi! That sounds like it would be fun, as long as I still get to train and fight and stuff~"

Chi-Chi rolled her eyes, but her smile didn't fade. "You and your fighting obsession..."

She reached into her backpack, pulling out her cellphone. "We'll talk more about this in a second, I'm going to call and check on Gohan."

 _Back at Bardock and Gine's house..._

Gine was trying her best to wrap her hair up in a towel with only a single free hand. Her other hand held a cellphone up to her face. "He's fine, Chi-Chi. He and Bardock have been spending time together since you left."

Gine nodded her head as Chi-Chi spoke on the other end. She finished wrapping her hair towel and sighed. "Yes, I'm making sure that his lessons for today are getting done. You don't have to worry about that. He's a smart boy, he knows how to study without me looming over him..."

Chi-Chi started talking again. Gine nodded along as she walked out of the bathroom. She made her way into the den and then upstairs. The Saiyan mother walked into her and Bardock's room and dropped her towel. As she fished around in her drawer for underwear and a bra, Gine briefly glanced out the window and chuckled. "Yes Chi-Chi, Gohan is enjoying himself~"

Outside, Gohan and Bardock were both shirtless, a massive pile of freshly harvest logs sitting in a heap next to them. Bardock picked up a log and shouted at the top of his lungs. " _OOZARU STRONG! OOZARU CHOP WOOD WITH PECS!_ "

And, he slammed the log onto his chest and split it in two. Gohan, copying his grandfather, shouted at the top of his lungs. " _OOZARU CHOP WOOD WITH PECS!_ "

The boy slammed the log against his chest, breaking it in half. Bardock chuckled and picked up another. " _OOZARU STRONG! OOZARU CHOP WOULD WITH HEAD!_ "

He headbutted the log and broke it into two pieces. Gohan followed suit. " _OOZARU CHOP WOOD WITH HEAD!_ "

The boy headbutted a log into pieces. He and Bardock briefly glanced at one another and then they both laughed out loud. Gine smiled gently. She grabbed her clothes from the drawer and then sat down to dress herself. "Like I said Chi-Chi, you don't have to worry. I'll make sure that Gohan has his schoolwork done by the time you and Kakarot get back. So, just relax and enjoy yourself~"

 _Back with Goku and Chi-Chi..._

Chi-Chi continued to nod along. "Okay. Okay. I love you too, Gine. Okay. Okay, bye."

Chi-Chi hung up her phone and put it away. Upon reaching into the bag, however, she noticed that three of her prepared meals had magically gone missing. "Wha-"

She thought for a minute, and then she turned with a glare. " _Goku._ "

Goku flinched, his mouth full of sausage curry and rice. " _Whut?!_ "

A tense moment was shared between the two, but then Chi-Chi sighed and opened her mouth. "Ahh!"

Goku cocked his head for a moment, confused, but then he realized what she was asking. "Oh! S-Sorry..."

Goku caught a big hunk of the food in his chopsticks and fed it to Chi-Chi, she smiled as she chewed. "Thank you, honey~"

As Chi-Chi chewed, Goku chuckled. "I gotta say, I really missed your cooking while I was in space."

Chi-Chi opened her mouth again and Goku fed her more. She nodded. "I missed cooking for you. I hope that's the last time that we have to be apart for that long..."

A few bites later and the meal was gone. Chi-Chi packed up the containers and sighed. "Now, we don't touch the last three until we defeat the monster, okay?"

Goku nodded. "Okay."

Chi-Chi reached into a side pocket of the bag and pulled out the bottle of pills that Trunks had delivered. "Have you taken this yet? It's the first day of the week."

Goku shook his head. "Not yet."

Chi-Chi handed him a pill and the rest of her water. Goku took both and sighed. "I wonder if this stuff is actually working."

Chi-Chi shrugged and put the pill bottle away. "Hopefully we never have to find out."

And, with that, the two of them continued their walk. They were starting to come up on their destination, the base of the Paozu River. As they leapt across the stones dotting the surface of the water, Chi-Chi and Goku discussed Gohan. Chi-Chi spoke candidly. "All I want is for him to be educated and happy. I've been trying to be less hard on him, but I just worry sometimes. Ya know?"

Goku nodded. "I get it. I want Gohan to be happy and strong, personally. But I know that he wants to be smart too, so I try not to push him to train more than he wants to."

Chi-Chi smiled. "Happy and smart and strong...he's kind of already become all three, huh?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. Our boy certain is something."

The Saiyan from Earth chuckled. "You're becoming pretty strong too. It's...it's really cool..."

Chi-Chi blushed, feeling her heart fluttered. She and Goku came to another stop and she turned to look at him. The two of them stared into each other's eyes for a few moments and then, with no warning, Chi-Chi leapt up and gave Goku and long, passionate kiss. Once they separated, they had another moment of silence. And then Goku smiled. "Wanna hear a secret?"

Chi-Chi cocked her head. "Wh-What kind of secret?"

Goku smiled. "I've noticed a few things since coming back to Earth, but one of them has been on my mind a lot more than the others. It's about Gohan..."

Chi-Chi nodded. "Then yes, I'd like to hear it please..."

Goku leaned in close. "Gohan is..."

He whispered into her ear and Chi-Chi's eyes widened. "No...wh-what?! How do you know tha-"

The entire mountain began to quake like crazy and Goku and Chi-Chi both fell over. Once the quake stopped, Goku stood and rubbed his aching butt. "Ow! Dammit!"

Chi-Chi groaned. "See? That's why I wanted to come up here and deal with this. That thing is eventually going to make the entire mountain crumble if we don't teach it some manners!"

Goku's pained expression faded. He smashed his fists together and smiled. "Well, let's do it then! I'm ready to rumble!"

Chi-Chi flew up, hanging her backpack from a sturdy tree branch. She motioned for Goku to follow her and they eventually came upon the base of the Paozu River, a massive water basin and a cascading waterfall. Chi-Chi pointed. "I think it's living in a cave somewhere behind the rockface. We'll have to swim down and find the opening to get in."

Goku had already removed his shirts, as well as his boots. He let his tag wag free and smiled. "Well, let's go then! No time to wait around!"

Goku leapt into the water with a happy yip, splashing Chi-Chi as he breached the surface. Chi-Chi chuckled and pulled off her boots. "Wait for me!"

Chi-Chi leapt in and found Goku waiting for her. The two of them swam against the current, deeper into the dark depths of the Paozu River. Eventually, the darkness began to lift and they came across what they were looking for, an opening that led to a hidden cave. The two of them surfaced and leapt onto the shore, observing their surroundings.

It was a massive cave, lit by flaming torches all around. Goku was confused. "I wonder what the heck could be living down here..."

" _ **THAT WOULD BE ME, MORTAL!**_ "

Goku and Chi-Chi flinched in shock. They both turned to the source of the voice and found, to their shock, a massive blue catfish monster looming over them. He was massive, his tendril-like whiskers waving around freely. He roared down at them. " _ **WHO DARES DISTURB THE MIGHTY ZOONAMA?! GOD OF THE PAOZU RIVER!**_ "

Goku smiled and waved. "Hey! I'm Goku!"

Chi-Chi frowned. "We're the owners of this mountain. And we're getting tired of all of the earthquakes that have been messing up our crops! You're the one causing them, right?!"

Zoonama smiled. " _ **INDEED, I AM!**_ "

Chi-Chi shouted back. " _ **WELL CUT IT OUT OR WE'RE GOING TO KICK YOUR ASS!**_ "

Zoonama cringed at Chi-Chi raising her voice so loud. His confident smile became and angry sneer. " _ **YOU DARE DEFY THE GOD OF THE PAOZU RIVER?! YOU MORTALS SHALL PAY WITH YOUR LIVES!**_ "

Chi-Chi squared up, taking a fighting stance. Goku did as well, a goofy smile on his face. "This is gonna be so much fun~"

Zoonama charged at them and they charged back. And then, and earth-shaking brawl commenced.

 _West City, the High Dine Restaurant and Karaoke Bar..._

There was a pregnant pause at the Table 26 of the West City High Dine and Karaoke Bar. All four guests at the table seemed, at best, uncomfortable to be sitting there. Launch had a look of confused panic on her face, Bulma had a sullen scowl, Raditz had a look of uncomfortable acceptance of the awkward situation.

And _Vegeta_ didn't notice anything as he stuffed his face with appetizers from the tray that the waiter had brought.

Launch spoke candidly, her voice wavering as she brushed her blue hair from her face. "Wow Raditz. I have to say...in a _billion years_ , I never would have thought would bring Vegeta with you. What a... _Surprise_..."

Raditz tapped his finger against his bicep, avoiding eye contact. "Yeah, I was too. You know. It's just...when a double date occurs and I have to find someone who is willing to come along at the last second, my options are sort of limited Launch. Luckily, my-"

Raditz swallowed a lump in his throat, his teeth clenched. "... _best friend_ , Vegeta, is always ready to come along. _Right Vegeta?_ "

Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about? I only came along because you told me you'd buy me a massive meal."

Bulma finally spoke up. "What a coincidence. I only came along because Launch promised to foot the bill for some high-class drinks..."

Bulma slammed her palm against the table. " _YO! WAITER! THAT JUG OF SAKE ISN'T GONNA BRING ITSELF!_ "

The waiter quickly rushed over, setting a massive jug of alcohol in the center of the table and providing four cups to pour it into. Once he had left, Bulma tipped the jug slightly and filled her cup, downing it in one gulp. Vegeta poured himself a cup as well. "Damn! High-class food and high-class drink! Finally, this planet provides a meal worthy of a Prince!"

Launch sighed and poured herself a glass and then Raditz did the same. As they drank, Launch tried to make small talk. "So, Vegeta. I like your shirt. It's nice to see a man not afraid to wear pink~"

Vegeta grimaced. " _I hate this shirt._ "

Raditz sighed. "I couldn't have him come here in grimy, broken armor. That shirt was the only thing they had in his size at the store. Not counting stuff in the _child's section._ That side of the store-"

Vegeta threw a punch and Raditz caught it with his forearm, shoving the Prince away. Launch held up her hands. " _N-Now now_...let's not get into a fight. At least, not until we've eaten and drank for a bit..."

Vegeta and Raditz glared at one another, and then they went back to eating and drinking. Bulma and Launch did the same.

And then the night actually started to become fun.

The first empty jug of sake left the table and was replaced by a second. Vegeta, Launch, Bulma, and Raditz all filled their cups and actually started to talk, actually sharing in some genuine laughs together.

Raditz was hunched over the table, his cheeks glowing red. He was laughing so hard that he couldn't get the words out. Vegeta, just a tipsy, snorted as he laughed. "B-But then...he shows up wearing this ridiculous mop on his head, and he turns to Raditz and says...'whaddaya think Raditz? I got a haircut!'~"

Raditz downed another glass, tears in his eyes. "And I know that if I tell him how dumb it looks, he'll hit me. So, I'm sitting there, unsure of what to say. And then that one guy...what was that one guy's name, Vegeta?

Vegeta chuckled. " _Boisonberry_."

Raditz nodded. "And then Boisonberry yells, 'Hey Nappa! Nice toupee!'! And so Nappa rushes across the room and starts beating the guy senseless and Vegeta laughs so hard that his chair tips over!"

The four of them laughed out loud. Vegeta wiped a tear from his eye. "So, yeah. That's the story of how Nappa lost the last of his hair..."

Bulma shook her head, taking another swig from her cup. "So, you're telling me that they had adaptive blood in the Frieza Force, but they couldn't find a cure to male-pattern baldness?"

Raditz shrugged, cutting another piece of his steak and taking a bite. "Frieza's kind doesn't have hair. I doubt he or King Cold gave a shit."

Bulma was totally plastered at this point. She shakily stood, nearly falling over as she did. "Well, I've had to pee for the past five minutes. So, I should probably do that before any of you make me laugh again..."

Vegeta took another massive gulp, letting loose a rather loud, rather rude belch. "Try not to get lost on the way."

Bulma staggered off, flipping Vegeta off as she did. Vegeta flipped her off right back and started to eat another dinner roll. As he did that, Raditz and Launch looked to one another and smiled. In spite of how it started, this double date was not going nearly as bad as either of them thought it would. It was actually rather nice to have Bulma and Vegeta here, once they both got drunk.

 _Across the restaurant..._

Bulma did her business and exited the bathroom. She hazily scanned from table to table, trying to locate her companions. " _Where the hell..._ "

Bulma adjusted her permed out hair. "I've only been gone a few minutes; I know they didn't just leave..."

She looked to her left and gasped. "Oh! _Oh shit!_ "

Bulma walked over to the two staff that were finishing setting up the karaoke stage for the evening. She tapped one on the shoulder. "Hey! Are you...uh...about to let people start singing?"

He nodded with a smile. "Yes ma'am! Why? Would you like to be the first person up on stage tonight?"

Bulma thoughtfully tapped her chin. She reflected on everything she was feeling inside, the pain of having to end a relationship that she had been in for over a decade and all of the emotions that she had bottled up and kept to herself all this time, and then she nodded. "Y-Yeah, actually. I would like to sing. I, uh...I think I have a good song in mind too..."

 _Back across the restaurant..._

Just as Launch was starting to wonder where Bulma was, the lights in the restaurant dimmed and the multi-colored party lights above started to shine. Vegeta and Raditz were both confused. Vegeta glanced around. "What the hell is going on?"

That question was answered when the DJ, standing behind his podium, spoke into his mic. "Hey there ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to West City High Dine, the Night Life Experience! Once again, folks, the karaoke stage is open to all comers and if the other guest like your singing that's ten percent off any alcoholic beverages you might have added to your bill!"

He motioned to the stage, a spotlight shining on the curtain. "And tonight, ladies and gentlemen, we already have someone ready to sing their hearts out for y'all this evening! _The foxy Bulma_! Singing her rendition of _Love Dramatic_!"

The curtain opened and a jazzy beat started playing in the background, Bulma stood on stage, her eyes closed and her fingers snapping in tune with the rhythm. Vegeta, Raditz, and Launch all stared up at the stage, surprised to see Bulma standing up there. And then, their companion started to sing her heart out.

" _Oh, love me Mister, oh, Mister~_

 _Let me hear those words, if it's not a dream~!_

 _Hey Mister, oh, Mister~_

 _It's so sad how I want it so desperately~_

 _Just the feelings alone drive me insane~_

 _All it takes is your stare, and I'm carried away~_

 _You and I, we are playing a dangerous game~_

 _Love is war~_

 _Love is war~_

 _Love is war~!_ "

Launch was ecstatic, seeing Bulma stand up there and finally express her feelings for the first time since the break-up. She clapped and shouted at the top of her lungs. " _GO BULMA!_ "

Raditz nodded along to the beat of the music. Even Vegeta, in spite of himself, couldn't help but tap his foot along as Bulma stood up on stage, giving the song she was singing her all.

 _ **Song Credit: Studio Yuraki – Love Is War OP "Love Dramatic" - English Dub**_

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	56. Chapter 56: Saiyan Love, Part 2

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 56: Saiyan Love, Part 2**

 _Back on Mt. Paozu..._

Goku gleefully cheered as he back-flipped, eventually skidding back to the edge of the water. "This is fun!"

Chi-Chi skidded next to him, keeping a tight stance in contrast to Goku's looser stance. She was panting. "Well...I'm glad you're having fun fighting this thing..."

Chi-Chi wiped sweat from her brow. Goku chuckled. "Man, Chi-Chi, why are you so out of shape?"

She glared at him and shook her head. "Don't make me slap you."

The two of them stood next to each other as Zoonama approached. The giant, catfish monster had several bumps and bruises. A couple of his teeth were missing and his whiskers waved about furiously. " _How dare you humans do this to me?!_ "

He raised his fist high into the air and tried to smash Goku and Chi-Chi, but both of them dodged. Chi-Chi leapt to the side, bouncing off of the rocky wall and delivering a brutal knee-smash to Zoonama's cheek. Zoonama gurgled and slumped over, falling to the ground with a mighty thud.

Goku smirked. "You think he'll stay down this time?"

Both of Zoonama's whiskers shot up, wrapping around hanging, rocky spires on the ceiling and lifting the slimy beast back to his feet. He snarled and began to vibrate them, making the entire mountain shake. Chi-Chi sighed. "I guess not. Not yet, at least..."

She lunged at Zoonama, sinking her foot into his stomach. The monster's whiskers unraveled from the stones and he stumbled back, doubled over in pain. Goku chuckled and jumped into the air, landing on Zoonama's head and grabbing him by the whiskers. "Ha! Let's see you make things quake now!"

Zoonama growled in frustration and shot his head forward, his whiskers unfurled like a whip and snatched Goku from the top of his head, slamming the Saiyan from Earth headfirst into the ground. Goku groaned. "Ow! Owowowowow!"

Chi-Chi called over to him. "Goku? Are you okay? Do you still remember who you are?"

Goku stood, a wicked look on his face. " _I am Kakarot! I'm here to destroy the Earth!_ "

Chi-Chi flinched. " _Uh..._ "

Goku lightheartedly chuckled, shaking his head. "I'm kidding! It's a joke!"

Chi-Chi narrowed her eyes. "That wasn't very fun-"

Goku charged at Chi-Chi, grabbing her and pulling her out of the way just in time to avoid being crushed by a boulder. Goku glared. "Hey! Be careful! You nearly crushed her!"

Zoonama roared. "DIE YOU ANTS!"

He wrapped his whiskers around two more stalactites and began to cause earthquakes again. Chi-Chi cursed. "Dammit! Would you-"

She dodged a falling rock. " _CUT IT OUT WITH THAT DAMNED SHAKING!_ "

Chi-Chi prepared to launch another kick. But then, to her surprise, her phone started to ring. How did she even have service down here?! Chi-Chi leapt over a punch from Zoonama, wrapping her legs around the monster's forearm and answering. "Hello?!"

Gine answered on the other end. "Hey Chi-Chi. It's Gine. Should...we be worried? There's a lot more shaking than normal..."

Chi-Chi tried to play it off. "Don't you worry, Gine! Goku and I have everything-"

Zoonama raised his hand into the air and, with a mighty swing, he bucked Chi-Chi off of his wrist, sending her crashing to the ground. Chi-Chi shakily pushed herself up and groaned. "Ouch..."

She opened her eyes a crack and gasped in horror. "NO! _MY PHONE!_ "

Chi-Chi scrambled over to her shattered phone, picking it up and moaning. " _Dammit!_ That had so many family pictures on it..."

Zoonama chortled, tossing a rock at Goku. "Stupid human! Your pathetic memories are nothing to the God of the Paozu Ri-"

Chi-Chi leapt up like a bolt of lightning, delivering a shattering kick to the underside of Zoonama'a jaw and sending him crashing into the ceiling hard enough to shatter his precious stalactites. He fell to the ground with a thud. "Ow! _My head!_ "

Zoonama lifted his head to glare at Chi-Chi, but then recoiled in terror. The woman was standing there, her eyes glowing bright red and her teeth gnashing. " _You stupid catfish..._ "

She slammed her fist into her open palm. " _ **I'M GOING TO PAN FRY YOU!**_ "

Goku landed next to Chi-Chi, a smile on his face. She was angry, but he was still having a blast. "I think you might've made her mad."

Chi-Chi struck a fighting stance with enough force to make the ground around her crack. Goku struck a stance as well. And then, he and Chi-Chi both powered up, unleashing their ki. Zoonama struggled to his feet, fear spread across his massive face. "Now now...let's talk about this..."

Goku and Chi-Chi both shouted as loud as they could and then charged at the beast.

 _At Bardock and Gine's house..._

Gine stared down at the "connection interrupted" message on the screen of her phone. She stroked her chin. "Hmm...should we be worried about that?"

Another shockwave made the entire house shake as she turned to Bardock and Gohan. Her husband was sitting at the table, shirtless, and Gohan was in the middle of his science homework. Gine leaned against the table. "What do you guys think?"

Bardock shrugged. "Let's feel it out."

Gohan and Gine nodded and all three of them closed their eyes to sense for Goku and Chi-Chi's energy. Bardock nodded. "Okay...not feeling anything too wrong..."

Gine sighed in relief. "They don't feel too injured..."

Gohan smiled. "Wow. Dad is really holding back...but I didn't know that Mom had that much power~"

Bardock scratched his neck. "She could kick Leek's ass...she feels like she's about equal with Fasha..."

Gine nodded. "If she was this strong when Raditz first came to Earth, she could have probably killed him by herself. 1,800 or so?"

Bardock nodded. "Sounds about right..."

Their conversation was cut out by a sudden, growling gurgle. Bardock and Gine's eyes both snapped open and they turned to their blushing grandson. "S-Sorry...I'm starting to get hungry..."

The two of them paused for a moment, but then they both burst out laughing. Gine waved at her grandson. "Don't worry, Gohan. The ramen is almost ready~"

Gine walked back into the kitchen and started to get bowls out of the cabinet. Bardock leaned over and glanced down at his grandson's homework. "That's not how propulsion works. Remember kid, force is a change in momentum with time."

Gohan nodded and began to erase. "Right. I thought I was doing something wrong..."

Bardock leaned back and belched, scratching his side. Gohan smiled. "It's neat that you know that, Grandpa Bardock."

He shrugged. "I've spent all of my life around spaceships, kid. It's just a tool of the trade."

After a few minutes, Gine came back with three steaming bowls of ramen. She had a look of concern on her face. "Do you think we should go and check on them, Bardock?"

He shook his head. "Nah. They're fine. Chi-Chi probably just dropped her phone into the water or something. No reason to interrupt their alone time."

Gine set the bowls down, moving Gohan's schoolwork and setting his down with a smile. "I hope you enjoy it."

Gohan instantly began to eat with a huge smile on his face. Bardock smirked. "I think he likes it."

He began to eat as well and, soon enough, Gine joined them. It had been a lovely day for the three, just a peaceful time between two grandparents and their grandson.

 _Back in West City, the High Dine Restaurant and Karaoke Bar..._

The night out for Raditz, Launch, Bulma, and Vegeta was still raging on. For the fifth time that evening, Bulma had taken to the stage to sing yet another song. Unlike her first couple of outings, however, this attempt came submerged under nearly two jugs of sake and several other cocktails. Bulma's face glowed bright red as she slurred through lyrics on stage.

Still with the same passion as her first song, just far less understandable to the naked ear.

Vegeta, just as plastered as Bulma, cheered from his seat. "Go Earth woman! Sing with all of your might!"

Vegeta's normal, smug persona was gone. His voice was much more lighthearted as he picked up his glass and downed another massive swig. Launch, sitting on her side of the booth and far less drunk than Vegeta or Bulma, chuckled. "Just a couple of dorks~"

Soon Launch was joined on her side of the booth by Raditz, freshly returned from the bathroom. His face was wet, as if he had splashed it with water, or he was sweating, or possibly both. His jovial mood had faded, replaced by a face twisted into an unnerved sneer. He looked like he was going to throw up.

Launch leaned onto him, grabbing Raditz by the arm and kissing his bicep. "What's wrong, Love? Did you drink too much?"

Raditz glanced down, staring into Launch's loving eyes, and then his face immediately lit up red. "N-No! No! I'm fine. I just...I... I just...uh...I just...I..."

He cleared his throat and shook his head. "I..."

Raditz buried his face in his hands. "I... uh..."

Launch smiled, playfully teasing. "You... _just_?"

He nodded. "I... I just...uh..."

She squeezed his arm. "Calm down. You can talk to me. You don't have to stutter or struggle for the words. Just take a deep breath and speak from the heart."

Raditz winced and his tongue became fully tied. Launch sighed, moving her head from his arm to his chest, directly over his heart. " _Let me listen..._ "

She took a deep breath and smiled. "What I'm hearing is...this isn't the date you wanted this evening. You wanted a nice night for me and you. Right?"

Raditz nodded. Launch smiled gently. "I know. This was unfair to you. And I'm sorry. But..."

She sat up straight, pulling Raditz's face down to hers and giving him a long, romantic kiss on the lips. "Thank you for helping me try to make Bulma happy. I'm very grateful. I love you, Raditz."

Raditz smiled, taking in a deep, sharp breath. No matter how many times she said that to him, he had to struggle each time not to immediately burst into tears. Raditz held her close. He looked down at her, swallowing a lump in his throat. " _That's not all that my heart is saying..._ "

Launch cocked her head. "What else then?"

Another long silence. She smiled. "I think I understand. Let's just go and pay and head out, Vegeta and Bulma both sorta live at Capsule Corp, so they can help each other get home~"

Raditz silently nodded. He and Launch both got up and walked towards the front, leaving a plastered and cheering Vegeta behind to continue his semi-conscious cheering for Bulma.

 _Outside the High Dine Restaurant..._

Raditz stared into the front window of the High Dine with a terrified look on his face. Launch was standing there, waiting in line to pay for their dinner while he waited outside. This was it. His big moment!

The Saiyan stared up at the stars, remembering his and Launch's first night together. Falling asleep on her couch while watching a movie and agreeing to a second date the next morning. It was everything that Raditz ever wanted in his life. Since Gine and Bardock had died, since Kakarot had been sent on a planet so far away from him, since he was left alone with people like Nappa and Vegeta, Raditz had just wanted someone in his life who he knew cared about him.

And while he had gained back his parents, and his brother, and even Vegeta to an extent, this was truly what Raditz felt he wanted. He gripped his fists tight and glanced up at the stars again. " _Launch, will you...would you...it would be an honor if you would..._ "

Raditz thought about Kakarot's relationship with Chi-Chi, his father's relationship with his mother. Now it was his turn. He turned to the window and looked in again just in time to see Launch turn towards him. She smiled and cocked her head in that special way she always did and a chord struck in Raditz's heart. Launch disappeared from sight, walking to the door, and Raditz finally knew what to say.

Launch opened the door to the restaurant, turning around to wave by to the friendly waiter at the front of house. As she turned, however, she saw a sight that she hadn't expected. Raditz was kneeling in front of her, holding a small, diamond ring up to her. His face was bright red and he was sweating bullets, but Raditz finally spoke clearly. " _I love you too. Marry me._ "

Launch gasped, clamping her hands over her mouth. Tears of joy filled the woman's eyes as she stared down at her beloved boyfriend knelt in front of her. Raditz swallowed a lump in his throat. "W-W-Well...?"

All at once, Launch leapt from her spot at the top of the stairs down at him, screaming at the top of her lungs. " _ **AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!**_ "

 _Back inside the restaurant..._

Bulma let loose one final primal scream as she finished her latest song. " _ **AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!**_ "

When she finished, Bulma was panting hard. But, the crowd in front of her was still polite enough to applaud. She waved, a hazy smile on her face, and left the stage for the next person to step up. She lumbered over to the bar, slapping her hand on the counter. " _Scotch rocks. Now!_ "

The drink came sliding over and Bulma picked it up. As she lifted it to her mouth, however, she was surprised to be joined by her "double date" for the evening. Vegeta sat on a barstool next to Bulma. He reached across the bar and grabbed a full bottle of liquor off the shelf while the bartender was distracted, popping off the top and draining half of it in one swig. He and Bulma glared at each other, but then Vegeta smirked. "You sing with Saiyan-like ferocity. I guess everyone has to be good at something, huh?"

Bulma rolled her eyes. "Shut the hell up, Vegeta. _Do you ever stop running your mouth?_ "

Vegeta took another swig. "That's the pot calling the kettle black, no?"

Another silence, but then they both laughed out loud. Neither could really say that the other was wrong here, if they were being honest with themselves. Bulma lifted her drink to her mouth, but missed and managed to pour what was left of it onto her shoulder. "Shit."

Vegeta handed her his stolen bottle. "Here. Drink this."

Bulma chuckled, taking the bottle as Vegeta slammed his head onto the counter. "Thanks, Vegeta. I guess every asshole has their bright side, huh?"

She glanced over at him and winked "You know...you aren't such a bad guy..."

Vegeta smirked, seemingly unable to lift his head. "Shut up. I'm pure evil."

Bulma giggled, reaching up and popping off a dress strap with her thumb. "Well...pure evil can come in all sorts of sexy forms, I guess~"

Vegeta lifted his head, confused. "What the hell are you doing?"

Bulma had no chance to answer this question as, suddenly, a brash voice spoke from the end of the bar. "Hopefully she's trying to get you to take her home so she'll quit embarrassing herself up on stage!"

Vegeta and Bulma both glared towards the voice, a muscular guy at the end of the bar with two floozies hanging off of his arms. "Chad is trying to impress his lay-days! And her voice is giving them headaches! How is Chad supposed to score when his lay-days have headaches? Take your chick and her screechy voice and get lost!"

Vegeta growled under his breath. "You can't seriously think that this bar between us will stop me from kill-"

Suddenly, to Vegeta's shock, a bottle came sailing through the air and smashed into Chad's head. He collapsed to the ground and held his bleeding forehead. "Ouch, dammit! That hurt!"

He shakily stood, but was then knocked right back to the ground as Bulma slammed her barstool over his back. " _Whose voice are you calling screechy?!_ "

Chad's dates quickly came to his defense. The first one shouted. "Hey bitch! Who do you think you are doing that to Chad?"

The second one stepped up to Bulma, slapping her across the face. "Apologize, ya old bag!"

Bulma's pupils shrank to the size of pinpricks. And then she lunged, tackling both of the girls to the ground and raining blow after blow down upon the both of them. Vegeta watched on, stunned and aroused, as the fight got more and more violent. Bulma picked up one of the girls and threw her over the bar, into the back wall. The other girl climbed onto Bulma's back and tried to put her in a headlock, but Bulma responded by ramming her into the wall.

At the laughably violent display in front of him, Vegeta began to laugh. He buried his face in his hand and laughed harder and harder as Bulma beat the hell out both of the girls at once. Chad recovered and tried to grab Bulma from behind, but she responded with an elbow directly into his nose.

That made Vegeta laugh even harder, so hard that he flopped off of his stool and onto the ground. With nearly a gallon of alcohol in his system, Vegeta began to fade. Soon, the Prince was unconscious. He laid there, drunk and slumbering, as Bulma's barfight spread further and further outward.

 _Back outside the restaurant..._

Raditz and Launch were both holding each other tight. Launch had tears streaming down her face as the two of them walked off. She was so happy, nuzzling Raditz and kissing his neck. Raditz cradled her gently in his arms, supporting her as they both drunkenly wandered off in the direction of Launch's apartment.

Both of them were in utter bliss, none-the-wiser of the fifteen West City Police cars that pulled up to the front of the restaurant as they walked off.

 _Back on Mt. Paozu..._

The beaten Zoonama groaned as he floated, belly-up, in the Paozu River. Several massive lumps were bulging from the top of his head as he laid defeated. His victorious opponents, Goku and Chi-Chi, were sat on the riverbank. There clothes were somewhat damaged. Not destroyed, but sort of tattered. Neither of them sustained any critical injuries, but there were some bumps and bruises to tend to.

Goku was knelt in front of Chi-Chi, grinding several herbs and berries into a fine paste. Once that was done, he began to gently rub the mixture onto Chi-Chi's swollen, left ankle. "Grandpa Gohan taught me how to make this one that time he twisted his ankle when we were fishing. It should make the pain fade quite a bit."

Chi-Chi winced, but smiled. "Thank you, Goku."

Goku grabbed a banana leaf that he had prepared, using it to apply even pressure over Chi-Chi's ankle before ripping a strip off of his shirt and tightly wrapping it around. "Okay. That should give your ankle some good support. It only looks like ya twisted it, so it should be fine after about a week."

Goku stood and stretched his back. Casually, he called over to Zoonama. "Hey! When you get back up you better get lost and stop bothering people, got it?"

Zoonama groaned. Goku smirked. "Good! You don't want us to have to come after you again. Chi-Chi might not go so easy on you next time~"

Goku turned his back to Chi-Chi, kneeling down. "Welp, it's already pretty late. I bet Gohan's in bed by now. We should head back."

Chi-Chi shook her head. "No Goku, not yet."

Goku turned, looking confused. Chi-Chi pointed up. "Top of the mountain. We might have defeated Zoonama, but we still have one more thing I want to do tonight."

 _Back at Bardock and Gine's house..._

Bardock set the sleeping Gohan down onto his and Gine's bed. He let loose small sigh and smiled, ruffling the sleeping kid's hair. Gine stepped up next, kissing her grandson on his forehead and tucking him in tight. "Goodnight Gohan. We love you."

With a smile, Gine turned to Bardock. "Well...I guess we don't have a bed tonight..."

Bardock shrugged. "We have the couch in the den. And we have Raditz's bed. _He certainly hasn't used it over the past few months._ "

Gine warmly smiled. "Yeah. Him and Launch seem really happy together..."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Actually, Bardock, I have a better idea. Seeing as we have a bit of free time without a chance of someone dropping in on us."

Bardock smirked. "Oh, you wanna-"

Gine shook her head. "Get your mind out of the gutter. This is important..."

Bardock cocked his head. Gine motioned for him to follow along. "It's time that...you and I had a talk, Bardock..."

 _Back in West City..._

Vegeta snorted as he lazily woke up. "H-Huh?! What's going on..."

He tried to bring his hands to his face, but something held them behind him. Vegeta looked back, annoyed, and saw a pair of silver bracelets locked around his wrists. "Where am I...?"

Bulma groaned, her head leaned against the window in the seat next to Vegeta. "You're in a police car. We've been arrested for, uh..."

The cop up-front chimed in. "Assault and battery, Little Miss Barfight~"

Bulma kicked the cage between her and him. "Shut up!"

The cop chuckled. "And destruction of police property too! Wowie-wow! You'd better have a good lawyer..."

Vegeta was non-plussed, a vein popping out of his head. "How dare you restrain me?! Do you know who I am?!"

The cop chuckled. "Not a clue short stuff~"

Vegeta grinded his teeth. The cop continued. "Now why don't you two shut up 'til we get to the station! We can get ya both some matching, orange unif-"

A pair of muscular arms, a broken silver bracelet on each wrist, ripped through the steel grate separating the front and the back of the police car. The cop screamed in panic and terror, snatching on the wheel and making the car skid out of control. Soon enough, the vehicle was flipping until it finally came to a stop in the middle of a deserted stretch of road.

The officer laid crumpled in his driver's seat, unconscious with a massive lump bulging from his head. From the back, Vegeta crawled out of the wrecked car. He stood and cracked his back, pulling at the silver bracelets on his wrists and tearing them away with no effort. The Prince spat. "Stupid human..."

And then he began to lumber away.

Soon after, another emerged from the wrecked car. Bulma groaned as she stood up. "Oh my stomach..."

Her hands were still cuffed behind her back. "I think I..."

Bulma's face turned green and she ran off behind the car, loudly vomiting for a solid minute. Bulma limped out from behind the car. "Hey Vegeta!"

Vegeta was standing on the edge of the road, clutching his head. Bulma stomped over to him, shouting at the top of her lungs. "Vegeta! Help me!"

The Prince rolled his eyes. "What?! What do you want?!"

Bulma sighed, frustrated. She fell onto her butt in the grass and, with some effort, managed to get her cuffed hands in front of her. "These! I'm not strong enough to break these by myself! Get them off of me so I can go home!"

Vegeta shook his head. "No."

Bulma roared in frustration, lifting her cuffed wrists above her head. " _WHY NOT?!_ "

Vegeta grabbed Bulma's arms, pulling them around his neck and pulling her onto his back. "You're drunk. I'm drunk. Anything that makes you easier to carry is good for both of us."

Bulma flinched. "...you're taking me home?"

Vegeta groaned. "Don't make it weird. I live there too."

And then, Vegeta took off. The two of them streaked through the night sky, a massive full Moon glowing on the horizon behind them as they did. Wanting to feel steady, Bulma wrapped her legs around Vegeta's torso and hugged him close with her arms. As she got closer to his face, Vegeta's nose wrinkled. "What is that damned smell?!"

Bulma sighed. "I did just vomit..."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and gagged. And then, he descended down to a lake in the middle of a park. "Rinse your mouth out."

Bulma cocked her head. "W-With the lake-"

Vegeta shouted. " _No, with the air_. Of course, with the lake water!"

Bulma nodded and did that, cupping a handful of water in her palms. She swished it in her mouth and gargled before spitting it back into the lake. "Better?"

Vegeta sighed and nodded. "Better."

And then, they started flying again. There was a long silence, but then Bulma began spoke. "So, uh, you've been living at Capsule Corp, huh? Did my Dad give you a room?"

Vegeta shook his head. "No. I don't need charity. I've been sleeping in the Gravity Chamber..."

Bulma nodded. "Oh, okay..."

And then, it hit Bulma. A combination of late-night weariness and alcohol-fueled inhibition encouragement hit Bulma like a truck and she finally allowed what she had been holding in for months to come out. Vegeta raised an eyebrow as he felt two wet spots forming on his back. "Are you crying? _Really?_ "

Bulma sniffled and then she began to gently sob. " _N-No..._ "

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "It's just an arrest. Get over it! How weak do you have to be to-"

The gentle sobbing broke into something much worse. Full-blown, pained gasping. Bulma shuddered as she laid there on Vegeta's back, crying her eyes out and screaming. Vegeta was caught off-guard. " _What the hell is wrong with you?!_ "

Bulma was shaking. "Sh-Shut up...shut up and leave me alone...just...go away..."

Vegeta was quick to remind her of one key fact. "You're on my back. I am entirely incapable of _going away_."

Another long pause, this time with weeping.

And then, Bulma spoke again. "My relationship...with Yamcha...it ended and I..."

Vegeta cocked his head. " _Who?_ "

Bulma took a deep breath, shakily letting it out. "Yamcha. My ex-boyfriend. The guy who your green monsters killed..."

Vegeta snorted. "Oh. _Him_."

She continued. "...after he died like that. I just...I shut him out and he started seeing other women. Our relationship soured and ended and it's all my fault..."

She buried her face in Vegeta's back. "...he says he shouldn't have cheated on me, but I drove him to it. It all went wrong and I'm the one who made it that way..."

Tears started to form again. "And now I'm all alone and-"

Vegeta interrupted. "On the Saiyan Homeworld, relationships and marriages are not so stupidly emotional. Unless you happen to be Gine and Bardock, but they're both exceptions to the rule."

Bulma lifted her head, her brow angrily furrowed. "Well this isn't the Saiyan Homeworld! This is Earth-"

Vegeta cut her off again. "But, relationships between Saiyans are meant to last. We might not care about each other's emotions, but that is only because emotion is irrelevant in our society. For the most part, Saiyans that end up bonded are concerned for the well-being of their significant other. They aren't stupidly emotional about it, but they are quick to notice problems with their partner and work them out for the betterment of their partner."

Vegeta scoffed. "If this _Yamcha_ noticed that you were uncomfortable in your relationship and his first response was to seek out someone behind your back, then the relationship failing is just as much his fault as yours, if not more."

Bulma still had tears in her eyes, but she was no longer crying. She still had her arms and legs wrapped around Vegeta tightly. " _Vegeta..._ "

Vegeta smirked. "And to make matters worse, the fool abandoned a bond with one of the only acceptable females on this miserable planet. He had a woman with a backbone and a raging spirit and he allowed that to slip through his fingers. _Idiot_."

Bulma spoke quietly. " _Y-You mean that?_ "

Vegeta nodded. "Indeed. Kakarot has his human woman, Raditz has his human woman, and they both have a very Saiyan-like spirit. That pathetic fool had you, another Saiyan-like woman, and he loused it up. No wonder a Saibaman was able to kill him. It's absolutely baff-"

Surprising Vegeta, Bulma pulled a rather risky move. She loosened her grip with her arms and legs and allowed herself to circle around Vegeta's body, pressing herself against his chest.

Vegeta was silent, and so was Bulma. They stared into each other's eyes for what felt like an endless moment, both of them drunk off their ass...and then Bulma smashed her lips against Vegeta's and the two engaged in a fiery, midair kiss.

 _Meanwhile, across town in Launch's apartment..._

The lights were all off in Launch's apartment. Both she and Raditz arrived, ripped off their clothes, and crashed into bed. They were totally worn out from everything that had happened that evening. Lights from the city shone in through the window, making the diamond on Launch's new ring sparkle.

The two of them held each other close, tightly connecting with a loving embrace. Raditz was sleeping peacefully, a satisfied, gentle smile on his face. Launch was the same...until her nose started to wrinkle. Launch began to shudder and, soon enough, she let out a powerful sneeze.

Blonde Launch sat up and gripped her head tight. She instantly felt something was off. She felt the cold tinge of metal on her forehead. She held her hand out and observed the ring on her finger. "Did Blue steal th..."

And then, it hit her. Blonde Launch looked from the ring, and then over to Raditz. She gripped her fists tight and they began to shake. The same shake they normally did when she started to get angry. But Blonde Launch wasn't angry this time.

Happy tears welled up in her eyes and she began to bounce up and down in her bed, a giddy as she had ever been in her entire life. Blonde Launch didn't scream. She didn't want to wake Raditz. She simply laid back down and pulled him even closer, closing her eyes and falling asleep next to her new fiancee.

 _Back on Mt. Paozu..._

Chi-Chi rested comfortably in the cave that was at the very top of Mt. Paozu. It was a modest cave, none-too-deep and with a grand view over the entire region. Her sprained ankle ached, but Chi-Chi didn't care. This was what she really wanted from today.

Goku quickly returned, a bundle of firewood in his hand, and set it down. Chi-Chi smiled and blasted a warm, roaring fire into existence. She reached over to her backpack and began to dig as Goku shivered next to the fire. "J-Jeez...it's s-so ch-chilly up here during th-this s-season..."

Chi-Chi smiled. "Well come here, silly."

She pulled a massive, furry blanket from within the bag as well as the last of her pre-made meals. Goku came over and sat next to her and she wrapped the blanket around both of them. And so, the two of them sat there, cuddling for warmth and enjoying Chi-Chi's cooking.

Chi-Chi sighed. "Okay. Confession time..."

Goku chuckled. "You could have beaten Zoonama without me? Yeah. I know."

Chi-Chi gasped and looked to her husband. Goku smiled. "I can sense power levels, Chi-Chi. I know how strong you've become~"

He ate another bite of his food. "I knew all along."

Chi-Chi blushed. "Oh. I see. And here I thought I was being clever..."

Goku shrugged. "It doesn't matter. I'm happy to be here. It's nice to get to spend a day with my wife. I've missed that since Gohan was born. It's been a while..."

Chi-Chi smiled sweetly. "Oh Goku..."

She gave him a kiss on the cheek, just like the first time she had kissed him so long ago. Goku chuckled and rubbed his finger under his nose. Chi-Chi reached over and pulled the satellite TV she had packed from her bag. Goku cocked his head. "What's that for?"

Chi-Chi smiled. "The World Martial Arts Tournament came back while you were out in space. I recorded it so that we could watch it together when you got back. I was just waiting for the right time to do it..."

Goku gasped. "Wow! They really brought it back?!"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Yup. And I had Bulma put all of the recordings onto this TV so we could watch them all in a row."

Goku's eyes lit up. "Oooh! Cool! I can't wait to see who's fighting. I'm gonna join the next one, whenever it is!"

Chi-Chi sighed. "I knew you would say that..."

She flicked on the TV and pressed a button on the bottom, and the video of the first match started playing. Goku was excited. "Ooh! Who are those guys?!"

Chi-Chi held her finger to her lips. "Shush and you'll hear."

The Tournament Announcer spoke into his microphone. "We have an electrifying match to start off this year's World Martial Arts Tournament folks! Stepping into the ring is _Spopovich_ , the World Champion of the XXX Wrestling Conglomerate! And, following him is his opponent! A rising star in the world of martial arts! _Mark Hercule_! Or, as he would like to be called from here on out to honor his dojo, _Mr. Satan!_ "

As the crowd cheered for each of the fighters, Chi-Chi leaned her head onto Goku's shoulder. And Goku responded by leaning his head onto Chi-Chi's head. The Tournament Announcer shouted out. " _BEGIN!_ "

And so, that was how Goku and Chi-Chi spent the rest of their eventful day. Huddled under a blanket and watching the World Martial Arts Tournament, both happy to be with one another.

 _Meanwhile, in Paozu Forest..._

Illuminated by moonlight, Bardock and Gine soon came upon a nice clearing in the middle of the forest. Gine was the first to sit down, plopping herself down in the middle of the grass and patting a spot on the ground for Bardock to sit on next to her. He did and the two of them sat there, observing the Full Moon in all of its beauty. Bardock spoke. "Yeah...it still feels weird just to stare at it like this..."

His tail unfurled and waved around freely. "I feel like I should be destroying a city right now..."

Gine sighed and smiled. "But, isn't it nice not to?"

She fell back and laid down in the soft, green grass. Bardock nodded. "Yeah. I guess so..."

The two of them laid there, staring up at the stars and the Moon in the night sky. It lasted a long time. Just a long while of lying there, crickets playing their songs around the two of them and fireflies flickering in the air above. It was a uniquely peaceful experience for the two aging Saiyans.

Soon enough, the two of them turned and looked at one another. Again, they stayed silent. For as long as they had been together, Bardock and Gine didn't need words. All they had to do was stare into each other's eyes to see what the other was feeling. Gine sniffled and the beginnings of tears began to form, but she quickly wiped them away. "You know...I still can't get over how nice it is to see your face again..."

Gine smiled. "I missed you."

Bardock smirked. "Missing out on a chance to cry your eyes out? Who are you and what did you do with my wife?"

Gine sighed. "After I became a Super Saiyan. And after I defeated Garlic Junior. I made a choice, ya know? All of my problems from my life...the Saiyan, the Makyans, Frieza...they were all gone. I managed to outlast everything that had ever hurt me and made me feel lesser. So, what would be the point in being miserable and meek anymore, ya know?"

She chuckled. "I might not ever be a full-on warrior...but I'm not going to just be a pushover anymore. I'm not going to let anything else take away my smile. _Not ever again_."

Gine looked away from Bardock and back to the sky. "But I'd be lying if I said that there wasn't still something hurting me..."

Bardock was silent at first. But then he spoke. "I've felt the same, actually. Killing King Cold was gratifying in a way I can't describe. Doing it with our sons and whatever Vegeta is to us at this point felt even better. But..."

He chuckled. "I've failed you twice, Gine. Broke my word to you and shit. And, yeah... _it hurts_..."

Bardock was alone. Alone with someone who he trusted. With not a single person around to barge into their conversation. He lifted his hand to his face and pressed it over his eyes as two streams came leaking down. " _Damn it..._ "

He gritted his teeth. "Letting you die like that was a failure...and then not speaking to you after was a failure...I just-"

Gine spoke. " _Shush._ "

Bardock moved his hand and Gine was there, wiping away the tears from his eyes. "Don't you ever call yourself a failure. You gave everything for our sons to survive the destruction of Planet Vegeta. If it wasn't for that, then we wouldn't even be here right now, Bardock."

She continued. "And the stuff on Namek isn't your fault either. You fought Frieza until your body stopped. You can't be held accountable for that monster's actions."

It was at that point that Gine realized she was crying too. "And the falling out that we had..."

Bardock sat up, grabbing Gine gently by the shoulders and pulling her in for a kiss. One which Gine passionately returned. The two of them separated and stared in each-other's eyes. And then, they both smiled. Gine smiled wide. "Hardships aren't forever, Bardock. We lasted, we persevered, we hit a few bumps along the way...but look at where we are! We're on a peaceful planet where we can freely stare at a beautiful night sky without fear of turning into monsters! _We're finally free, Bardock!_ "

Gine wiped the tears from Bardock's face with her thumbs and he shakily chuckled. "We finally get what you wanted for us. We get to retire and just... _live_."

The two of them fell silent. But then, operating on the same wavelength, the spoke simultaneously. " _ **I love you so much.**_ "

Gine nuzzled her head under Bardock's chin and the two of them fell back. Their tails intertwined and they both began to drift off to sleep. Bardock sheepishly smirked. "You know...Kakarot and Raditz both told me that you'd probably react like this..."

Gine yawned and smiled. "Maybe our sons are just becoming smarter than you..."

Bardock chuckled and sighed. "Yeah. _Sure_."

 _The next morning, at Capsule Corporation..._

Bulma woke up to the sunlight shining through her window and directly onto her face. Her head was pounding. It she didn't know it would end all life on Earth, she would create something to blow the offending star out of the sky.

Bulma slowly sat up in her bed, groaning all the way, and placed her face into her hands. As she rubbed her face, however, something gave Bulma pause: the sound of metal clinking. She pulled her head away from her hands and saw, to her confusion, a pair of handcuffs locked around her wrists. "Wh-What did I do last night...?"

She turned towards her nightstand, wanting to fish for a pair of pliers to remove the offending cuffs, but was taken aback by something even more unexpected. Vegeta was laying right next to her, his bare chest laid out plain for her to see. Bulma rubbed the side of her face. "Wha..."

She peered over Vegeta and saw a pile of clothes, her outfit from last night and his outfit from last night, piled on the floor. Slowly, Bulma lifted up the blanket and looked under it, seeing about what she expected to see. "I... _see_..."

Bulma flopped back onto her pillow. "Never. Never drink again. _Ever_."

But then, to Bulma's surprise, Vegeta's arm scooped under her pillow and pulled her close. The Prince was still fast asleep, but Bulma was pulled right up next to him. Bulma looked up at the slumbering Prince. " _Hmm..._ "

And then, she pulled her arms close to her chest and laid her head on his. "I guess this isn't so bad right now..."

And so, Bulma fell back asleep, content with the man that she was sleeping next to.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	57. Chapter 57: The Simple Life on Earth

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: This one ran kinda long. But I didn't want to break it into two parts because it didn't make sense narratively. I hope you all enjoy~_

 **Chapter 57: The Simple Life on Earth**

 _Mt. Paozu (12 months until the Android Attack)…_

Piccolo hovered in the shade of a massive tree next to the freshly plowed fields of the Son Family Farm. It was a peaceful day for the Namekian to meditate, surrounded by the serenity of the countryside. On the fields, the men of the Son Family were doing the job assigned to them by Chi-Chi. Goku, Bardock, and Gohan were all shirtless under the warmth of the sun, tilling the fields for new crops to be planted after the latest harvest.

As they worked, Launch sat off to the side on the shady porch of her and Raditz's new house. She gently rubbed her hand over her pregnant belly and smiled contently. The door to the house opened and Chi-Chi came out, holding up a tray carrying several glasses and a pitcher of lemonade. She called out to the field. "Break time, boys! Come and get a drink!"

Bardock wiped the sweat off his brow. " _Whew..._ "

The three of them made their way over to the house and took their glasses, sitting for a few minutes of rest after so much hard work. It did not take long for Piccolo to join as well. Chi-Chi handed him a glass of lemonade and then made one for herself. "Hot one out there, huh?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah. But at least farm work makes for good physical training."

Gohan gulped down his drink and then turned to his new aunt. "Hey, Aunt Launch, are you feeling okay? It is really hot out today."

Launch smiled, brushing her blue hair out of her face. "I'm fine. I was warned that this might end up being hard on me, but I seem to be doing okay three months down the line~"

A few moments later, the door to the house opened again and Raditz came out. He shoved his cellphone into his pocket and sat down next to his wife, kissing her on the side of the head. "Good news everyone! I found another town that is willing to buy our vegetables from us. And they want our entire harvest!"

Chi-Chi had stars in her eyes. "The whole thing?!"

Those stars quickly became zeni signs, with an audible cha-ching. "Oh Raditz! You're a godsend!"

Raditz sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Y-Yeah. I guess I just have a way of talking with people or something. I was always the one who had to talk things out, cuz Vegeta and Nappa were more likely to kill than negotiate..."

Goku cracked his back. "Man, so many people want our vegetables. I guess it's a good thing that the soil on Mt. Paozu grows stuff so quickly..."

Launch smiled. "So, where is this town at anyway?"

Raditz quickly produced a map from his shirt pocket, unfolding it and searching it. "It's...here!"

He pointed to a mid-sized township on the southern edge of Mt. Paozu. He traced from it back to their land. "Looks like it wouldn't take us long to fly there or get there on foot...but there are so many vegetables in this order that we should probably take them by truck. So... looks like a two-day trip to get there and a two-day trip to get back."

Chi-Chi nodded. "Right. Thank you Raditz."

She turned and pointed at her husband. "Goku! Wash up! You're going to drive this order to the customer!"

Goku flinched. Chi-Chi narrowed her eyes. "What?"

Goku was sweating bullets. "Uh..."

Chi-Chi stepped closer, get so close to his face that the tips of their noses touched. "Goku...?"

Goku chuckled. "I... uh...I don't exactly have...my...driver's license..."

Chi-Chi's eyes remained narrowed, her jaw falling slightly agape. After a long silence, she spoke. "Pardon me?"

Goku backed away, holding up his hands in defense. "Now Chi-Chi... I have a decent explanation for why I never went and got it..."

 _3 months ago..._

Goku walked out of his house whistling a merry tune. Chi-Chi called after him. "Goku! Make sure you head down to the DMV and get your license today, okay? We're going to need you driving just in case our farm every gets business from far away!"

Goku called back. "Sure thing, Chi-Chi! I'm on it!"

The Saiyan from Earth walked about 10 steps away from his house when, he came across Piccolo. "Hey Piccolo!"

Piccolo responded. "Wanna go train some more?"

Goku nodded. " _Heck yeah!_ "

 _Back in the present..._

Chi-Chi screamed with utter fury, grabbing Piccolo by the collar of his cape and throwing him at Goku, knocking both mighty warriors off of the porch. "Are you kidding me?! Are you kidding me?! You couldn't take a day to just go and get your driver's license?!"

Gine, having walked over from her and Bardock's house, showed up just in time to watch the action unfold. "Oh my, she's super angry..."

She stepped past Chi-Chi, brandishing a broom against a terrified Piccolo and Goku, and sat next to her pregnant daughter-in-law and disbelief-stricken son. Bardock was sat on the ground next to Gohan, barely stifling his laughter as Chi-Chi practically breathed fire at Goku and Piccolo.

Goku, finally managing to get a full sentence out, pointed towards his family. "W-Well why don't you yell at Raditz or my parents?! They don't have driver's licenses either!"

Gine reached into her dress, pulling out a small pocketbook and producing a driver's license. She had a friendly smile on her face in the picture. "I got mine not long after Garlic Junior showed up."

Raditz reached into his shirt pocket, pulling out a driver's license with a placid expression on the picture. "I got mine on my third date with Launch."

Bardock pulled out his wallet and showed his license, his picture having his normal scowl. "Got mine about a week after we arrived back on Earth. Cuz, you know, what kind of moron chooses to settle down on a planet and not get the proper permits to function on it?"

Goku nervously chuckled, turning back to Chi-Chi. "Th-That's cool...right, Chi... Chi...?"

A crimson red aura flared around Chi-Chi, her eyes glowing bright white from the shadows her bangs casted over her face. " _Goku..._ "

Bardock sighed and finished off the last of his lemonade. "Come on now, don't kill him!"

He stood and stretched his back. "You aren't without options here Chi-Chi. Raditz might not be willing to travel, what with Launch being pregnant and all, but Gine and I can both drive. So, we can just take these vegetables to where they gotta go, okay?"

Chi-Chi let loose a heavy sigh. But she readily nodded. "Fine. Thank you for being so helpful Bardock."

Goku also breathed a sigh of relief. He turned to Piccolo and smirked. But then, Chi-Chi snapped her fingers and the Saiyan and Namekian both flinched. "You two aren't off the hook! While Bardock and Gine take the vegetables to market, you two are going to be coming with me to get your driver's licenses! _Understand?!_ "

Piccolo sneered. "You can't tell me what-"

Chi-Chi snapped. "What was that, Green Freeloader?! I can't hear you over how much rent you owe me for staying in our guest room the past year!"

Piccolo was stunned silent. He growled under his breath and glared off to the side. Chi-Chi smiled. "Okay, so we all have our plans for tomorrow! Good talk everybody!"

Chi-Chi walked away, a sharp smile on her face. Gohan, in the background, consoled Piccolo and Goku with a gentle pat on the back. Launch chuckled. "That's so funny. Chi-Chi sure is spirited~"

Gine nodded. "Yeah she is. So...I guess that means that I'm joining my dear husband on a drive tomorrow."

Bardock smirked. "I mean, if you want to. No pressure."

Gine shrugged, playfully snarking back. "Well, I might have to move some stuff around on my schedule, but I think I can make it. What are you going to wear tomorrow? I wanna match."

Bardock shrugged back. "I dunno. Probably my armor or some-"

Launch suddenly interrupted. "Ooh! Ooh! Let me pick out what you guys wear! I'll make sure you both look like proper truckers!"

Bardock and Gine shared an aside glance, but then Gine nodded. "That sounds lovely! Thank you, Launch."

 _The next day..._

As the sun peaked through the window, Bardock slowly woke up. He rapidly shook his head, shaking off the grogginess he was feeling, and then looked over next to him to find that Gine wasn't there. Bardock cocked his head. "Where did she go?"

He looked on her pillow and found a folded note. Bardock opened the note and read to himself. "Launch wanted me to come over and pick an outfit. She prepared one for you. Make sure you thank her when you see her..."

Bardock looked on the chair across the room and saw a parcel with his name on it. He nodded. "Guess I better get ready..."

The older Saiyan stood and went through his usual routine. He brushed his teeth, he shaved, he shit, he showered. All of the usual. Once that was done, he stepped back into his and Gine's room and opened the parcel, staring at the clothes within.

Bardock got dressed and then stared at himself in the mirror, observing the outfit that his new daughter-in-law had picked: a pair of blue denim jeans, a bright red button-up shirt, a leather belt with a moderately-sized buckle, a pair of brown cowboy boots, and a brown ten-gallon hat atop his head.

Bardock adjusted his bandana and rolled his eyes. " _Earth fashion..._ "

 _Outside, near the fields..._

Bardock walked over to Raditz's house and came upon an expected sight, a defeated Goku and an annoyed Piccolo both loading the last of the vegetables into their newly acquired truck. Goku was dressed in a red dress-shirt and blue pants, Piccolo in a pair of jeans, a yellow shirt and purple undershirt combo, and a backwards baseball cap to cover his antennae.

Standing off to the side, Chi-Chi was graciously thanking a visibly pregnant Bulma for bringing a truck on such short notice. Bulma waved her off. "Don't worry about it. It's fine. You guys are all like family to me. And, once again, you did bring me a pile of alien technology that is probably going to make Capsule Corp trillions of zeni."

Bulma leaned against the vehicle. "This is my personal truck anyway. Me and Launch used to make trips to deliver and pick up stuff in this. So, it only seems right that I give it to her as a retirement gift."

As Bulma spoke, Chi-Chi walked up and placed her hand on her belly. Chi-Chi's face glowed. "Wow...it's been so long since I've been pregnant with Gohan. I forgot just how magical it feels..."

Bardock stepped up and Bulma nodded. "Hey Bardock. Nice hat."

Bardock nodded back. "Nice... _stomach_..."

He scratched the back of his head. "How's Vegeta?"

Bulma rolled her eyes and held up her hand, showing a ring on her ring finger. "We went to the courthouse and got married, so there's that."

Bardock cocked his head. "Vegeta of all people getting married..."

Bulma nodded. "Yeah. He said that he didn't want ' _Vegeta V_ ' to be born a bastard. I'm not naming our child that, but I suppose it's the thought that counts..."

Bardock nodded. And then, he looked around. "So, where's Gine anyway? I figured she'd be ready right now."

Chi-Chi answered. "She was nearly ready last time I saw her. But, as I was leaving the house, I heard Launch sneeze. So, who knows where that went..."

"HEY! YOU TALKIN' SHIT ABOUT ME OUT HERE?!"

Everyone turned towards Raditz's house and their jaws dropped. Standing there was Blonde Launch, still dressed in her nightgown and slippers. And standing next to her was Gine in the outfit that Launch had specifically picked for her: a pair of faded denim jeans, a pair of black cowboy boots, a bright red ribbon pulling her hair into a functional ponytail, and a blue flannel shirt with a white, belly-shirt underneath.

Bardock's face lit up red, Gine was beaming. "So, everyone, how do I look?"

It was compliments all around for Gine, which she fully enjoyed. Bardock was still speechless, but Bulma whispered to him. "You know it's rude to stare, right?'

Bardock stammered. "Sh-Shut the hell up!"

Chi-Chi sighed, speaking to herself. "I hope I still look that good when I'm fifty..."

Bulma smirked. "I already have plans in place to look good when I'm fifty."

It didn't take long after that for the others to depart. Chi-Chi grabbed Goku and Piccolo by the ears and practically dragged them into the air, Gohan following behind with a nervous chuckle. Bulma departed as well, waving by to everyone and flying off in her ship. Finally, Raditz stepped up to his parents. "Okay. I've drawn up some directions for you guys to get there. You're taking the vegetable to a place called South Skull Valley Township."

Gine took the map from her son. Bardock sighed. " _Sounds super inviting._ "

The two of them got into the truck and Bardock turned it on. After a quick rev of the engine, he and Gine were off and down the road. Raditz watched as the truck got smaller and smaller, eventually losing sight of it over the hill. He turned to his wife and smiled. "How about we go in and I rub your feet?"

Blonde Launch smiled. "I'd be up for that."

As the two of them turned to walk back into their home, Blonde Launch cocked her head. "Wait a minute? South Skull Valley? I... think I remember hearing something about that place..."

 _Southern Mt. Paozu, on the mountain road..._

It had been a relatively peaceful two hours of driving. A few bumps in the road, for sure, but that was to be expected for a trip down a mountain. Bardock kept his eyes trained on the road, watching for any faults or sudden detours that he would need to make. Gine, meanwhile, was taking in the sights of Mt. Paozu with a massive grin on her face. "Isn't this just so much fun, Bardock?!"

Bardock shrugged. "I guess. It's a long drive, that's for sure."

Gine gently shoved him, chuckling. "Oh come on! Lighten up! Have some fun, Bardock~"

A small smile spread on Bardock's face. Gine shoved him again and he chuckled. "Hey! Behave yourself!"

He gave her a small shove back and she chuckled, glancing out the window again at the spanning forest valleys and sheer, rocky ledges of Mt. Paozu. Gine giggled. "Isn't it just so picturesque? We have a lovely home~"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah. It's pretty nice."

The drive continued, and, like nothing, another three hours passed. Bardock continued to focus on the road, Gine was humming along with the radio and reading a magazine. Eventually, the Saiyan Mother put down her reading and began to explore once again. Bardock glanced over as she forced the glove compartment open. "What are you doing?"

Gine responded. "Checking things out. Earth vehicles are neat."

Digging deeper into the compartment, Gine eventually produced something she wasn't expected: a loaded revolver. "Hey! Look at this! It's a gun!"

Bardock sighed. "Bulma and Launch did say this was their truck before. Guess it makes sense that there's some sort of firearm in here..."

Bardock glanced over at his wife and saw that she was waving the gun around, mouthing the words "pew pew" to herself. He rolled his eyes. "Hey! Put that thing down before something gets hurt!"

Gine spun the gun on her finger, eventually catching it and pointing it at the windshield. "Reach for the sky~"

Bardock groaned. "Seriously. You're going to end up shooting out a window."

Gine rolled her eyes. "Lighten up! I swear, you're as high-strung as Raditz sometimes."

Bardock snorted. "I'd rather be as high-strung as Raditz than as dumb as Kakarot."

Gine gasped. "That's so rude! How can you call Kakarot dumb?!"

Bardock cocked his head. " _Gine._ "

She flinched, pressing her index fingers together and avoiding eye contact. "Kakarot isn't dumb. He just has... _a unique world view_."

The two of them were silent for a minute, but then Gine sighed. "Okay. He's a bit thick sometimes. But his heart is in a good place."

Bardock sighed, but he smiled. "Yeah. He's a good guy. I hope Chi-Chi ain't riding his ass too hard over the license thing."

Gine smiled. "Chi-Chi is even more high-strung than Raditz sometimes, but her heart is in a good place. I'm sure she's not being too mean."

Bardock chuckled. "I wouldn't go that far. At least 75 percent of our daughters-in-law could easily be called mean."

Gine sighed. "Yeah. Blonde Launch is a bit extreme. But Blue Launch is always so polite. No matter what though, I'd say our boys ended up pretty lucky with the women they chose to marry."

Bardock nodded. "Definitely."

And so, the drive went on. Bardock and Gine continued to talk to one another as they went down the southern end of Mt. Paozu. Eventually, unbeknownst to either of them, they passed by a sheriff's car hidden behind a shady tree. Neither Saiyan noticed or really cared about the hidden law enforcement and continued to drive on.

However, the two deputies in the car, upon seeing the truck, chuckled to one another and immediately gave chase.

 _A bit further down the road..._

Bardock looked into his rearview mirror and saw flashing red and blue lights. "Aw, son of a bitch. What is this about?"

Gine held up a placating hand. "Easy now. Don't get annoyed over nothing. It's just Earth police Bardock. Let's just see what they want and try to keep things peaceful."

Bardock grunted and pulled the truck over, coming to a full and complete stop. Gine smiled and shot Bardock and thumbs up and Bardock rolled his eyes in response. Two deputies came up to his side and knocked on his window. Bardock rolled it down. "Problem?"

The taller, thinner deputy smiled. "Yes sir. One of your tail lights is out."

Bardock slightly flinched back. "Wait, really?"

The shorter, fatter deputy nodded. "Yes sir. Why don't you come and look, we can show you what the problem is."

Gine chimed in. "This won't be a problem. Will it, officer?"

The taller one shook his head. "No ma'am. Y'all seem like good folks, so we're just gonna show you the issue and let y'all get it fixed when ya get where yer goin'."

The two deputies motioned for Bardock and Gine to follow and they both did, getting out of the trucks and walking towards the back. Gine whispered. "See? Nothing too exciting. A light just went out. No reason to be so tense."

Bardock shrugged, something still feeling off to him.

They both made it to the back of the truck and the shorter deputy pointed towards the tail light. "See?"

Bardock and Gine both leaned over to look, seeing that the light had been completely shattered. Bardock frowned. "What the hell?"

Gine tapped her chin. "Maybe it was a ro-"

 ***CLICK* *CLICK***

The two Saiyans both turned around to see that they each had a pistol trained in their face. The two deputies both stood there, wide smiles on their faces. The taller one spoke. "Now listen here. We don't take too kindly to trucks coming down our mountain without callin' ahead to ask the Skull Valley Sheriff first. _How do y'all expect to drive freight down this mountain without payin' ya taxes first?_ "

The shorter one chuckled. "Looks like you two are gonna have to be taught a lesson. So, we're gonna be taking your money, your haul, and your clothes. Just listen to us and y'all might get outta this in one piece~"

Bardock sneered, gripping his fists. He had no patience for this shit. "This is 2-on-2. Do you jackasses really think you stand a chance?"

The taller one chuckled. "Well, if you're concerned about numbers..."

He stuck two fingers in his mouth and whistled and, like a pack of wild animals, a couple dozen mountain thieves emerged from the brush. Each of them had the symbol of the Bear Bandits drawn onto their clothes and they were all armed. The tall deputy stepped up to Bardock and smacked the hat off of his head. " _You still think numbers are an issue, boy?_ "

Bardock's pupils shrunk. He started to raise his fist, but Gine quickly grabbed him by the wrist. He was ready to beat the hell out of these idiots, but Gine was a much calmer voice. She stepped forward and spoke. "Let's not get a fight started or anything. We didn't-"

The shorter deputy stepped forward and press his hand on Gine's chest, giving her a sudden and unexpected shove back. " _Know your place and keep your mouth shut, woman!_ "

Gine was taken aback. But she was unconcerned about herself. She turned as quick as she could. "Bardock-"

But it was too late. Bardock jolted forward and punched the shorter deputy in the face hard enough to send him flying back through the windshield of his car. The taller deputy cowered back, motioning to the bandits. "Well, what are y'all waitin' for?! Show this rabble-rouser some hospitality!"

The Bear Bandit's charged, but Bardock wasn't having any of this. He charged a ball of energy into his hand and shoved it into the ground, causing the road underneath the bandit's feet to crack. As they all stumbled, he shot forward and took each of them out in one blow, breaking weapons and bones and teeth with each strike.

With all of his bandits laying on the ground, gurgling in pain, the taller deputy was panicking. He frantically searched the ground, eventually finding his pistol and fired a shot at Bardock. Bardock caught it with no effort. The deputy yelped. "What the hell?!"

Bardock responded by throwing the bullet back at him, piercing directly into his shin. The deputy screamed in pain and Bardock stepped up, grabbing him by his shirt. "I think it's safe to say that me and my wife are _tax exempt_. Don't _ever_ let me see your face again..."

Bardock dropped the whimpering fool and turned. Gine handed him his hat and Bardock put it back on his head. And then, the two of them got back into their truck and drove off. Once the truck was completely out of sight, the taller deputy stood and limped over to his car. He got onto the radio and shouted. "Dispatch! We got issues coming down the road! Send all the back-up you can!"

 _In the truck with Bardock and Gine..._

Bardock was still visibly fuming at what had just happened. Gine, meanwhile, adjusted her blouse and talked to herself. "Chi-Chi did mention mountain bandits a few times. So, I guess this is what she meant..."

She scratched the back of her head. "But she never said anything about corrupt police before..."

Bardock took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "What difference does it make? Cop, bandit, whatever...I'm not letting anyone push us around. And nobody is getting away with shoving you like that!"

Gine glanced over to her husband and gently smiled. "Thank you for standing up for me."

She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "And thank you even more for not killing anybody. It's nice that we're both moving past that part of our lives."

Bardock grumbled under his breath. " _They're lucky I didn't kill their asses. They better have taken the hint..._ "

Almost immediately, signs came that they didn't. As Bardock and Gine continued to drive down the rocky, mountain road, the sound of rumbling engines roared out behind them. Bardock looked into his rearview mirror and saw an entire posse of Bear Bandits pulling up on their trucks and jeeps. "Son of a..."

The Bear Bandits wasted no time. They sped up on either side of the truck and began bashing it with various weapons. Clubs smashed into the sides of the truck, swords slashed it, and various firearms blasted it. Luckily, the thick steel of the Capsule truck held firm and the vegetables were uninjured. Bardock glanced into his sideview mirror and saw a bandit producing a rather hefty-looking torch. "Oh hell no!"

The older Saiyan rolled down his window, charged a small energy blast into his hand, and tossed it underneath the torcher's vehicle. The blast exploded and sent the vehicle flying into the air, eventually crashing back down and bursting into flames. Bardock smirked. "Suck on that!"

To his shock, however, Bardock was suddenly assailed from the opposite side. A harsh slap hit Bardock's bicep and he flinched at an angry-looking Gine. "What?!"

Gine scolded him. "Don't kill people, Bardock! We're so much stronger than the people on this planet! We need to control ourselves. We're past that part of our lives!"

Bardock snarled. "Gine..."

Gine had a serious look on her face. "They're just petty thieves. Not Frieza Force soldiers. They aren't a threat to us, so we should stick to _non-lethal_ force Bardock."

Bardock gripped his fist tight, shaking his head. " _Fine..._ "

In his gripped fist, Bardock charged a small amount of energy. He slammed his hand against the side of the truck and sent out an energy ripple that repelled all of the bandits off of his side. He floored the gas pedal, speeding up, and turned to Gine. "Go and get those assholes off of your side of the truck. Hurry!"

Gine nodded and rolled down her window, leaping out with a smile. Bardock raggedly sighed and charged another energy wave, tossing it out the window and shredding the tires of the vehicles on his side.

Gine weaved through the air with a cheeky smile on her face, flying up to each bandit's and removing them with minor force. She zipped between sword slashes and pistol shots and dealt with each one in a single blow. Carefully, she caught the unconscious bandits and tossed them back into their jeeps. Once they were all cleared, Gine flew a bit up the road and stood in the path of the head jeep in line. The bandit gasped and jammed on breaks. Gine smirked and shot her leg out, smashing in the front of the jeep and forcing it to come to a stop. The entire line of cars smashed into the back of the stalled jeep and created a massive, wrecked pile-up. The bandits were all stunned. Gine flashed them a smile and a peace sign, and then she flew farther down the road and caught up to the truck.

As the truck got smaller in the distance, one of the bandits pulled himself from his wrecked car and produced a walkie-talkie from his jacket. "Those bastards wrecked us! _Blow the damned bridge!_ "

Meanwhile, Gine climbed back into the truck and chuckled. "See? We didn't have to kill anyone to get 'em off our tail!"

Bardock was much less glib about the situation. "I'm getting sick and tired of this crap. I'm gonna lose my temper if more of them show up!"

Gine waved her hand. "Calm down, husband. If there are any more left, then they've probably been spooked. I think the worst is over."

A bit of driving after that brought Bardock and Gine to a wooden bridge stretched over a massive chasm with a stretch of road barely visible at the bottom. Bardock was tense. Gine glanced over at him. "What's wrong?"

Bardock gripped the steering wheel. "Something doesn't feel right..."

They drove a bit farther onto the bridge and Bardock noticed something at the other end. He leaned forward and squinted to try and get a better view. And then he finally saw it. "Oh shit... _OH SHIT!_ "

Gine flinched. "Wha-"

Bardock floored the gas again and the truck jolted forward. As they got closer, Gine noticed it as well: there were two more Sheriff's deputies standing on the other end of the bridge. And they had a dynamite plunger in front of them. Gine's pupils shrunk. " _Oh shit._ "

The deputies both saw the truck rapidly approaching. It was their time to shine. One of them shot Bardock a sly grin and then shoved the plunger down. The dynamite strung up under the bridge blew and suddenly, Bardock and Gine were left falling without a road to drive on.

The truck began to plummet, spiraling through the air. Gine cried out. "The vegetables! The vegetables are going to be ruined!"

Bardock snapped at her. "Hey Gine! You think they're trying to kill us now?!"

Gine frowned. "Priorities Bardock! What do we do?!"

Bardock sighed and then, rearing his fist back, he busted out the window on his side. "We gotta stop free-falling!"

Gine nodded and smashed her fist through her window. "Right!"

The two of them both charged a massive blast, waiting for the right moment, and then fired their blasts. The force of the blasts slowed the truck mid-air and allowed them to somewhat gently crash onto the ground below. Bardock and Gine both took a moment to collect themselves, and then Bardock hit the gas and the sped off into the nearby forest within the chasm.

High above, the two deputies next to the blown-out bridge cursed. "Dammit! Now we gotta call the Sheriff and the Boss and tell 'em that those truckers got away!"

 _Within the Skull Valley Forest..._

The sun was starting to wane on the horizon as Bardock and Gine drove into the forest. As they drove, they both noticed that their ride was significantly bumpier than before. Neither of them said anything at first, but eventually Gine sighed. "I think something is wrong with the truck."

The sudden, screeching sound of metal against metal echoed out. Bardock cringed. "Yep. Definitely something wrong with the truck..."

Bardock scanned around, eventually laying eyes on a cave where they could rest unbothered. After pulling the truck in, the two of them hopped out and inspected the damages. A ton of cosmetic damage had been done, leaving the truck looking haggard and beaten. But that wasn't the issue. Gine stood to the side as Bardock crawled under the truck. "Dammit!"

Gine sighed. "Is it bad?"

Bardock shouted back. "Axel is bent. Also, something under here is cracked and hissing with hot steam."

The older Saiyan pulled himself from under the truck and smacked his head against the truck. "God damn it all!"

Gine sat down next to her husband, gently rubbing him on the shoulder. "We could just pick it up and fly it the rest of the way..."

Bardock sighed. "I mean, yeah. But that'll draw a lot of unwanted attention..."

"Not to be rude...but are y'all truckers too?"

Bardock and Gine both snapped to attention, standing and taking fighting stances towards the source of the voice. Their sudden guest, a rather disheveled-looking trucker, fell back onto his butt and cowered. "Hey now! Come on! Let's not get violent! We don't mean no harm!"

Bardock and Gine both relaxed as, from deeper within the cave, at least a dozen truckers came shuffling out. They all looked tired, dirty, rail-thin, and just genuinely miserable. Gine's sympathetic nature instantly kicked in. "What's going on here? Why do you all look so beaten...?"

Their initial guest, a tall trucker with shaggy beard and baggy clothes that betrayed a once buff physique, sat up. "That would be a long story, ma'am. Do y'all have a bit?"

Gine looked to Bardock and Bardock sighed and shrugged. The two of them sat down as the truckers told their story. The tall trucker, a man calling himself Rooster, spoke candidly. "We've all been here for months, a new person showin' up every so often. We're the ones that got away, the others all got taken in and forced to work under those two devils..."

Bardock had his arms crossed over his chest. Gine's face drooped. "You've been stuck here that long?"

Rooster shuddered. "We ain't got no choice. This is the only place the Sheriff and the Bear Bandits won't come. If we try to leave this place, they'll just catch us and work us like slaves while threatening our families..."

Gine's heartstrings were effectively pulled. She looked over to Bardock, on the verge of tears, and Bardock rolled his eyes with a sigh. He stood, adjusting his hat, and spoke. "Listen. I'm tired and hungry. You all look about the same. So, how about we start there?"

Bardock turned to Gine. "Take some vegetables out of the load and get 'em started cooking. I'm going to go find something to kill and eat."

Gine's face lit up. " _Oh Bardock..._ "

 _Meanwhile, at South Skull Valley Township..._

The townsfolk, terrified by what they saw coming, all quickly retreated back into their shops and homes. The revving of engines and the chattering and howling were both signs of something dreadful: the Bear Bandits were rolling into town once more.

Stepping off of his massive truck, the leader of the Bear Bandits lumbered over to his favorite spot. He loomed over the entrance to the town bar, practically drooling on the bartender: Miss Zest.

He chuckled. "Hey there Miss Zest! You're looking a pretty as ever! How about you make me some on the house grilled turtle meat and we... _get to know one another_ ~"

She glared at him. He was a massive, ugly son of a bitch. But she refused to let him walk all over her. "Why don't you take yer big, stinkin' hide over to yer fat little lap-dogs office! If you ain't gonna buy something, we ain't got no need for you at this bar!"

Boss Bear Thief sneered and started to reach for his sword, but then a call from across the street distracted him. "Hey! Boss Bear, come on over here! We got matters to discuss!"

Boss Bear Thief turned and saw the Sheriff, a short, fat, mustachioed man, standing and waiting for him. Boss Bear snarled and snapped his fingers, stomping off as his men rushed the bar. Miss Zest called out. "Hey! Hey! What're you doin' to me?!"

Boss Bear leaned against the Sheriff's Office. "Now, what the hell is going on?! What's with this new trucker making a mess of our operation?!"

The Sheriff wringed his hands. "I'm sorry Boss Bear. No one we had stationed on the mountain roads was expecting a trucker to come through and give them that much trouble! Couple pieces of work if you ask me!"

Boss Bear snarled. "Pieces of work or not, we can't let them get away with this! If word spreads that they embarrassed us like this, then our operation will fall apart! Did your men manage to get a picture of 'em?!"

The Sheriff, ever the sycophant, nodded. "Yessir! Right here! We snapped photos of both of 'em!"

Boss Bear took the pictures and looked closely. First, he saw Gine, her gentle face caught in profile. And then, he saw something that made his blood boil. He couldn't see the face of the man in the picture, but Boss Bear recognized that hairdo anywhere. "Oh...I'm gonna kill these punks! I'll skin them alive and turn them into rugs!"

Boss Bear stomped off, waving to his men who were setting Miss Zest's bar ablaze. "Come on, you fools! We have plans to make!"

The two men holding Miss Zest still threw her to the ground and chased after their Boss. As the Bear Bandits drove off, she stood up and ran to a nearby hose. There wasn't much pressure, but she desperately started to put out the flames. As she did, the Sheriff came up and mocked her from behind. "So, Miss Zest, does that mean you're gonna have a fire sale on liquor?"

 _Back in the forest..._

Bardock and Gine sat around the campfire with the rest of the stranded truckers. It was a dour meal of bear meat and stewed potatoes. As they ate, the stranded truckers all lamented on their situation. The seeming leader of the group, Rooster, sighed. Tears built in his eyes. "I miss my kids, man..."

Another trucker off to the side shook his head. "I don't have any kids, but I miss my bed...it's been too long in this forest..."

A female trucker, requiring assistance to be fed due to a broken arm, frowned. "I miss my wife...and our dogs..."

As the bitter lamenting continued, Bardock and Gine both lost their appetites. Gine set her plate, a piece of sheet metal, down. "This is awful..."

Bardock threw his out of the cave. "Yeah. I agree."

He stood and walked back over to their truck, continuing to work on trying to get it in working order. As he did that, Gine spoke to the truckers. "So, why don't you all just try to leave...?"

Rooster sighed. "Like we said, ma'am, we'd love to. But the damned Sheriff of these parts would just catch us and force us to work anyway. Or his Bear Bandit buddies would kill us. We're just stuck here in this awful forest and-"

A loud metal snap caused everyone in the cave to jolt. They all turned towards Bardock and his truck and saw, to most of their shock, that the older Saiyan had straightened out his bent axel with his bare hands. Bardock stood up and stretched his back. And then he turned to the truckers. "Well, I guess this would be your chance."

Rooster cocked his head. "Wha...?"

Bardock stepped forward, wiping his hands on his pants. "You're worried about being caught by the bandits and the cops, eh? Well, luckily, me and my wife have pissed both parties off pretty well. So, why not take advantage of that? You all can sneak away while we're being chased."

The truckers were all stunned silent by such a gracious offer. Gine stood, nodding to her husband. Finally, one of the truckers spoke up. "That's a mighty kind offer...but what are you two gonna do? A couple of nice folks like you-"

Bardock shook his head. "Eh! We can handle ourselves. You don't have to worry about us."

Gine smiled. "You all should just get back to families~"

Once again, the truckers were speechless. Barely stifled sobs echoed out through the cave and not a single eye remained dry. Rooster rubbed his sleeve over his eyes and smiled. "Well...you at least gotta let us fix up your rig. Can't have you guys fleeing from the law with a cracked radiator. We all got the wrecks of our rigs stored in this cave."

Bardock nodded. "Fine. You help me with that."

He turned to Gine. "While we're doing that, you and the others try to salvage a truck for these guys to escape in."

Gine nodded and she and the other truckers walked further into the cave. Bardock and Rooster walked over to his truck and a night of mechanic work began.

 _The next morning..._

Two trucks pulled out from within the forest and back onto the main road. Bardock and Gine were sat in their truck. They turned and nodded to their new friends. All of the stranded truckers were piled into the other truck. The two groups nodded to each other one last time, and then Bardock floored the gas and sped off.

Bardock smirked. "You ready, Gine?"

Gine nodded. "Heck yes I am."

Bardock grabbed the cord to sound the truck's horn and pulled it down as hard as he could, sending a blasting sound echoing through the valley. He pulled the cord again and again, making sure that every person on the mountain new that he was coming. It didn't take long for flashing lights and sirens to start screaming behind the two of them. Bardock chuckled. "You think they have enough people?"

The dozens of police cars were quickly joined by dozen of Bear Bandit cars. Gine chuckled. "No. Not even close~"

Bardock pushed the truck to its limit, accelerating even faster. The two Saiyans had a full-on road war on their hands.

 _Back with the stranded truckers..._

Rooster watched on as Bardock and Gine sped farther and farther away, hundreds of sheriff's and bandits kicking up dust behind them. "Those are two of the bravest people I've ever seen..."

The female trucker, Road Mama, frowned. "We can't just...we can't just abandon them like this..."

Rooster looked to the rest of his fellow truckers, seeing determined looks in all of their eyes. He tipped his hat and sighed. "Yeah, I agree...we gotta do something..."

 _Back with Bardock and Gine..._

With so many people on their tails, it wouldn't be wrong to think that any person would be nervous. But, as they drove, all Bardock and Gine could do was laugh. Bardock snorted and shook his head. "And here I was starting to think that retiring on Earth was just going to be boring..."

Gine sighed. "Nah. This planet has all sorts of bizarre surprises the longer you stay on it. It's like a trouble magnet..."

Bardock smirked. "Well, at least it's fun."

Gine nodded. "Yup."

The shrieking sirens of the sheriff's cars filled the cab. Bardock grimaced. "We got anything to drown that out?"

Gine glanced ahead, seeing a sharp turn coming up. She nodded. "I think this truck has a radio..."

She flipped the radio on and a folksy banjo song began blasting from the speakers. Bardock smiled wide. "That'll do."

He lowered his hat, and then jerked the wheel and drifted the truck around the curve. Bardock laughed as several of their pursuers crashed into the mountainside. "Let's get these damned vegetables delivered!"

The truck picked up speed as it went down the sloped road, but the sheriff's and the Bear Bandit's weren't going to be shaken that easily. They pulled up to the sides and the back of the truck and boxed it in from three sides. A sheriff jumped onto Bardock's side, brandishing a pistol. He waved it in Bardock's face, but Bardock elbowed him in the throat and sent him flying.

On Gine's side, things were just as hectic. She ducked the swing of a baseball bat from a bandit and slapped him across the face, sending him flying back into his vehicle.

Pandemonium overtook the truck as if zoomed down the mountain road.

As they went farther down, two loud pops caught Bardock's attention. He looked into his sideview mirror and sneered. "Dammit!"

Two of the truck tires had been pierced and shredded by a bandit with a tow hook. He went for a third, but Bardock sent him flying out of his vehicle with a kiai. "We need to do a better job about protecting the truck. We won't make it to town if they keep doing damage like this!"

The attacks continued, with Bardock and Gine trying their best to fend them off. But the attackers were soon joined by two much more threatening adversaries. From a cave on Bardock's side, a massive military jeep emerged with the Bear Bandit's mark on it. And from a small road on Gine's wide, a Sheriff's car with a mounted turret pulled in to join the mob.

The Bear Bandit jeep sped as fast as it could towards Bardock and Gine's truck, smashing into the back of it and making the two Saiyans jolt. The jeep slowed, but then it sped and rammed into them again. Meanwhile, the Sheriff's car stayed a bit farther behind. The Sheriff himself climbed into the seat of the turret and aimed down the sight at Bardock and Gine's truck. And then he started firing.

The sound of bullets crashing into the back of the truck rang out like hail on a tin roof. Gine gasped. "The vegetables! I don't know how long this thing can take getting shot at, but if it gets pierced then the vegetables are ruined!"

Bardock snarled, tiring of this crap. "Eat this!"

He charged a medium-sized blast in his hand and fired it directly at the hoard of vehicles following them. The blast crashed into the center of the road and exploded, sending many of their pursuers flipping and crashing in the confusion. Gine called over to her husband. "Hey! Be careful! You might have killed someone doing that!"

Bardock shouted back. "They're firing a machine turret at us!"

Gine snapped. "Well, they're also powerless humans. We have to show restraint Bardock, or we're no better than Frieza!"

Another hail of turret-fire crashed into the back of the truck and Gine growled to herself. "But...you're not wrong. We have to think of something do about that quickly..."

The Bear Bandit jeep smashed into their rear bumper again and Bardock sneered. "We gotta put a stop to that too."

Gine thought hard for a moment, trying to think of how to disable the Sheriff's car without accidentally killing anybody. And then a lightbulb went off over her head. Gine popped open the glove compartment and started to dig. Bardock cocked his head. "What are you doing?"

Gine produced the pistol out and smirked, winking at her husband. Bardock was unimpressed. "Your best plan is a smaller gun? What the hell is that supposed to do?"

The Saiyan Mother smirked. "I saw this in a movie I watched with Launch. Watch this!"

Gine waited for the turret to stop firing. She poked her head out the window and saw the Sheriff frantically trying to reload. She smirked and squeezed one eye shut, aiming down the sight at the front tire of the Sheriff's car. She pulled the trigger and a single bullet went flying, piercing the Sheriff's front tire. Gine pumped her fist. " _Yes!_ "

But then, in confusion and panic, the Sheriff's driver began to swerve all across the road. Accidentally throwing the Sheriff out of his turret seat and out of the car, the driver swerved into several of his allies and crashed into them. The resulting explosion sent at least thirty cars flying off the side of the road and tumbling down the mountain. Gine was dumbfounded. "Uh..."

She pulled her head back in and glanced over to Bardock, who was staring in disbelief. Gine blushed. "Wh-What?!"

Bardock shouted. " _What happened to not killing people?!_ "

Gine quickly defended herself. "I didn't kill anyone!"

An explosion rang out from the bottom of the mountain, sending flaming chunks of cars flying high into the air. Gine stammered. " _I... s-seriously injured them!_ "

Bardock rolled his eyes. " _OH, GOD DAMN IT!_ "

Bardock charged a massive blast into his hand, tossing it as hard as he could behind him and blowing the rest of the bandit vehicles, including the massive jeep, sky high. Gine gasped in terror. " _Bardock! We're not supposed to be killing people!_ "

He put on his best Gine voice. " _I didn't kill anyone!_ _ **I SERIOUSLY INJURED THEM!**_ "

Gine bowed up to him. "Don't you mock me! I wasn't trying to-"

The argument was cut off by Boss Bear Thief's smoking carcass splatting onto Bardock and Gine's hood. He shakily pushed himself up and glared through the windshield at them, his hateful gaze training on Bardock. Without hesitation, he drew his sword and smashed the blade through the windshield. Bardock grunted and jerked his head out of the way, grabbing the blade with his bare hand and holding it still.

He and Boss Bear Thief glared at one another. The lumbering grizzly snarled. "This is it, boy! It's time for revenge! Revenge for all those years ago when you embarrassed me and stopped me from eating that turtle!"

Bardock and Gine both glanced at one another, genuinely confused.

Boss Bear sneered. "Yes! I've been watching you for years! Winning tournaments and defeating the Demon King! But I'm prepared this time! And now you pay! _You're gonna regret not changing that stupid hairstyle of yours!_ "

It took a minute, but Bardock and Gine both came to the same conclusion. "Oh! He's talking about _Kakarot_!"

Bardock turned to Gine. "This guy seems to wanna chat with me. Take the wheel while I'm gone?"

Gine nodded. "Sure."

Bardock tossed his hat onto the seat and shoved Boss Bear back as he leapt through the busted windshield. He squared up to Boss Bear with a smirk. Boss Bear swung his sword once more, but Bardock caught the blade again, this time snapping it in half.

As Bardock and Boss Bear began to fistfight on the hood, Gine held the truck steady. In focusing on the road, however, she didn't notice that a fourth visitor was squirming his way to the cab of the truck. After being thrown off of his car, the Sheriff had managed to save himself by clinging onto Bardock and Gine's rear bumper.

He made his way down the passenger side of the truck and eventually came to the window. Being so focused on the road, Gine didn't noticed him crawling his way in. He reached onto his belt and called out. "Excuse me, Miss!"

Gine turned and was immediately met by a spray of mace crashing into her eyes. " _Agh! Agh! It burns! What the hell?!_ "

The Sheriff wickedly grinned and reached to his belt, pulling out a taser and sticking it into the blinded Gine's neck.

On the hood of the truck, Bardock took a hard-right fist across the face. He stumbled back a couple of steps and wiped a trickle of blood from his busted lip. "What the hell...?!"

He threw a punch of his own, but Boss Bear blocked it with his forearm and shoved Bardock back even more. The bear charged at Bardock, but Bardock punched him hard enough in the gut to knock the wind out of him. The older Saiyan sneered. "How in the hell are you so durable?! Your power level is lower than my patience for this shit, it doesn't make sense!"

Boss Bear chuckled. "Yeah! You are pretty strong, boy!"

He grabbed Bardock by the collar of the shirt and heaved him over his head, slamming the Saiyan down onto the other side of the hood. Boss Bear chortled. "But I don't have to train to gain strength!"

Bardock threw a weak energy blast at Boss Bear. Once the smoke from that cleared, Bardock finally saw what the issue was. Boss Bear was dressed in a suit of power armor with a giant Capsule Corp logo in the center. He chuckled. "Haven't had a chance to customize it yet, but what do you think?! Those Capsule Corp people have been putting out brand-spanking new tech like this for a while now! This one is meant for construction, but it can be used for other things! People are calling this technology a miracle! I wonder where that Brief lady got it from...?"

Bardock groaned. "Well isn't that just friggin' appropria-"

Boss Bear lunged at Bardock and wrapped his armored hand around the Saiyans throat. He sneered and pressed a button on his arm, causing a metallic face mask to wrap itself around his head. "Now I'm gonna kill you for what you did to me, boy!"

Bardock choked. " _For the last time...I'm not that boy you're thinking of...you stupid bear!_ "

The choke became even harsher and Bardock snarled. " _Dammit Bulma...why are you making construction armor with the ability to choke people...?_ "

As Boss Bear tried to push Bardock's head into a spinning tire, the situation in the cab wasn't going much better. Between tazing her and shooting more mace into her eyes, the Sheriff had managed to slip a pair of cuffs onto Gine's wrists. "You have the right to remain silent!"

He tazed her again and chuckled. "And you can maintain that right even after I make you my woman!"

Gine growled and pulled her hands apart, snapping the cuffs. "Enough of this!"

She roared in frustration and, flashing with golden light, Gine turned into a Super Saiyan. The force of her power sent the Sheriff tumbling back. "Wh-What?!"

Gine shot her foot forward, planting a kick squarely into the Sheriff's face, and sent the tubby bastard crashing through the door. The door came off of the hinges and it and the Sheriff both went crashing down the side of the mountain.

On the hood, Bardock was just as frustrated. He went Super Saiyan as well, his power flaring and pushing Boss Bear off of him. Boss Bear snarled and ran forward. He tried to punch Bardock again, but Bardock caught his fist, giving a sharp twist and breaking Boss Bear's wrist. Boss Bear roared in pain, but this roar was quickly cut off by Bardock grabbing him by the throat and smashing his head into the rock wall. As the truck sped down the mountain, Boss Bear's head was dragged with it. At the speed the truck was going, the metal mask was shredded from Boss Bear's head after only a few seconds.

Thoroughly annoyed, Bardock snatched Boss Bear's bleeding head away from the rocky wall and hissed at him. " _We done here?_ "

Boss Bear gurgled and nodded. Bardock nodded back. "Good."

And then, without a second thought, Bardock threw Boss Bear over the side of the road, allowing him to fall and join the rest of his defeated men.

Bardock sighed and leapt back into the truck, gently helping Gine move out of the driver's seat. "You okay?"

The two of them depowered and Gine moaned. "My eyes are on fire..."

Bardock gave her a gentle pat on the head. "Just take a nap, dear. We'll be in town soon. I think it's all over..."

 _South Skull Valley Township..._

Dusk was falling as Bardock and Gine came riding back into town The two of them stepped out of their truck and went to go and find some water for Gine's eyes when, suddenly, they were swarmed by a crowd of celebrating townsfolk. Bardock was unnerved. "What the hell?!"

Gine was still blind and confused. "What's going on?"

"Hey y'all!"

Bardock and Gine turned in the direction of the voice and Rooster and Road Mama came walking up to them. Road Mama, not even caring about her broken arm, pulled Bardock and Gine close for a hug. "You actually did it!"

Bardock looked past her and saw a giant cage sitting in front of the Sheriff's Office, within it were several deputies and bandits, as well as the Sheriff and Boss Bear tied up within. Rooster was smiling from ear-to-ear. "After y'all went on that chase, we cut through the valley and made it here. Got a hold of the Royal Military. King Furry is sendin' some folks down here to clean up this place!"

Rooster threw his hands into the air. "We're all free!"

Bardock looked around as all of the people of the town started to celebrate. Gine gently smiled. Trying to get to the point, Bardock called out. "Hey! Who here ordered this truckload of vegetables?!"

The mayor of the town stepped forward and spoke up. "That would be the Sheriff. He put out an add trying to lure in more truckers into his little operation he had going on here. I don't think he was expecting someone like you to show up!"

Another man from the crowd called out. "But that don't matter! You two saved our town! So, we're more than happy to pay for your haul!"

A woman in the crowd called out. "My husband is a mechanic! He can fix up your truck for you, free of charge!"

Finally, Miss Zest stepped up and pressed a cold bottle of beer into Gine and Bardock's hands. "But that'll all take a while. So why don't you two join us for some good ol' fashioned celebration for the evening?"

Bardock glanced down to Gine and Gine nodded. "Some time to relax would be nice. Can I have a rag to wash my face with, please?"

Miss Zest nodded. "Sure thing, sweetie."

She pumped her fist into the air. "Well?! Come on y'all! We're free! Let's party!"

And so began a party that raged long into the night.

Sitting off at a table by themselves, Bardock and Gine both relaxed in the pleasant, small-town atmosphere. Gine rubbed her warm towel over her still throbbing eyes and drank her drink. Bardock was leaned back in his chair, his foot rested atop the briefcase of money that the mayor had given to him.

Not too bad for their first haul as truckers. Soon enough, the two of them were joined by Rooster and Road Mama. Bardock nodded and Rooster offered both him and Gine each another beer. He sighed in relief. "I got to hear my wife's voice for the first time in months. I'm so happy to be alive~"

Road Mama chuckled. "I called my wife. She cried through the whole call. And the town doctor put a proper splint on my arm, so maybe it'll heal now."

Gine sounded tired, but happy. "That's good to hear. I'm happy for you two. When are you headed home?"

Rooster belched. "In the mornin'. Once our rigs get fixed up. That town mechanic is bustin' his tails tryin' to get us all outta here."

Road Mama smiled. "But, we're glad to stick around. Cuz we wanted to ask you two something."

Gine perked up. Bardock leaned forward. "What is it?"

Rooster smirked. "Well, me and Road Mama and a few of the other guys were thinkin' of startin' our own little trucker union. And we wanted to know if you two'd like to join us. We'd love to have ya."

Gine cracked his bloodshot eyes open and looked over to Bardock. Bardock chuckled and smiled, giving a shrug. Gine nodded. "We would be thrilled to."

Road Mama cheered. "Well ain't that just great news!"

She raised her bottle into the air. "To new friendships, found in the weirdest situations!"

Rooster, Bardock, and Gine raised their bottles as well and then all four of them drank together in celebration.

And so ends this little tale of peaceful life on Earth. Another day of Bardock and Gine enjoying their retirement.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	58. Chapter 58: The Beach Episode

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: I have been enjoying writing these little slice-of-life chapters so far. Exploring character relations is nice. But, for those of you who are waiting for the Androids to show up, we're almost there. Chapter 60 will be the beginning of the Android conflict, so I hope you are all looking forward to that!_

 _Also, please go easy on me. I tried to write this chapter while following the actual rules of volleyball, but it ended up super boring and dry, so I had to rewrite it to keep it interesting._

 **Chapter 58: The Beach Episode**

 _Mt. Paozu (9 months until the Android Attack)…_

Gine breathily sighed as pressed the last of her clothes into the suitcase, flipping it closed and snapping the clips shut. "A vacation to an Earth beach! I'm so excited!"

She turned and faced her two daughter-in-laws, grinning from ear-to-ear. "So, this beach we're going to is one of the nice ones, right? White sand and blue water and everything?"

Chi-Chi chuckled. "Yes Gine. Exactly like how it looks on the TV. Bulma texted me some pictures if you'd like to look."

Launch smiled, rubbing her massive, bulging stomach. "You're going to love it~!"

Gine could barely contain herself. "I don't want to spoil the surprise. I'll just wait until we get there and see it for myself."

She picked up her bag, flinging it over her shoulder. Chi-Chi opened the door and allowed Launch and Gine to exit first before following behind them. It was time for a much-needed, group vacation. Everyone was going to be there, not just immediate family but friends as well. All of them were prepping to gather at the Brief Family's Tropical Resort for a nice, week-long beach vacation.

As fast as they could, the three women exited Bardock and Gine's house and made their way to the shuttle that Bulma had sent to collect them. They stored all of their bags away and joined the rest of the family in their seats. Gohan was bouncing in place, ready for some beachy fun. Goku and Piccolo were sat next to one another, discussing ways they could still get training in between moments of relaxation. Goku smirked. "We could do some sparring underwater. The resistance from the undersea pressure would give us a nice workout. What do you think, Raditz?"

Raditz was sat next to them, a tired look on his face. "Y-Yeah. I think that sounds good. I'm hoping now that I don't have to spend so much time on the phone with our buyers and with other people around to help take care of Launch, I might get to train a bit more. I've been slacking..."

Launch and Chi-Chi both sat down, saving the seat between them for Gine to sit in. They turned and smiled at their mother-in-law, but then cocked their heads in confusion. Gine had a concerned look on her face. Chi-Chi nudged her. "Hey, Gine. What's wrong?"

Gine's concerned look quickly warped into an annoyed glare. "Oh, _that man..._ "

She turned and shouted. "Kakarot! Raditz! Come help me!"

Hearing the seriousness in her voice, Goku and Raditz quickly hopped up and followed behind their mother. She was marching with a clear objective in mind, shoving the door to her house open and making her way straight into the den. Goku and Raditz were both nervous, it had dawned on them what was going on.

Gine came to a stop, between the television and an armchair. She planted her fists into her hips. " _Bardock..._ "

Bardock was slumped into his lazy chair. He rolled his eyes. " _What?!_ "

Gine spoke with little humor in her voice. "We're waiting for you on the ship. Where's your bag? Haven't you packed it yet?!"

Bardock grumbled. "I don't wanna go! You all go to the beach and have a vacation! I just wanna sit here and relax while you're all gone!"

Gine snapped. "Bardock! We talked about this! This is our first family vacation since we started living here on Earth! You can't just skip out on that! You have to come!"

Bardock crossed his arms. "You can't make me go on a damned vacation if I don't want to!"

A long silence. Lightning shot from Gine and Bardock's eyes and crackled between them. Gine spoke in a low, threatening tone that she rarely, if ever, used. "Get your lazy butt out of that chair and come on! Right now!"

Bardock shot her a sour look and then reach down next to his chair, picking up a newspaper and opening it to block off his face. "Blah blah blah. I'm not gettin' outta this chair."

Goku and Raditz both flinched back in shock. They shakily glanced back to their quite angry mother and shivered at the sight of her face. Gine had an uncharacteristically cold look in her eyes. Her eyelids narrowed and she sharply clicked her tongue. " _Uh-huh..._ "

 _Briefs Family Beach Resort..._

Gine smiled and graciously nodded as one of the resort staff cracked open a bottle of champagne, pouring her a flute to enjoy as she sat naked in the relaxing bubble tub with Bulma and her daughters-in-law. " _This is nice..._ "

She took a sip and called over to her husband. "Isn't this nice, Bardock?!"

Bardock's armchair was sat under a nearby palm tree. He turned a page in his newspaper as a seagull landed on his head. "Nope. Not gettin' outta this chair."

A member of staff came up to Bardock, offering him a tray of finger foods to pick from. Bardock took them without even looking at the guy. "Not gettin' outta this chair."

Gine rolled her eyes and turned back to her fellow vacation-goers with a smile. "This is a lovely resort Bulma."

Bulma sipped from her flute of non-alcoholic champagne and nodded. "Yeah. It's nice. I wanted it to be private for us, but the staff screwed up my reservation request and Dad wasn't keen on pissing off that many paying customers at once."

Launch smiled. "It's fine. Having some other people around livens things up a bit. Don't you agree, Chi-Chi?"

Chi-Chi forlornly sighed. "Uh-huh..."

Launch frowned. "Is something wrong?"

Chi-Chi didn't respond, simply staring at the two massive baby bumps floating on either side of her in the water. Launch looked down at her stomach and then back at Chi-Chi. "Oh Chi-Chi..."

Chi-Chi shook her head. "Sorry. I just can't help but be a bit jealous, ya know? I miss the excitement of that. Knowing that I was going to have a little person that needed me around..."

Bulma smiled, gently rubbing her shoulder. "Come on now. You have Gohan. He still needs you."

Chi-Chi sadly smiled. "I know. But...he's just so self-sufficient. You know what I mean? Gohan needs me...but at the same time, he really doesn't need me. Not anymore."

Gine chuckled. "Well...on the bright side, you're still young. It's not too late to go for a round two~"

Chi-Chi gently smiled. "You really think so?"

The other three nodded. "Definitely."

Chi-Chi let loose a relieved sigh and picked up her champagne flute, downing it in one gulp. "Thanks guys. I needed that."

Gine stood and stretched, baring herself to the world without a care. "No problem. Now-"

A wolf-whistle caught Gine off-guard and she blushed, instantly dropping back down. Bulma shot an annoyed glare behind them at the source of the whistle, two muscled-out beach bros stepping into an area they didn't belong. Bulma shouted at them. "Hey! Can't you read! This is a private pool! Don't make me call security!"

One of the guys held up his hands. "Hey! Chill lady! We just came here to check out the goods on the rich side of the fence! Pretty disappointing honestly!"

The other chuckled. "The sexy piece that just stood to stretch has a bangin' bod! Too bad she's lounging with two preggos and an old hag!"

The two of them chuckled and high-fived. Bulma and Launch both looked furious. Gine looked very annoyed. Chi-Chi, meanwhile, seemed to be doing math in her head. "They think Gine's attractive...Bulma and Launch are pregnant...so they just called me..."

Anger crossed her face. " _Oh, to hell with that!_ You little punks! How about I-"

Gine placed a hand on Chi-Chi's shoulder to keep her from getting out of the tub. She glared over at the two intruders and spoke with a steady, unwavering tone. "Three things. One; do not ever talk about my daughter-in-law like that. Two; I'm over 50, so I'm not looking to date some snotty-nosed brats. And three; that guy sitting in the chair over there is my husband."

Gine pointed. One of the guys chuckled. "How about we kick your husband's a-"

They both turned to look and locked eyes with Bardock. The older Saiyan had lowered his newspaper ever so slightly and was scowling as he stared a hole through the two of them. " _Better not have to get outta this chair._ "

The two of them both turned white as freshly washed sheets, and then they scurried off as fast as they could, nearly knocking over Panchy as they did. She placed her hands onto her hips and pouted. "How rude!"

Bulma's mother approached the tub, dropping her towel and climbing in between Gine and Chi-Chi. "Sorry I'm late ladies. Did I miss any good girl talk?"

Launch sweetly smiled. "Chi-Chi wants to try and get pregnant again!"

Panchy put her hands on her cheek. "Oh Chi-Chi! Doll! You should absolutely do that! We could have all of the babies' birthday parties together! That would be adorable!"

As Panchy started to get going, Gine turned in the tub and smiled at Bardock. She winked and mouthed a silent thank you at him. Bardock rolled his eyes and reopened the paper. "Nope. Not gettin' outta this chair.

 _Across the resort, in a shaded beach cabana..._

Krillin and Yamcha both sat in the shade next to Master Roshi. The two of them seemed down, and their moods weren't being helped by the old pervert and Oolong glancing at unaware beach babes through binoculars. Puar gently patted her owner on the leg. "Come on, Yamcha! Try to have some fun!"

The two warriors sighed. Oolong scolded them. "Why don't the two of you quit sighing and start looking! It's an all-you-can-peep hot chick buffet out there!"

Roshi loudly chuckled, twisting her binoculars to zoom in. Krillin spoke sullenly. "I really don't wanna just look at girls for this entire trip. I would like to get together with one while we're here..."

Yamcha nodded. "Same man, same. After what happened with Bulma, I could use a little bit of something in my life..."

Roshi continued to look, but a few more sullen sighs finally broke his concentration. He turned to his sad-sack students with an annoyed scowl on his face and shouted at them. "You two and your attitudes are ruinin' my fun! And I ain't lettin' that happen!"

Roshi turned again, looking through the binoculars until he came upon the sight of a lone female on the beach. She had everything Roshi desired: clear skin, long hair, massive rack. She was perfect. Roshi turned to Yamcha and Krillin and shouted at them. "You two! I have an assignment for you as your instructor!"

They both perked up. Roshi jabbed his finger towards the blue-haired bombshell and shouted. "If you're ever going to land a sexy lady, the two of you need to go out and shoot your shot. My assignment for you today is to compete for that lady's attention! You aren't allowed back in the room tonight unless one of you is bringing her back with you!"

Krillin was exasperated. "But Master Roshi..."

Roshi shouted. "No buts! Not unless it's that finely-shaped, perfectly round butt I just pointed at! Now get going!"

Krillin seemed uncomfortable. Yamcha stood, pumping his fists. "Master Roshi is right, Krillin!"

Krillin flinched. "He is?!"

Yamcha nodded. "Just sitting here and feeling sorry for ourselves isn't gonna net us any chicks, dude! We gotta go and put ourselves out there! Otherwise we'll never get laid again!"

Krillin gasped. "N-Never again?!"

Yamcha shook his head. "Never again!"

Krillin stood, looking more eager to head out. "But I wanna get laid!"

Yamcha shouted. "Same! So, let's do it bro!"

Krillin nodded. And then he and Yamcha both went running from the cabana, shouting at the top of their lungs. " _LET'S GO GET LAID!_ "

Sitting in a nearby cabana, Chiaotzu sat stunned. After a brief pause, he went back to licking his ice cream and turned to his partner. "Tien, you okay?"

Tien's face was bright red. "That's why I don't do relationships. That was shameful. _Utterly, completely shameful._ "

Tien stood and turned back towards the resort cabins. "I'm going to go back to our room and do some exercises. Mostly so I don't have to watch Krillin and Yamcha embarrass themselves. Try to have a nice day, Chiaotzu."

Chiaotzu smiled. "Okay Tien! I'll come get you when it's time for dinner!"

 _Meanwhile, in the resort buffet..._

Horrified restaurant staff could only watch on in horror as tray-after-tray of expensive food disappeared into the whirlwind of flailing limbs and smacking sounds in front of them. A massive beef roast was sat onto the table and it disappeared so fast that the waitress who delivered it couldn't help but faint from shock.

Dr. Briefs and Ox-King both sat at a table nearby, enjoying a light lunch and staring on in shock at what was happening before them. Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz had been hunched over that table for nearly an hour now, inhaling anything that came within their field of vision. Vegeta stuck his fork into a pot of spaghetti and started sucking in entire waves of noodles. Raditz was shucking oysters with his bare hands. Goku picked up and entire roasted octopus and shoved it, headfirst, into his gaping mouth.

Dr. Briefs shakily spoke. "I c-can't bring myself to look away..."

Ox-King was resigned. "This is nearly every night at Chi-Chi's house..."

 _Back at the beach..._

Gohan happily hummed a song as he sat there, filling his bucket with sand. Building sandcastles fascinated Gohan, amusing the boy to no end. Once he was done shoveling his sand, he reached over and handed his little shovel to the equally as amused Mr. Popo. Mr. Popo chuckled. "Thank you, my little friend~!"

As Gohan and Popo built their castles together, Piccolo and Kami both sat under some nearby shady trees. It was a silent affair, neither of them having much to say to one another. Kami had peacefully fallen asleep on top of the shady sand, snoring and enjoying a well-deserved break. Piccolo was hovering in the air, stuck in a deep, meditative state.

Gohan sighed as he finished that last tower on his castle. He examined his work and then nodded. "It looks good, but I think I need some shells."

He picked up his bucket and turned towards the sea. "Would you like some shells, Mr. Popo?"

Mr. Popo smiled. "I will go and pick some out when I'm ready. Thank you though."

Gohan picked up his bucket and walked to the ocean. He stepped in knee deep and started digging around in the water. After a few moments, he managed to pull out a medium-sized conch. Gohan continued to fish around until, to his surprise, and unfamiliar voice called out to him. "Hey little guy!"

Gohan flinched and turned, seeing a blue-haired young woman that vaguely resembled Bulma running up behind him. She smiled as she came to a stop. "Hey! You need some help? I'm the new lifeguard for this section of the beach, so I'm here and ready and able to help out anyone that needs me!"

She saluted with a ditzy smile on her face. Gohan smiled back. "I'd love some help. My name is Gohan~!"

She smiled wide. "Hi Gohan! My name is Maron!"

At once, Maron knelt down in the water and helped Gohan dig for seashells. The two of them chuckled as the waves splashed at them. As they searched for shells, neither of them was aware of the pairs of eyes spying on them. In the distance, Yamcha and Krillin both watched as Maron and Gohan splashed around. This was their chance!

Rushing and fumbling over each other, Yamcha and Krillin both came to a skidding halt on either side of Gohan. They shouted in near unison. "Hey Gohan!"

Gohan flinched. "H-Hey Krillin! Hey Yamcha!"

Maron smiled. "Oh! You two know this little guy?"

Krillin nodded. "Yeah!"

Yamcha nervously laughed. "Practically known him since the day he was born!"

Gohan mumbled. "Th-That's not exact-"

Yamcha cut him off, shooting Gohan a small glare. " _SINCE THE DAY HE WAS BORN!_ "

Maron laughed. "Aw! That's so nice! Bringing him to the beach and all that! You both seem like good people!"

Yamcha nodded. "Uh-huh!"

Krillin playfully slapped Gohan on the back. "Yup!"

Gohan seemed uncomfortable. He sat there in the middle of Maron, Yamcha, and Krillin as the two men chatted up the helpful young woman. His bucket was overflowing with shells after only a few seconds. Gohan looked around, looking for a way out of this, and was thankfully saved by a kind intervention.

A green arm forced its way into the situation and grabbed Gohan's wrist. Krillin and Yamcha both looked up and cowered under Piccolo's disgusted glare. Maron was still blissfully unaware. "Oh! Do you know him too, little guy?"

Gohan half-smiled. "Y-Yeah! This is my friend, Mr. Piccolo..."

Maron smiled and shot a thumbs up. "Okay! Well, it was nice collecting shells with you! Stay safe and have a good day!"

Gohan nodded. "Y-You too!"

Piccolo set the boy on the ground and the two of them turned and walked away, leaving Maron, Yamcha, and Krillin crouched in the water. As the two of them walked off, Maron stood. "Well, I better get back to my post~"

Krillin called after her. "W-Wait a second!"

Maron turned, looking confused. Krillin chuckled. "How about I buy you a drink? It's pretty hot out here!"

Yamcha chimed in. "And I'll buy you an ice cream!"

Maron paused for a second. But then she warmly smiled. "You're both so nice! I'd love to hang out if you're free!"

Yamcha and Krillin both cheered in celebration, following behind Maron and trying to cozy up to her. As they did that, Gohan and Piccolo returned over to Kami and Mr. Popo. Gohan smiled. "Thank you, Mr. Piccolo..."

Piccolo nodded. "Yeah. No problem. Just...stay away from those two. Never been happier to be a Namekian. Not having to put up with that romantic crap...""

Gohan looked up at him. "Are you not going to stay here?"

Piccolo shook his head. "No. I want some solitude. I'm going to find a waterfall to meditate next to or something."

Piccolo turned again, his cape flourishing in the salty breeze. As he walked off, Gohan went back to his work on his sandcastle. He affixed seashells all across the sides of it until it was fully decorated. Gohan planted his fists into his sides and admired his work. It was perfect!

As Gohan admired his work, he heard three familiar voices behind him. The boy turned to see his father, his uncle, and Vegeta all walked away from the restaurant with satisfied looks on their faces. Goku pounded his fists together. "Trainin' time! Trainin' time! Beach time! Trainin' time!"

Raditz sighed and scratched the back of his head. "You sure are pumped."

Vegeta had a snide smirk on his face. The three of them continued towards the ocean, only to have their path cut off. Goku, Raditz, and Vegeta came to a stop and glanced down at an eager-looking Gohan. The boy smiled. "You guys are going to train?!"

Goku smiled, chuckling. "Heck yeah we are! Wanna come?"

Gohan jumped up. "Yeah! It sounds fun!"

Vegeta chuckled. "So, the brat wishes to tag along, eh? That's fine. I might as well get some practice in training with a mere child before my exceptional heir is born!"

Raditz groaned. " _Can you not be you for five minutes...?_ "

Goku smirked. "It's a shame Piccolo isn't around to join us. I thought I saw him around here earlier..."

Gohan was excited. He blew off Vegeta's normal brand of biting sarcasm and happily followed the three Saiyans as they marched towards the ocean for some good, old-fashioned underwater training.

 _Over at the private pools..._

Wrapped in a fresh, crisp robe, Chi-Chi watched her husband and her son march towards the ocean with Raditz and Vegeta. She took a bite from her fruit parfait and happily sighed. "My boys..."

Chi-Chi pressed her hand to her flat, toned stomach and started thinking hard. Everyone around her had someone else now. And they were all leaving her in the dust. So maybe...maybe it really was time to make another baby?

As she sat there, thinking hard, Gine sat down next to her. "You shouldn't hide your feelings."

Chi-Chi turned to her mother-in-law. Gine smiled. "We both know how straightforward Kakarot is. If you don't make your desires known to him, chances are he won't catch on. He's trying...but he's still not developed the most heart romantic radar..."

Chi-Chi glanced over at Bulma and Launch, both enjoying a shoulder massage. And then she nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right..."

 _A bit later, under the sea..._

The underwater training had reached an even higher level of intensity as the four Saiyans tried to give each other the best workout possible. Vegeta and Goku were clearly the two strongest there, much to the consternation of Raditz. The older brother blocked a punch from his little brother and his arm instantly went numb.

But, as much as their strength threw him off, the real thing that surprised Raditz was just how strong Gohan had become. Raditz still held a lead in power level over his little nephew, but the supposed gap between them was much smaller than Raditz had ever thought it would become.

Raditz managed to push Gohan back, but was instantly beset by Goku.

Gohan, meanwhile, was drawn into a clash with Vegeta. The Saiyan Prince had no problem hitting the smaller child as hard as he could and did it with a smile on his face. Gohan wasn't going to let that stop him though. Dodging a cheap shot from Vegeta, Gohan returned the favor with a hefty kick to the gut. Vegeta went flying back and Gohan gave chase. He charged a blast to hit Vegeta with, but was immediately caught by surprise. Vegeta raked his hand through the underwater sand, with all his strength, threw the muck right into Gohan's eyes. The boy stopped to wipe his face and Vegeta hammered him with a punch to the side of the head.

Gohan sailed backwards, just barely avoiding the hitting Raditz. He wiped his eyes and flinched when he saw that his father, his uncle, and Vegeta were all charging blasts. Gohan also charged a blast in response and the four of them fired upon one another. The blasts clashed in-between the four combatants and resulted in a massive underwater explosion.

 _Back on dry land..._

A massive geyser exploded from the surface of the ocean and Gohan, Goku, Vegeta, and Raditz were blown sky high. The four of them landed on the beach, followed by salty rain. Goku instantly shot up and cheered. "Whew! That was great! Good training everyone!"

Raditz groaned. Vegeta shook his hair and his tail dry. Gohan coughed up a lungful of water.

Goku stood and had a nice stretch and then turned to his son. "Hey Gohan! Wanna go tail fishing?"

Gohan stood and smiled. "That sounds fun~"

Vegeta was confused. "You use your tails to fish?!"

As the Saiyans regathered themselves, they were quickly approached by an unknown person from the side. "Hey! You four!"

Raditz turned to the guy. "And who might you be?"

The guy smirked. "I'm the head lifeguard for this beach! And I gotta say, you guys are impressive! You got the muscles and I can see a true love of the beach in your eyes! So, I have an offer for the four of you!"

Raditz looked to the others and they all shrugged. He turned back to the head lifeguard. "Go on."

The lifeguard pulled out a flyer from his jacket and handed it to Raditz: **Big Beach Volleyball Tournament! Sign Up Today!**

The lifeguard smirked. "It's a tradition on this beach. Every month we gather the best dudes on this beach to get together and play some friggin' volleyball!"

He started to wildly gesticulate. "Three-man teams! First-to-eight points! Tournament-style rounds! Grand prize is a sick-looking trophy, a massive cash reward, and an all-you-can-eat dinner extravaganza for the winners!

Goku, Gohan, and Raditz's eyes all lit up. Gohan wanted that trophy. Raditz wanted that money. And Goku wanted that food. Without a second thought, all three of them shouted. " _We're in!_ "

The lifeguard chuckled. "Hell yeah!"

He reached into his jacket and pulled out a paper application. "Fill out your names onto this paper and come up with a cool team name. Just turn it into the any lifeguard you happen to see and you'll be ready to go!"

The lifeguard ran off to find more teams to recruit. Goku, Gohan, and Raditz gather around the sign-up form, looking excited at the prospect. As the three of them began to mumble to one another about what they planned to do with the prize, Vegeta glowered behind them. "Hey!"

All three of them jumped, turning and glancing back at Vegeta. The Prince looked angry. " _Are you really just going to run off and leave me standing here?_ "

A moment of silence. Then, Raditz spoke up. "Yes."

And then Raditz walked away without another word. Gohan followed soon afterward, still annoyed that Vegeta threw sand into his eyes. Goku nervously chuckled, waving as he followed. "Sorry Vegeta! We, uh, we gotta go learn how volleyball actually works~"

A vein popped out of Vegeta's head as he glared at the three of them. "How dare they?! Performing such a slight against me, the Prince of all Saiyans!"

Vegeta gripped his fists and glared towards the cabanas where everyone was staying. "I will crush them!"

And then Vegeta flew off, a plan clearly in mind.

 _A short time later..._

After some time had passed, the volleyball tournament soon began!

Two volleyball courts had been set up for all of the teams to play on. Two brackets had been made and one bracket each would take a court, with the finalists from each side meeting for the final game. Goku, Gohan, and Raditz stood near the bleachers, stretching and prepping themselves. They had gathered the basics of the games from videos they had watched on Raditz's phone. They felt like they had this in the bag.

The rounds began and they seemed to go by fairly quickly whenever the Saiyans were involved. Bulma, Chi-Chi, Gine, Launch, and Panchy had all gathered to watch Goku, Gohan, and Raditz stomp the competition. Each game involving them seemed to go by in a flash as point-after-point was near instantly won.

It would have seemed like an effortless sweep for "Team Son Family" if not for the racket coming from the other side of the bleachers. There was a team over there that was winning nearly as quickly as the Saiyans on this side were. Raditz grumbled. "Dammit. I was hoping that this would be effortless..."

Gohan gave him a pat on the back. "It's okay, Uncle Raditz. We're still going to win. We're faster and stronger than any normal human team."

Goku, however, was pumped. "Man! I was hoping there would be a challenge in this tournament! That sounds so exciting!"

The head lifeguard called out. "Team Son Family to the court! It's time for the semi-finals match!'

The three of them nodded and headed onto the field, ready for another quick victory.

 _Meanwhile, on the other side of the court..._

Maron blew her whistle to signal that the semi-finals on her side could start. She sat there watching, a happy smile on her face. "Jeezums! I love volleyball~"

As she watched, Maron was approached once again by her two hanger-ons. Krillin and Yamcha didn't care to even glance at the volleyball court, instead approaching Maron with more treats. Krillin yelled up to her. "Maron! I got you a sun hat to protect yourself from the Sun!"

Yamcha shoved him out of the way. "And I got you a nice frozen drink to cool you down!"

Maron cheerily called out. "Nice spike, green guy!"

She turned to Krillin and Yamcha and giggled. "Oh, thank you! You two are so nice!"

Maron took her drink and hat with a warm smile, still totally unaware that these two were trying to make her date them. She turned back to the court just in time to see the final two points be earned. She announced into her megaphone. "And with that final score, it looks like Team Prince has made it to the finals! Let's all hear it for Team Prince!"

 _On the finals court..._

After a bit more time passed, Team Son Family was called back to the court. Goku, Gohan, and Raditz all lined up on their side of the net and did their stretched, waiting for whomever their opponents might be to show up. Raditz flinched when he heard the head lifeguard call out the team name of their opponents. "Now calling Team Prince to the court!"

Goku gasped. "Team Prince?!"

From behind the bleachers, Vegeta came marching forth. The Prince had a satisfied smirk on his face as he stared down his fellow Saiyans. "Kakarot. Kakarot's brat. Raditz."

Raditz sighed. "You went and gathered a volleyball team just to be petty? Really?"

Goku was confused. "Do you even know how to play volleyball, Vegeta?"

Vegeta chuckled. "I learned from one of my lackeys."

Joining him from behind the bleachers, Tien and Piccolo both stepped onto the court. Neither of them looked all that pleased to be standing on the same side as Vegeta. Gohan called out. "Mr. Piccolo?! Why would you join Vegeta's team?!"

Piccolo shrugged. "I was bored. So, I thought it might be fun to challenge worthy opponents to a different sort of fight."

Raditz face-palmed. " _You have got to be kidding me..._ "

Goku seemed excited about this entire prospect, giddily looking from Vegeta, to Piccolo, and then to Tien. "Why did you join up with them Tien?!"

Tien sighed. "I thought this might be a good way to improve my muscle reflexes for a technique that I have been trying to master."

He blushed and coughed into his fist. "...also, I enjoy a good game of volleyball..."

Vegeta gripped his fist. "Who cares why these peons are here?! The point is that the three of us are going to crush you! You will not be allowed to walk away with the trophy or the rewards that come with it!"

The head lifeguard shouted into his megaphone. "Okay then! _I'd say both of these teams are fired up! So, let's get this game of volleyball started!_ "

Maron pulled a whistle out of her cleavage and blew into it and then she served the ball. All at once, to the shock of Team Son Family, Vegeta flash-jumped right next to the ball and slapped it as hard as he could. Goku dove into the sand and just barely got it back into the air for Gohan to slap back to the other side.

It did no good, however. Piccolo raced towards the ball and passed it to Tien who knocked it high into the air. The three-eyed martial artist leapt up after it and gave it a gentle smack, allowing it to slowly speed back down. Tien smirked as he watched, seeing that Raditz had taken the bait. Raditz ran up to the net and prepare to spike, but Vegeta was already there to greet him. The Prince was faster and stronger than Raditz, so the elder brother had no way to defend himself from the heavy spike the Prince delivered. The ball went sailing past Raditz and smashed into the sand on Team Son Family's court, creating a small crater.

The head lifeguard shouted. "And that's two points for Team Prince! Three more of those and they win the game!"

Goku and Gohan regrouped with Raditz. They stared at the crater Vegeta had made and then back at the Prince himself. This was not going to be a fun time for the three of them.

Goku dug the ball out of the sand, it was their team's duty to serve for this round. He looked around at his foes. Vegeta was strongest. Piccolo wasn't far behind. He'd probably have the best shot at getting through Tien. Goku served the ball gently, sending it sailing in Tien's direction. Tien scowled. "Did you serve to me because you think I'm an easy target?!"

Tien smacked the ball and stopped its forward momentum. He passed it over to Vegeta who smacked it high into the air. Tien leapt up after it and spiked it back down, far behind Team Son Family where they couldn't get to it in time. Goku grumbled. "Dammit..."

The head lifeguard chuckled. "Well would you look at that! Team Prince has scored again!"

Tien brushed some sand off of his shoulder. "I refuse to be picked out as the weak link. I might not match you in power, but you will never beat me in this game when it comes to technique, Goku."

This was bad. Not even five minutes into the game and Team Son Family was already halfway towards defeat. It was their job to serve again. They tried their best to come up with some sort of plan to score, but the members of Vegeta's team were all steely focused. Raditz served and Gohan attempted a sneaky scoring attempt and launched the ball, but Vegeta managed to pass it to Piccolo, who spiked it back down and scored two more points for Team Prince. The sheer force of the ball making impact sent Goku and Raditz crashing onto their butts.

Gohan glared through the net at Vegeta, who smirked at the boy. "Is there a problem?"

The boy looked furious. Vegeta something laughed at him. "Why don't you regroup with your pathetic team and get ready to taste defeat?"

Team Son Family regrouped on their side, it being their duty to serve again. Things were not looking good for them in this match.

 _In the bleachers..._

Bulma sighed and rolled her eyes, sipping from a bottle of water. "Damn it all..."

Chi-Chi looked unhappy. "Vegeta needs to calm down. He's taking all of this way to seriously!"

The woman all sat there, observing the game playing out before them. Gine shook her head. "That Vegeta just can't take it easy, can he?"

Bulma handed Launch her water bottle to take a sip. She grumbled. "If he wins this stupid tournament, he's going to be totally unbearable for the rest of this trip!"

Bulma shouted at the top of her lungs. "Try harder you guys! Come on! The game isn't over yet! You can still do this!"

 _Back on the court..._

It was Gohan's turn to serve the ball. He was still glaring through the net at Vegeta. Vegeta had his arms crossed confidently over his chest. "Come on now, I don't have all day. Just get it over with and try not to make things too easy for us, boy!"

Gohan gripped his fist tight, holding the ball up in his left hand. He nodded to his father and uncle and then served the ball as hard as he could, directly above Vegeta. Vegeta smirked and leapt into the air after the ball. As soon as he did that, Goku and Raditz rushed towards the net. But, Vegeta was counting on this. "Fools! You've left your rear totally defenseless!"

Vegeta gently tapped the ball over to the awaiting Piccolo, who reared back and prepared to spike with all of his might. The Namekian's hand made contact with the ball, he was going to spike it down to Tien who would score the winning point. But, as Piccolo's hand made contact with the ball, something unexpected happened. A surging flash of energy erupted from the ball and engulfed both Piccolo and Vegeta. Tien stared up in confusion. "What the hell?!"

The ball came falling back down and, taking advantage of the confusion, Gohan leapt up and spiked it hard, sending the ball crashing into the sand and scoring Team Son Family their first two points.

Vegeta and Piccolo both landed with a hard thud, settling into a heap. Tien ran up to check on his team as Gohan stood there, a victorious smirk on his face. The smirk faded when Piccolo and Vegeta both stood and glared at him, Piccolo's right forearm having been totally blown off. Gohan nervously chuckled. "S-Sorry Mr. Piccolo..."

Piccolo threw his arm out and regrew his missing appendage. As he did that, Goku and Raditz ran up to Gohan. Goku seemed unhappy. "Gohan! Come on! Not only was that dangerous, but we shouldn't cheat to win! We have to play fair in games like this!"

Gohan was taken aback. "Why should I?! Vegeta has been cheating this entire game!"

Goku and Raditz both flinched. Raditz glared over at the Prince. "What?!"

Vegeta had a wry smirk on his face. "Was I cheating? I don't quite remember anything like that~"

Gohan pointed to the ball in Tien's hands. "Every time he hit the ball, he loaded it with a small enough amount of energy that you wouldn't notice if you weren't paying attention. And then he was release it whenever we tried to stop the ball from landing to throw us off!"

Raditz narrowed his eyes at the Prince. Vegeta winked and shrugged. "What can I say? You call it cheating, _I call it winning!_ "

Goku frowned. "That's such a bad sport thing to do!"

Raditz was far blunter. "Smarmy, two-faced bastard!"

Vegeta chuckled. "All true. But I'm winning the match, aren't I?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah, I guess you are..."

And then he smiled back at Vegeta and shouted at the top of his lungs, unleashing some of his power. "...so I guess this is how we play from now on, huh?"

Raditz and Gohan both powered up as well. Vegeta chuckled. "You're only going to embarrass yourselves!"

And then he unleashed more of his power. Piccolo and Tien both looked to one another and Tien sighed. "I'm too far into this to lose now."

Piccolo nodded. "Same."

And then the two of them loosed their power as well. With auras surging on both sides of the field, the real game had begun. And it was Team Prince's turn to serve! And then all hell broke loose!

With energy thrown into the mix, the volleyball game was taken to a much different level of play. Vegeta served the ball, coated in his own energy, but that serve was quickly countered by Goku and Raditz dispelling it with energy of their own. Raditz served it back, smacking it towards Vegeta's face with his tail.

Vegeta blocked the ball with his elbow and passed it to Piccolo, who smacked it sky-high and stretched his arm up after it. Goku called out. "Oh no you don't!"

He tried to leap up to hit the ball, but he was stuck to the ground. Goku looked down and saw a shining energy chain around his ankle. "What?!"

With a sharp yank, both Gohan and Goku were brought to the ground. Vegeta wickedly smiled up into the air at Raditz. Raditz sneered. Vegeta responded to that by throwing a playful energy blast towards his weaker counterpart. Raditz's eyes widened, but then he smacked the blast and dispelled it. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Vegeta leapt back and gave Gohan and Goku one final drag. "It's called a distraction!"

Raditz flinched. He looked back over to the ball and saw that Tien was right there, ready to spike. He snarled. "Dammit..."

Raditz didn't want to do this, but the idea of letting Vegeta win was far more disturbing in his mind. So, with a heavy hand full of remorse, Raditz fired his paralyzing Saturday Crush towards the unsuspecting Tien and hit him dead on. Tien was stunned midair and Raditz raced over, spiking the ball down and scoring two more points for Team Son Family.

The game continued on like this for a while, with each side getting gradually less playful and more blood-lusted. The ball was kept in limbo for nearly 10 minutes as both sides continued to make split-second saves and mach speed spikes. Soon enough, the stalemate was cracked by one successive chain of score attempts. Piccolo tried to score on Raditz, who managed to bounce it back to Tien who managed to spike it at Gohan who managed to launch it back at Piccolo. The four of them were down from the sheer force of making contact with the ball and it was down to Goku and Vegeta. The two rivals met at the center of the net and smirked at each other. They both brought their hands down and it looked like Vegeta was going to be just a bit faster. Until, in a flash of gold, Goku got the speed boost he needed and scored 2 more points for Team Son Family.

Goku, freshly turned Super Saiyan, landed and he and Vegeta glared at one another. Vegeta chuckled. "I see...so it's truly a no limits match now, huh? We're six and six and the next score wins..."

Vegeta responded to Goku's transformation with one of his own, the roaring fires of Super Saiyan power raging from the Prince. Piccolo and Tien both stood back up and powered up at well, Piccolo with his full Namekian strength and Tien with his Kaioken Times 25, his highest mastered form.

Raditz was unnerved, but responded with his Kaioken Times 30, his maximum power at the time. Gohan, overwhelmed by all of the high power levels surrounding him, tried to power up to assert himself as well, although it was pretty quickly swallowed up by the other five.

And then, the turmoil started up fresh. As improbable as scoring was on the last round, this time it seemed truly impossible. The six warriors were all moving at such high-levels of speed that they were almost incomprehensible to the gathered crowd. This was it, the game point of the match. This would decide it all!

With one errant strike, Goku managed to send the ball soaring into the air. He smirked and tried to give chase, but was blocked at the pass by Tien. "Hold it right there, Goku!"

Piccolo sneered and tried to leap up after the ball, but was cut off by Raditz. "Not so fast, Piccolo!"

This left Gohan and Vegeta to both chase after the ball simultaneously. Gohan had managed to get a head start by springboarding off of Raditz's back, but Vegeta was quite fast as well. They both raced higher and higher into the sky until the people on the ground below looked like mere ants.

Gohan and Vegeta glared at one another and the Prince smirked. "So high in the air...no one can see anything~"

Gohan flinched. "Wha-"

Vegeta charged a blast in his hand, a truly massive blast, and heaved it at Gohan. The boy yelped and, reacting on reflex, smacked the blast away and sent it crashing back towards the island. "V-Vegeta! That's too dangerous, why-"

Gohan was cut off by Vegeta sucker-punching him in the face and then flying higher after the ball. Gohan growled and gave chase.

 _Meanwhile, by the pools..._

The pool staff all looked up into the sky and screamed in horror as what looked like a comet came sailing down from the sky. One of the pool cleaners watched the trajectory and saw that it was going to collide with somebody. He called out. "Hey dude! You gotta move!"

The blast moved too quickly though, hitting the cranky old man sitting under the tree and sending him and his seat flying towards the cabanas.

Bardock was unfazed as he and his chair went flying through the air, flipping a page in his newspaper. "No sir. Not gettin' outta this chair."

 _Back in the sky..._

The brawl between Gohan and Vegeta continued the higher they flew. The ball had finally slowed in its ascent and now the two Saiyans were just fighting to see who would get the honor of spiking it back down. Vegeta was refusing to pull a single punch, smashing his fist into Gohan's cheek, kneeing him in the stomach twice, and headbutting him for good measure. He double fist smashed Gohan back down, but the boy was able to stop himself from plummeting pretty quickly.

In response, Gohan rocketed back into the air and nailed Vegeta where he knew it would hurt, smashing the top of his head right between the Saiyan Prince's legs. Vegeta doubled over in pain and Gohan tried to leap past him, but the Prince managed to snag the boy's tail and fling him across the sky.

Vegeta coughed and smirked. "You need to give it a rest, boy. You aren't strong enough to wrestle that ball away from me! And you never will be! So just give it up!"

Gohan was breathing heavy, both from fatigue and the lighter levels of oxygen as high up as they were. But he smirked at Vegeta. "I might not be a Super Saiyan, but I have one thing that you don't!"

Vegeta lunged at Gohan, fist drawn. "And that would be?!"

Gohan fanned his hands in front of his face and shouted. "SOLAR FLARE!"

The bright flash of light seared into Vegeta's eyes and the Prince snarled in pain. Gohan smirked and charged at Vegeta. "I'm willing to learn from watching others!"

Gohan took off, soaring past Vegeta and up towards the ball. Blinded, Vegeta was furious. He turned and gave chase to Gohan's energy signature, blindly swinging to try and hit the ball before the boy. His fist collided with something and Vegeta smirked. Slowly, his vision unblurred and he came upon a shocking sight. Gohan had blocked Vegeta's punch with the bottom of his foot, and he was holding onto the ball. Gohan chuckled. "You lose, Vegeta!"

And then, Gohan put his foot down, right onto Vegeta's face. The Prince was sent flying and Gohan, aiming carefully, spiked the ball back down. Wanting to make sure that Vegeta couldn't stop it in time, Gohan wreathed the ball with energy before he sent it on its way. " _Masenko Spike!_ "

Back on the ground...

Goku, Raditz, Piccolo, and Tien all stared up into the sky and watched as the ball came plummeting down at terminal velocity. There was nothing that any of them could do to stop the ball without being injured themselves, so all four simply dived out of the way. The impact sent a flurry of sand flying across the beach. Once the dust cleared, the head lifeguard looked into his binoculars and gasped. "Oh man! We have a winner!"

Gohan descended from the sky, followed by Vegeta. They had both wiped most of the blood from their faces on the way down. They both gathered around the ball and were soon joined by their teammates.

The ball had landed just on the other side of the line, making for a close victory.

Goku, Raditz, and Gohan all smiled wide and jumped in cheerful celebration. They had won!

The entire crowd cheered and clapped for such an enjoyable game as the trophy and the cash prize were wheeled out. All of those in the know were happy for the victory, but they were also surprised to see that Gohan had managed to outmatch Vegeta. The boy was growing into a man before their very eyes.

Gohan held the trophy on his shoulder with a smile and walked over to the pouting Vegeta. Vegeta glared down at him and Gohan glared back. But then, he offered Vegeta a handshake. The Prince didn't respond at first. But, after a few tense seconds, he held his hand out and shook the boy's hand. It was a hard-fought battle between the two warriors.

And now, with the game over and the prizes won, the celebration feast could commence!

 _Later that evening..._

Dinner that night was excellent. A full, sprawling feast was spread out for everyone in attendance to enjoy. Both teams from the finals were all gathered around one table, eating to their heart's content. Even Piccolo, although he did not partake of the food, enjoyed a nice glass of sparkling juice. Everyone was there, except for the conspicuously absent Bardock.

As everyone around the table stuffed their faces, Maron sat off to the side and laughed with her fellow lifeguards. Krillin and Yamcha approached as she finished off her soup. Krillin was nervous. "H-Hey, Maron..."

Maron turned to see them and smiled. "Oh! Hey guys! These are my new friends I was telling you all about. They're both so nice to me~"

The two of them chuckled as Maron pulled out two chairs. "You guys wanna join us? I know the main table is kinda hectic. Those guys can just inhale food like crazy~"

Yamcha nodded. "Well, um, yeah. Of course. But...uh...first..."

Krillin just blurted it out. "We were wondering if you'd like to date one of us!"

Maron's face went blank for a second. One of the other lifeguards at the table snorted, but she glared and made him stop. Maron looked back to Yamcha and Krillin and sighed, a gentle smile on her face. "You're both really nice. Like really, really nice! But..."

The head lifeguard marched over to the table, two glasses of red wine in hand. "Another hard-workin' day babe! I brought us some wine to share!"

Maron took her glass and empathetically smiled. "I'm so sorry. If I had realized that you two were hitting on me, I would've said something sooner."

Krillin and Yamcha's shoulders both slumped. Maron stood and gave them each a peck on the cheek. "My boyfriend isn't the jealous type though. So, we can still be friends if you guys would like~"

The two martial artists both sighed and accepted that offer. They exchanged phone numbers with both Maron and her boyfriend and promised to keep in touch, and then the sadly walked away. The two of them took a seat near Master Roshi, and the old pervert walked over to them. "Rejected, huh?"

Krillin and Yamcha both silently nodded. Roshi sighed. "Aw well. You know what they saw boys, there's plenty more busty fish in the sea~"

Roshi chuckled and pulled out his binoculars. "We'll spy you two a couple foxes tomorrow~"

The old hermit went back to his table, downing another glass with Oolong and then getting slapped in the face when he tried to touch a waitress. Krillin and Yamcha both glanced towards each other. Krillin spoke up. "Master Roshi's not the best source of dating advice. I think...I think we should just stop for a bit. Maybe, if we wait long enough, we'll both find the right girl..."

Yamcha sadly sighed, a hollow chuckled coming from his mouth. "Maybe..."

Meanwhile, back at the main table, Chi-Chi was having a nice night. She was sat next to her husband and son and watched on as they enjoyed themselves. In her heart, Chi-Chi now knew for sure what she had to do. She looked up to the clock, realizing how late it was getting, and stood. Without anyone noticing, Chi-Chi sneaked away. She had some preparations to do.

 _Later that night..._

Goku stepped back into his, Gohan, and Chi-Chi's cabana with a full stomach and a smile on his face. That banquet was easily the best meal he had ever enjoyed that Chi-Chi didn't have a hand in making. In his feeding frenzy, however, Goku had managed to lose track of both Chi-Chi and Gohan. He stepped into their cabana and called out. "Gohan! Chi-Chi! You guys here?"

From the shadows on the other side of the room, Chi-Chi spoke up. "I told Gohan that he could go and camp out with Piccolo and Tien for the evening. Those two should keep a pretty good eye on him, don't you think?"

Goku turned towards the shadows and smiled. "Yeah~ They're both good with kids, as far as I know. That sucks though, I would've liked to go camping..."

Chi-Chi shook her head. "No Goku. I need you here."

Goku was confused. "Why?"

The flame from a lighter flicked to life and reached over, lighting the wick of a nearby candle. Several more were lit until Chi-Chi came fully into view. Her hair was down, ebony flows cascading over her pale shoulders and framing her gorgeous face. Chi-Chi was clad in a simple, warmly-colored autumn kimono. She smiled. "I want us to have a little time to ourselves on this vacation."

Goku blushed a bit, a smile on his face. "W-Wow. You sure are pretty Chi-Chi~"

Chi-Chi giggled. "Thank you~"

She reached down, unfolding her kimono and throwing it off to the side, displaying herself for Goku to see. "I'd like to ask you for something, Goku..."

Goku was frozen in place, staring in awe at his wife. "Y-Yeah...?"

Chi-Chi spoke with a gentle, cheery voice. "I'd like to have another baby. Would you help me do that, please?"

Goku was caught a bit off-guard at first. But then he smiled, rapidly nodding his head. "W-Whatever makes you happy Chi-Chi. I would love to~"

Chi-Chi beamed. "I'm so happy to hear you say that~ Now, please, shut that lamp next to you off..."

But then, her voice dropped a register into a deeper, more sensual tone. The beckoned Goku forward with her index finger. " _...and come here._ "

Goku slowly stepped forward, shutting the lamp off as he was ordered along the way. But, once he was within arm's reach, Chi-Chi's hand shot out and pulled him down on the bed. The force of Goku landing blew out candles, leaving only the moonlight to fill the room.

Goku chuckled as Chi-Chi literally tore his shirt off. And so, their night commenced.

 _In Bardock and Gine's suite..._

Gine climbed into her bed and sighed, pulling the blanket over herself. Before she laid her head down, she glared over to the opposite side of the room and called out. "Will you stop being difficult and please just come to bed already?"

Still sitting in his chair, sitting atop the broken rubble from the hole it crashed through the ceiling, Bardock sighed. He tossed his newspaper away and grumbled. "Fine."

Gine laid down and closed her eyes as Bardock climbed into bed. "You're a jerk."

Bardock sighed. "I know. I'm sorry. I love you."

Gine draped her arm over his chest and pulled him close. "I love you too."

He sighed and yawned. "I'll participate in some vacation crap tomorrow."

Gine nodded. "Good."

The two of them laid there, slowly drifting off. But then, certain sounds became apparent. The sound of wood thrashing against wood. And vague moaning noises from the next cabana over. Bardock's eyes cracked open and he looked annoyed. "Is that Kakarot and-"

Gine interrupted. " _I can't hear anything over the sound of me trying to go to sleep._ "

After another minute, and a vaguely heard sharp scream, Gine smirked. "We're going to be swimming in grandkids before long, you know? If what they're doing works out..."

Gine yawned. "We'll have at least four, if you count Vegeta's unborn son."

Bardock nodded. "Yeah..."

After a moment, Bardock spoke up again. "You don't want another kid, do you?"

Gine's eyes snapped open. She turned Bardock's face towards hers and smiled, speaking gently. "Hell no. Not even a little. I'm in my fifties, you're in your fifties. So, no. I'd rather fistfight Frieza."

Bardock sighed in relief. " _Oh, thank God!_ "

Gine sighed and winked. "I did have Bulma snip me though. Like, the day after you came back to Earth I had her fix that little problem up~"

Bardock smirked. "Oh, so...are you implying something here?"

Gine chuckled and turned off the lamp. And then she pulled Bardock close and yanked the blanket over their heads.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	59. Chapter 59: The Last Bit of Calm

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 59: The Last Bit of Calm**

 _Mt. Paozu, Goku and Chi-Chi's house (3 months until the Android Attack)…_

It was a chilly February on Mt. Paozu. The last driving snow of the season was hitting the area hard, not that any of the inhabitants of the mountain minded in the slightest. Chi-Chi sat in her rocking chair, next to a crackling fire. She was nearly six months pregnant and the feeling filled her with a peaceful serenity that she so rarely ever felt. Chi-Chi held her stomach, humming a gentle tune as she rocked the chair back and forth. Behind her, Ox-King gave his daughter a gentle shoulder massage. In a little over 3 months, she would be welcoming this brand-new little surprise into the world. Chi-Chi sighed. "I would love if it was a little girl..."

Launch chuckled. "Be careful. You might jinx yourself."

Chi-Chi glanced over to the doorway and smiled as Launch walked in, her blue hair powdered white with snow. The woman opened the bundled blanket close to her chest and a little tail came out, followed by the chubby face of a darling, half-Saiyan infant with bluish-black hair: Raditz and Launch's daughter, Ranch.

Launch sat in the chair next to Chi-Chi and smiled as she looked out the window, briefly observing the training session going on in the front yard between Goku, Krillin, and Gohan. "They're all working so hard."

Chi-Chi nodded, closing her eyes. "Mhm."

Launch's smile faded. She lifted her shirt and pressed Ranch close to her chest, allowing her child to nurse. "I'm worried, ya know? So is Blonde me. We're both concerned about these scary Androids that are supposed to show up...do you think everything will be okay?"

Chi-Chi sighed. "We can only hope so at this point. Everyone is training to face the attack and Goku has been taking his medicine. The instructions from the Bulma of the Future said to save one dosage, just in case the effects of the virus still hit Goku in some way. So, all we can do is wait and see I guess..."

She glanced over at Launch. "So, where's Raditz anyway? I thought he'd be out there training with everyone else, seeing as the big day is so close."

Launch shrugged. "When I woke up this morning, Ranch had a fresh diaper and Raditz was already gone. I guess he must have woken up pretty early. I thought he'd be training with Goku, but I don't know."

"I do~"

The door to the kitchen opened and Gine came out, a cheery smile on her face. She was carrying a tray with a teapot and three cups on it. Dotingly, Gine poured a cup for Launch and Chi-Chi both and then one for herself. She took a sip and sighed. "Raditz came knocking at our door early this morning. He asked Bardock to come out and be hard on him, to make up for all of the slacking he's done."

Launch's brow furrowed. "He's still on this whole slacking thing? I've tried to tell him so many times that he hasn't been slacking, he's just been being a good father and husband and..."

Gine placed her hand atop Launch's. "Launch. He's a male Saiyan. There's nothing you can do, that's just his natural mindset. It's best to let him work out those sorts of feelings on his own and wait for him to come to you to try to change his mind."

Launch nodded. "R-Right..."

Ranch finished her nursing with a small burp. She glanced up at her grandmother, her eyes shimmering. Gine smiled wide and made a silly face. "Oh Ranch~! Oh, Grandma's big, baby girl~! Oh, Ranchy Ranch~!"

Ranch giggled and reached out, allowing Gine to pick her up and cradle her. Launch and Chi-Chi both smiled and took sips of their tea, preparing for a nice, peaceful day in the warm indoors.

 _Out in the fields, the Son Family Farm..._

The various farmhands of the Son Family Farms all stood there, knee-deep in snow and watched in awe as two of their bosses brawled directly in front of them. Raditz threw a heavy punch which was swiftly dodged and responded to with a kick to his head. Raditz bounced against the ground and skidded to a halt right in front of the workers. He glared up at them and growled. " _What are you are looking at?! Get to work! We only have one winter season worth of crops left, so get growing goddammit!_ "

Bardock landed foot-first on Raditz's back. "Don't yell at our employees just because you're pissed off!"

But then, he shot a sour look to the dozen farmhands in front of him. "But, seriously, you've all been standing around gawking for nearly an hour now. Get to work!"

One of them nodded. "Y-Yessir Mr. Bardock!"

He quickly motioned to the rest of his co-workers that they needed to move out. As they did that, Bardock glared down at his eldest son, who was struggling to even push himself up off the ground. He flipped over and glared at Bardock. Bardock sighed. "Right. Five-minute break."

The older Saiyan sat crossed legged in the snow, picking up a handful and melting it with his ki before drinking it. Raditz groaned. Bardock shook his head. "You've gotten so damned soft."

Raditz sneered at Bardock. It wasn't like he could help it. The past months had been some of the most dynamic of his entire life. Gone were the carefree days of space-pirating, now Raditz had so many other responsibilities: he was the manager of this farm, he was a devoted husband, and now he was a brand-new father. All of the time he had wanted to give to training had slipped through his fingers like sand.

Raditz growled and pushed himself to his feet, in spite of the aches and pains. "Look...don't taunt me. I know I'm soft. That's why I asked you to give me a crash course!"

He gripped his fists tight. "Now, are you going to sit there on your ass all day, or are we going to continue?!"

Bardock shrugged. "Whatever you want, son."

Raditz lunged forward with more killing intent than he had before. He knew that he couldn't actually kill his father, with Bardock being so much stronger than him, but he could at least give his absolute best against his unimpressed father.

And that did seem to work.

For the briefest moment, to his surprise, Bardock was actually put on the heavy defensive. Raditz's strikes were aimed at weak points. He was accurate and surprisingly quicker than Bardock remembered. Bardock tried to punch, but Raditz used his Instant Warp to appear behind Bardock and suplex the older Saiyan into the snow. Raditz leapt into the air and charged a blast. " _SHINING FRIDAY!_ "

Bardock was impacted into the ground. He couldn't move as the attack came at him. He chuckled. "Not bad, Raditz."

But then, the tide was turned right back as a golden light flashed across Bardock and he went Super Saiyan. The sheer heat of the transformation melted snow for meters around and Bardock kicked the blast away with his foot. He leapt up and smirked at Raditz.

Raditz looked utterly disheartened. "Are you kidding me?! Are you KIDDING me?! That damned form! That damned, accursed, unreachable form!"

Raditz screamed and pounded his fists against his forehead. " _Dammit! It's not fair! Damn it all! Damn! Damn! Damn! Damn! Damn!_ "

A bead of sweat dripped down the side of Bardock's face as he watched his 36-year-old son rampage midair. "Oh Raditz..."

Bardock sighed and shook his head, mumbling to himself. "Don't be discouraged, son. You can do this. I know you can..."

He gripped his fists and squatted down. "But, if I start pitying you, you'll just end up stagnating. So I hope you can forgive me for this."

Bardock leapt up into the air and smashed the top of his head into Raditz's gut. Raditz sputtered and coughed and Bardock smacked him out of the air, back to the ground. As Raditz laid there in pain, Bardock landed a few feet from him. He shouted at his son. "Raditz! Come on now! You've gotta get your head into the game! The Androids are right around the corner, man!"

Raditz pushed himself up and coughed. Bardock glared down at him. "We worked our asses off for this life on Earth, Raditz! Not just me, not just your mother, not just Kakarot! All of us, including you! We have to work together to protect everything we've made here!"

Bardock crossed his arms over his chest. "Do you have time to be throwing tantrums when some damned robots might come after Launch or Ranch?!"

Raditz's eyes snapped open. Utilizing his Instant Warp, he popped right into Bardock's face. Father and son clashed with visible sparks between them. Bardock chuckled and repelled his son back. "See?! There's that spark! Keep that energy up and come at me, Raditz! There has to be some Super Saiyan power in there somewhere!"

 _In West City..._

Yamcha walked through the busy streets, a chilly wind blowing through the crowds and sending scarves fluttering in the breeze. The former desert bandit was in a terrible mood as he went along, tossing a Capsule up and down in his hand.

Yamcha's Capsule Stove had chosen to give out on him the previous night. Puar had suggested that he take it to the shop he purchased it from for repairs. However, when he did, he was quickly informed that his warranty had expired. And then he was scolded for not paying for the extended warranty when he bought it.

It was all Yamcha could do to control his temper and leave the store in a civil manner as life threw yet another piece of misfortune directly in his face. As Yamcha walked on, he thought back over his entire life and wondered where this landslide of bad luck originated? What came into his life to make everything so awful?

Even his job hadn't been treating him well lately. Yamcha was a star player, for sure. But, the group of rookies that the Taitans had signed weren't doing well on the Big Leagues. Their most recent loss against the Scouts had made the entire team look like idiots and now the prospects of Yamcha even being successfully traded looked bleak. And his paycheck was suffering as a result.

Where did it all go wrong?!

And then, as he walked, Yamcha heard a familiar voice carried through the air. He looked up and saw her on the giant, jumbo screen attached to the massive building in the center of the West City Shopping Plaza. Bulma was sitting in a television studio, surrounding by the hottest, upcoming Capsule Products for the spring season. And nestled snuggly into her cradling arms was a baby with a waving, Saiyan tail.

Bulma chuckled as she and the host talked back and forth. The host had a tacky, constructed smile on her face as she asked about the new products in the studio. "So, what inspired this new line of Capsule products? What spurred the entry into this new market?"

Bulma smiled. 'Well, ya see...ever since I became a Mom, I've noticed the lack of free agency I've suffered from all of the needs of my wonderful son, Trunks. Busy Moms just don't have the time to enjoy certain things anymore. No time to deal with the hassle of putting together complicated appliances or give themselves the 'me time' that they need to maintain a healthy state of mind."

She motioned to the products. "Until today. Because, starting this spring, Capsule Corp is releasing the _Capsule: Mother's On The Go_ collection. A new series of products dedicated to the hardworking mother figure out there that wants to reach out and take back a piece of their lives!"

Bulma kissed Trunks on the forehead and the baby giggled. "Motherhood is a blessing, Charlene. We shouldn't feel like we're being punished for wanting to have a baby~"

Yamcha stared in shock and hurt and disbelief. He had known that Bulma was pregnant for the longest time. But he had yet to actually see the results of that pregnancy. Seeing baby Trunks nestled in her arms made Yamcha's spirit sink to an even lower level than before.

The host maintained her creepy, forced smile. "Oh yes, that new baby of yours! We've all heard the gossip around here. You and your new, mystery husband. Sneaking away from the public eye and having a private marriage ceremony! Quite the feat for a local celebrity like you, keeping such a thing from the public eye."

Bulma chuckled. "Yeah. My husband isn't the most personable person in the world. He wouldn't be caught dead in an interview like this..."

The host cocked her head. "It's so bizarre though. Last I had heard, you were dating a semi-famous baseball player, right?"

Bulma sighed. "I'd prefer not to discuss that on live television. Some things just don't work out. Let's leave it at that, shall we?"

She smiled. "The only thing that matters is that I've ended up with somebody who, despite being rough around the edges, makes me happy. He's a jerk, but I want to spend the rest of my life with him. Ya know what I mean?"

The host nodded. "For sure."

Her head snapped to the camera. "Okay! That's all the time we have today folks! This has been Charlene Meadows! Make sure to tune in tomorrow for another exciting episode of Good Morning West City!"

As the credits started to roll on the screen, Yamcha trembled in place. The warrior's eyes were cast in shadow as he thought hard about his predicament. And, in that thought, he realized when the biggest problems in his life started. They had started and continued on with the same person constantly hanging around. Yamcha growled to himself as he continued to walk, his fists trembling. " _Vegeta..._ "

 _On the icy peaks of Yunzabit Heights..._

Piccolo floated atop the frigid peak of Yunzabit Heights, his mind clear and his focus pointed inward. His training with Goku's family had helped the Namekian gain a stronger body, but such a thing would only take him so far. Piccolo wanted to be the strongest out of everyone on this planet. And, to do that, he had to get his mind and spirit under the tightest of control.

Breaking his Lotus Position, Piccolo held out his left hand and summoned the demonic power of King Piccolo. He held out his right hand and summoned the righteous power of Grand Elder Guru, as shared with him by Nail. Piccolo's body trembled as his spirit surged, churning the two sources of power together and forcing them to mix with his own. He was still missing something to make the utilization of the power complete, an element of focus.

In the back of his mind, Piccolo knew what he was missing, but he refused to acknowledge it. He would just have to make do with what he had.

Piccolo's power swelled as he forced the other two powers inward. He took a deep breath, holding out his hands in front of him. And then, his eyes snapped open and he screamed at the top of his lungs. Three beams of unique energy shot from his palms and twisted into one singular blast, flying towards a far-off mountain and crashing into it.

Piccolo let his arms drop to his sides and viewed the results of his new attack with a smile on his face. A massive, gaping hole had been drilled straight through the mountain, from one face to the opposite face on the other side. Piccolo chuckled. "Excellent..."

He gripped his fists. "Like the Special Beam Cannon, but utilizing the energy of both _demon and man_...what should I call it...?"

Piccolo took a deep breath and, with a snarl, summoned several clones of himself to spar against. He chuckled as they all came at him. "Perhaps I'll think of a name as I vanquish you fools!"

Piccolo took great pleasure in dismantling his clones. The recent advancements that he had made filled him with competitive vigor. He would be ready to face these so-called "Killer Androids". And once they were gone he would be equally as ready to face down Goku and Vegeta and any other challenges that stood in his way.

Piccolo had a solid goal in mind. And it wouldn't be long before he attained that goal and became the most powerful warrior in the Universe!

 _At Tien and Chiaotzu's private temple..._

Chiaotzu propped his face onto his hand, watching on with subtle worry as Tien continued to train on the edge of the ground, overlooking a misty chasm. Tien threw punch after punch and kick after kick, each hit moving at the maximum speed that the human was capable of reaching. Sonic booms echoed out across the chasm and dispelled the frigid mist as they cut through it.

Each strike that Tien threw put an incredible strain on his body. A result of trying to maintain the maximum level of Kaioken he had reached thus far. Each strike was imbued with the power of the Kaioken Times 30. And once that was master, Tien would take it to the next level beyond. The sweat that poured down Tien's face stung like needles, but he shrugged off the pain and continued along.

Chiaotzu continued to watch, waiting for the breaking point to come. He knew it was going to happen and he had to be ready to go and save Tien once it did. Chiaotzu was unhappy. He had begged Tien to calm down, to take it easy. He didn't want to watch his friend cripple himself for the sake of getting stronger. But Tien was unwilling to listen. Falling behind the others would be the same as death to him. He couldn't allow himself to fall behind in this race. He wanted more power. He wanted to continue to be relevant in the conversation of who the strongest was!

Even if it killed him one day, Tien just wanted to be able to call himself the strongest. Just once!

And, with that lofty goal in his mind, Tien's power rose. Subconsciously, he had allowed himself to creep up to Kaioken Times 35! Tien's muscles all screamed; it was too much! He threw one last punch with enough force to cause the ground beneath him to crumble, and then his entire body gave out. Tien went falling with the rubble, towards the chasm below, and was only saved by the last second intervention of Chiaotzu. Chiaotzu shouted. "Now can we stop for the day?!"

Chiaotzu waited for a response and got none. For the moment, Tien was totally unconscious. Chiaotzu groaned. "Fine. Sleep. At least you aren't hurting yourself in your sleep..."

The little warrior flew himself and Tien back to their temple. He quickly took Tien to his room and laid the crippled martial artist in his bed. "Now please, stay put. Let me just have time to make us dinner and then take it easy for a couple of days."

With that said, Chiaotzu floated out of the room and towards the kitchen. However, it did not take long for Tien to stir awake once his friend was gone. The three-eyed warrior groaned in agony, laying on his cot. Every inch of his being was on fire.

Tien shakily stood, nearly buckling under his own weight. He took a few, uneasy steps forward before gaining a stable enough stride, and then he started practicing his strikes on a nearby wooden training dummy.

Not too far away, in the kitchen, Chiaotzu heard the telltale thwacks of training and sighed. "He's never going to stop..."

The little warrior gripped his fist. "I... have to do something...maybe Master Korin might have some spare Senzu Beans to lend us..."

 _Later that night, at Capsule Corp..._

The door to the gravity chamber popped open and Vegeta came out, a good sweat pouring down his brow. He reached onto the nearby shelf and pulled down a towel to wipe his face. With his evening workout out of the way, Vegeta had the rest of his evening set: eat dinner, spend some time with the baby, fool around with the woman, and then show back up for late night training. And then maybe get a bit of sleep if he felt like it.

Vegeta wiped the sweat from behind his ears, grimacing at the food presented to him yesterday. "Those chefs she hired had better make something I want this evening or I'll destroy them..."

The Prince tossed his towel aside and gripped his fist. "Androids? Pah! Little more than piles of junk needing to be taught their place. The me of that future timeline is an embarrassment to have died so easily."

The doors to the Capsule Corp main building slid open and Vegeta stepped out into the chilly, evening air. The cold wind felt bracing against his bare chest. Vegeta chuckled. "I would love to see anything be stupid enough to step up to me with the power I've achieved!"

But then, a rustle in the bushes immediately set Vegeta onto the defensive. He glared at them, seeing someone standing in the shadows next to his and Bulma's house. "You! Step into the light or be destroyed."

The figure began to step forward, eventually stepping out into the light cast from within the house and revealing himself to be Yamcha. Vegeta instantly dropped his guard and chuckled. "Oh! It's just one of Kakarot's worthless, weakling friends..."

Another chuckle, followed by a mocking, unserious tone. "Why are you in my yard?"

Yamcha gripped his fists, but didn't answer. Vegeta's smile faded. "Perhaps you didn't hear me. _Why are you in my yard?_ "

The former desert bandit was furious. His fists were shaking. And then, without thinking first, he shouted at Vegeta. " _FIGHT ME! WITH YOUR FULL POWER! COME ON!_ "

Yamcha struck a fighting stance. Instantly, the mocking smile returned to Vegeta's face and he laughed out loud. "Fight you?! With my full power?!"

Vegeta doubled over, holding his gut and laughing as loud as he could. "Oh, you _delusional, weak, pathetic idiot_. Is that why you're skulking around me house?"

More laughter. "If you want to be sent to a hospital that badly, just go jump in front of a truck. That would save us _both_ time and effort."

Yamcha was livid. With a howling scream, he lunged at Vegeta. "Just shut your arrogant mouth for five seconds and fight!"

Vegeta couldn't make himself take this seriously. His smirk didn't budge as he deflected blow-after-blow from Yamcha. Vegeta leapt to dodge a kick and, with a small amount of his energy, he shoved Yamcha across the yard. The Prince landed and chuckled. "Is this it? This is what you're bringing to fight me at my best? Pathetic."

Each barbed word made Yamcha flinch in pain. His heart was aching like crazy. He lamented to himself as he fought, trying his best to hold back the tears that wanted to come forth. This guy. This guy who brought his killer to the Earth. This guy who initiated the landslide of awful luck that had befallen him. This guy who stole Bulma's heart! Yamcha wanted to beat this guy, this pompous bastard, into the ground as hard as he could!

Yamcha snarled. "You'll regret not taking me seriously! Kaioken Times 10!"

The warrior's power shot up and Vegeta chuckled. "What are you-"

However, it was Yamcha's speed that managed to catch the Prince off-guard. Quick as a flash, Yamcha managed to circle around Vegeta and aim his attack. " _RAGING NEO WOLF FANG FIST!_ "

And then, with a mighty swing, Yamcha actually managed to hit Vegeta. He buried his fist into the Prince's cheek and took Vegeta off of his feet, sending the Prince crashing into the bushes. Yamcha leapt up into the air and cheered. "Haha! Take that you arrogant prick!"

" _What's going on out here?!_ "

Yamcha shivered as he heard a familiar voice. Nervously, he glanced upward and saw what he had feared: Bulma was standing on the outside balcony of her house, Trunks cradled in her arms. And she looked rather angry as she glared down. "Yamcha?! What the hell are you doing causing a scene and shouting in my yard so late in the evening?!"

Yamcha was dumbstruck. He didn't know what to say. He knew that if he admitted the real reason he was here, Bulma would be really mad at him. Wordlessly, Yamcha stammered as he tried to form an explanation. But then, another familiar voice spoke up. "Stupid human bastard!"

Yamcha turned and glared at Vegeta. The Prince wiped a trickle of blood from his busted lip and sneered. "That was a cheap shot, fool! But don't think you'll get one again! A worthless piece of trash like you shouldn't step onto any land I call my home unless your capable of doing more damage than that! Stupid trash!"

As Vegeta continued his tirade, Bulma sighed and squeezed her brow. "I think I see what's going on here. Let me guess, you tried to stop by and Vegeta started an argument on sight, right?"

Yamcha flinched. Did...he just get an out from all of this?

Vegeta spoke up again. "He said he came here to ask about some sort of Capsule contraption. But I don't allow the weak to step through my doorway!"

That caught Yamcha off-guard. He turned and stared at Vegeta. Did the Prince just...cover for him? Bulma groaned. "Vegeta. I own this house. You don't own a damn thing here. I decide who's allowed in or not."

She turned to Yamcha. "What did you want to talk about?"

Yamcha remembered the busted stove in his pocket and quickly stammered. "I... uh...my Capsule stove broke and they said I didn't have a warranty anymore. So, I... uh..."

Bulma nodded. "Okay. That should be an easy fix. Just...come on in and join us for dinner, I guess. I'll fix your stove after we've eaten."

Her attention snapped back to her husband. "And you, Vegeta. Get your ass in here and be a parent! Trunks's diaper is dirty and I'm trying to set the table!"

Vegeta snorted. "Kiss my ass, woman. I'll be in when I feel like it."

Bulma sneered and rolled her eyes, turning and walking back into the house. "You can kiss _my_ ass, short-stuff..."

And so, Yamcha and Vegeta were left alone once more. The two of them stared at one another, awkwardly silent, for a few moments. Finally, Yamcha spoke up. "Th-Thank you...?"

Vegeta shrugged. "What can I say? You caught me off-guard. For a fool like you to strike me, it shows that I have to train even harder on my reflexes. So, I chose to pay you back in a way for giving me such an insight."

He glared. "But don't expect me to cover your ass again. _And never just show up here like that again_. I know you and Bulma used to have a thing, but she's _my_ wife now. So, know your place and respect our boundaries..."

Yamcha furrowed his brow. "Now listen here-"

In a flash of gold, Vegeta went Super Saiyan. He closed the distance between himself and Yamcha in the blink of an eye and slammed his fist as hard as he could into Yamcha's gut. The warrior doubled over in pain, clutching his stomach. "That was my full power. You survived being hit by it, so good on you. But just remember how that feels for future reference."

Yamcha fell to his knees, quivering in pain. Vegeta snorted and released his Super Saiyan form. "Now, I have to go change my son's shitty diaper. Try to collect yourself and make it in for dinner on time."

Vegeta marched into his house without a care, leaving Yamcha to kneel on the ground and regret every choice he had made that day. Another loss on the card for the former desert bandit.

 _In the forest near Goku and Chi-Chi's house..._

Late into the evening, the snowfall had stopped on Mt. Paozu, leaving the ground covered in nearly a foot of the white stuff. The air was chilly, the perfect weather for some intense training between friends. Goku was fielding attacks from both his best friend and his son, dodging strikes as fast as Gohan and Krillin could throw them. He could tell that they were both coming at him with everything they had, but his reflexes were well-enough sharpened to handle their onslaught.

Goku stroked his chin as he dodged a kick. Krillin had managed to get quite a bit stronger over the past months of training. His moves were stronger and sharper than they had ever been before. A sense of urgency came with every strike. This made Goku proud, although he had to admit that Krillin's improvements were not really his priority at the moment.

Goku closely observed his son, watching the invisible aura that surrounded Gohan and watching it flair up with each strike. Every now and again, Goku saw the faintest hints of a golden aura raging around his son and that made him very happy. At some point in the past, Gohan had managed to go Super Saiyan, if only briefly. And now, it was Goku's mission in life to try and draw that out!

The Saiyan from Earth leapt back and was set upon by two attacks. From the left, Krillin shot a Kamehameha. From the right, Gohan fired a Masenko. Both attacks raged towards Goku, but he smacked them both away. "Come on guys! You gotta try harder than that! Experiment a little!"

Krillin sighed. "I'm not exactly sure how this one will work yet, but..."

The monk charged an electric pulse into his hands and fired out another beam. "Electric Kamehameha!"

Gohan took a deep breath and fired another attack. "Fierce Masenko!"

Both beams came shooting towards Goku and he smirked. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Goku powered up, golden energy flashing around him and erupting as he became Super Saiyan. He charged two ki blasts in his hands and fired them, meeting Krillin and Gohan's attacks and causing a massive explosion. He smiled down at Krillin and Gohan, chuckling at the both of them as they fell to the ground. They were both exhausted.

Goku called down to them. "Okay! I think we're done for the evening. Chi-Chi probably has dinner ready by now anyhow~"

"Good, I'm starving."

Goku turned to see Bardock and Raditz flying up behind him. Bardock looked sort of banged up. Raditz looked utterly haggard. Goku smiled. "Have some good training today?"

Raditz groaned, everything aching and bruised. "Something like that. I imagine it'll be even worse tomorrow..."

Bardock smirked. "Wouldn't be training if it didn't get harder, son. But, let's not worry about that for now. It's dinner time and I bet your kid misses you."

Raditz warmly smiled, his shoulders slumping. "Ranch~"

The three of them landed and Goku bent over to help Krillin and Gohan to their feet. Once they were up, all five of the tired warriors settled into Goku's house for the evening to enjoy a nice family meal together. As they stepped into the house, Goku took a moment to observe his eldest child one last time. He smiled with pride and thought to himself. "You're going to be so great one day Gohan. I know it. I just have to find a way to draw that power out..."

Chi-Chi had prepared a nice, big meal for her entire family to enjoy and the all graciously thanked her before starting to eat. The time was drawing short for such niceties. It would not be much longer before the newest threat arrived on the Z-Fighter's doorstep. So, they settled together to enjoy as many more peaceful moments as they could muster.

 _Somewhere, in a secluded laboratory..._

With an electric fizzle, the HUD of the newest Android came online. He could hear gears grinding and servos flexing as he tested his new movements. His eyes scanned around the room and observed his surroundings.

Yes, all seemed to be in order with this transition.

He stood and began to perform functionality checks on all vital areas. He made sure that his extremities were able to glide smoothly and that he was able to maintain both standing and advanced ranges of motion. Each one of these tests ended with success as well.

Finally, he turned to his counterpart standing off to the side: a rotund, pale being with a high-pitched, electronic voice. "Status report on current undertakings."

The fat one nodded. " _Project S-Hunters_ is still three months from completion, just enough time to make any final adjustments to your intermediate frame, Android 20."

The new Android nodded. "Indeed. Status of other endeavors?"

The fat one continued. " _Project Lapis Lazuli_ is still in an unstable state and will require further adjustments before it could be considered safe to allow them out into the field. And _Project Memoriam_ is-"

"Enough."

The new Android stepped forward, seeing his reflection in the mirror. What stared back was a twisted, skeletal form with glowing red eyes and an organic canister, containing a disembodied brain, sticking out from the top. He rubbed his new face. "Perhaps some adjustments are in order."

He glanced across the room, seeing a corpse on a gurney, covered by a white sheet. "Yes. Indeed. A more proper aesthetic is required for the purposes of vengeance."

 _17 years into the future..._

The day had finally arrived. After two years of waiting in their timeline in order to ensure that they could return to the proper timeline and assist, the youths from the future were ready to go. Future Trunks took a deep breath and sighed. In spite of his hopes that giving Goku the medicine would cause their future to change, it would appear as if multiverse theory was the prevailing concept.

He stood there, the gravity of their situation weighing on him as it always did, only to be approach from behind by a friend. A pair of arms wrapped around Trunks from behind. He nearly jumped out of his skin. But then, he turned and saw her. His longtime allies, his girlfriend, the love of his life, and the daughter of Raditz: Ranch.

Ranch smiled and, without provocation, pressed her lips against Trunks's. The kiss lasted for only a brief moment, and then she pulled back. "Just relax, okay? We're going to make a difference. We'll be fine. And once we help them solve things in the past, we'll come here and fix our present."

"That's the plan, hopefully."

Future Trunks and Future Ranch both turned to see Future Bulma marching towards them. She looked tired, the bags under her eyes getting deeper and deeper by the day. Bulma stepped forward and grabbed her son and his girlfriend each by the shoulder, pulling them in close for a loving hug. "Just stay safe above all else, okay? I couldn't stand to lose any of the three of you."

Both of them nodded and eagerly hugged them back. Ranch chuckled. "Speaking of the _three_ of us... _where is he_? How could he run late on a day like this?!"

Trunks held up his hands, trying to calm his fireball of a girlfriend. "Now now. I'm sure he's just-"

" _I'm right here! Sorry to keep you waiting!_ "

Ranch glared at him as he ran up, crossing her arms over her chest. "Come on man. You chose now of all days to run behind?"

He sighed. "S-Sorry. I was going and paying respects to all of our fallen loved ones, one last time. It takes a minute to say that many blessings."

Trunks's shrugged, pressing the button to open the Time Capsule canopy. He gave his partner-in-crime a pat on the back. "It's fine. We're fine. We... _we've got this_..."

Both of Trunks's allies gave him a meaningful nod. The all gave Bulma one last solemn, but hopeful look. And then they climbed into their Time Capsule and began their trip 17 years into the past.

Once the Time Capsule was gone, Bulma sighed. She walked into the crumbling remains of the Capsule Corp building, into the atrium that her father used to love so much, and marched right up to the line of marked graves within. Bulma glanced down at the other visitor to this solemn place, Launch, and sighed. "So, he came and gave them each a blessing before he left, huh?"

Launch nodded, her graying blue hair bobbing as she did. Bulma reached into her lab coat, producing a pack of cigarettes, and lit one up. She took a deep drag and blew out the smoke, accidentally letting some of it trail over to Launch.

The mousy woman's allergies kicked in, instantly making her sneeze. But rather than change her hair color, Launch merely wiped her nose and went back to staring at the gravestone marked "Raditz". Bulma was quick to apologize. "S-Sorry..."

Launch didn't say a word. Bulma took a deep breath and then reached over, pulling her best friend into a close, tight hug. Launch laid her head onto Bulma's shoulder and began to silently weep, her body shaking like a leaf.

Bulma's tired gaze went from stone-to-stone, name-to-name. Finally, it fell on one of the more recent additions to the plot. Bulma pressed her hand onto the grass in front of the grave marked Gohan. "Let us just hope that the solution to this madness comes back with them..."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	60. Chapter 60: The Forewarned Day

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Holidays and video games make it so hard to keep up a good schedule in November/December. But Thanksgiving is over and I have thoroughly enjoyed Pokemon Shield, so it's back to the writing grindstone! Let's begin the Android Saga!_

 **Chapter 60: The Forewarned Day**

 _Mt. Paozu, May 12_ _th_ _, Age 767..._

Goku, Gohan, and Krillin stepped out of Goku house, a steely look in each of their eyes. Today was the big day. If Future Trunks was telling the truth, then the Androids would show up today and start their assault against all of humanity. It was a shame that they couldn't all head out together, but other matters were taking precedence. Even if the Androids were going to attack, Chi-Chi couldn't just skip her appointments dealing with her pregnancy. Luckily, Bardock and Raditz agreed to escort her for safety, as well as to collect Vegeta.

Goku closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His second child would be showing up any day now. "Man..."

He smiled down at Gohan and Krillin. "Let's head out and deal with these Androids as quick as possible!"

Gohan and Krillin both nodded. "Right!"

And then, the three of them took to the sky. Next stop, Amenbo Island!

 _In the sky..._

The three warriors streaked across the sky, moving at top speed. They didn't have long before the clock struck 10:00 am. They were already running behind. As they flew, however, the three of them were joined by a familiar, if not somewhat repressed energy signature. Gohan turned and smiled. "Mr. Piccolo!"

Piccolo joined up with the group in their flying formation, his arms crossed over his chest. The Namekian had a sly smirk on his face. "Well, don't the three of you feel strong...?"

Goku chuckled. "Man, you're soundin' pretty sarcastic this morning, bud."

Piccolo chuckled. "No. Not at all. Why would you say that?"

Krillin shuddered. "Hey man. Come on. Be serious. The rest of us aren't as well off, power-wise, as you. This is kinda scary for us puny mortals..."

Piccolo snorted. "I bet it would be. But don't worry, today is going to end much differently than it did in the future. You can count on it."

He cut his gaze towards Goku. "And so can you, Monkey Boy."

Goku chuckled. "Let's take it easy now..."

The Saiyan tried to maintain his normal, cheerful façade. But ever since he had woken up, he could tell that something was wrong. He didn't want to bother Chi-Chi or stress her out, so he didn't bother to ask. But, as they flew, the tightness in Goku's chest told him that he should have looked a little harder for that final dose of Future Trunks' medicine.

 _Amenbo Island, 9 miles southwest of South City..._

After another short while, the island chain finally came into sight for the four warriors. Krillin looked around and pointed to a nearby sheer cliff. "They're over there!"

Goku, Piccolo, Gohan, and Krillin descended from the sky and landed on the cliff, meeting up with Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu. Goku smiled. "Hey guys! It's great to see all of you! It's just like old times!"

Tien couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, just like old times. Lining up to face what could possibly be our immediate deaths. It's just like King Piccolo, except King Piccolo is kind of on our side this time..."

Piccolo smirked. "As far as you know."

Tien smashed his fist into his chest. "Any time you feel up to it, Piccolo."

Yamcha adopted a small smile. "So, uh...where is everyone else? Bardock and Raditz and... _other_ people."

Gohan turned to Yamcha. "They're all at Capsule Corp. They wanted to escort my Mom there just to be safe."

Krillin sighed. "No telling what the Androids could do, after all. Better safe than sorry."

Chiaotzu nodded. "That's smart."

The little warrior looked at the watch on his wrist. "It's 9:55 am. We're almost there."

Tien's face went serious. "Good. I'm ready to put these last two years of training to the test."

Goku smiled. "Same."

Piccolo chuckled. "You two won't have the chance if I get my hands on them first."

Yamcha sighed. "You all are way too excited about killer Androids coming after your heads..."

" _It's cuz they're all stupid!_ "

Yamcha yelped, nearly jumping out of his skin. Gohan tended to him as Krillin walked up to the new person on the cliff. "Oh, hey Yajirobe."

Yajirobe shivered as a cold wind washed over his skin. "It's ridiculously cold over here. Especially for early summer in the friggin' tropics. You guys are lucky I'm such a nice guy!"

Krillin cocked his head. "Oh really. What are you going to do, slash the Androids with your sword?"

Yajirobe spat at Krillin. " _ARE YOU CRAZY?! HELL NO!_ "

He reached into his robe and pulled out a medium-sized bag, tossing it to Goku. "Here ya go. One order of Senzu Beans. Korin says to take care and stay alive."

Goku smiled. "Thanks, Yajirobe. You sure you don't wanna stay and fight?"

Yajirobe frowned. "Goku, I've known you for years. Since you were a kid. You're, honestly, one of my best friends. But...I'd rather be anywhere else than here if a bunch of crazy robots are about to attack. Ya dig?"

Goku chuckled. "I understand. Stay safe Yajirobe."

Yajirobe shot the peace sign and jumped back into his Capsule Car. "You too, Goku."

Everyone watched as Yajirobe's car flew away and then Chiaotzu checked his watch again. "9:59 am. Less than a minute."

Everyone else focused up. Everyone except for Yamcha. The former bandit breathed a huge sigh of relief and folded his arms behind his head. "Maybe the future guy was just messing with us..."

Krillin turned to him. "What do you mean?"

Yamcha chuckled, rubbing his finger under his nose. "Well, I mean, come on. If the Androids were that eager to kill us, then surely they'd be here by now. Hell, we'd have sensed their power levels by now. And they'd definitely had seen us and attacked early just like any other enemy would have..."

Krillin's shoulders slumped. "Yamcha..."

Chiaotzu stared at his watch. "10 seconds."

Yamcha smiled. "Maybe we finally lucked out and the Androids just aren't coming..."

The second hand on Chiaotzu's watch passed the final tick and the watch shifted to exactly 10:00 am. And then, catching everyone off-guard, an explosion rang out in the sky. Everyone shifted their gaze upward and saw a flaming wreckage crash down into the sea below. Goku cried out. "Yajirobe!"

Yamcha stared in horror. "Wha-Wha-Wha...but...how..."

Piccolo scanned the sky, his eyes eventually falling on two distant figures. "Everyone! Look there! Two figures in the sky, due east!"

Each warrior's attention locked onto the two figures, hovering menacingly in the distance, barely visible. Tien concentrated hard, but then his eyes widened. "I can't..."

Chiaotzu shook his head. "M-Me neither..."

Everyone else was stunned silent, helpless to do anything but watch as the two figures descended into the city. Krillin stammered. "W-Were those..."

Gohan was grim. "The Androids."

The boy appeared to be deep in thought. Yamcha was blue in the face. "But...But how? We didn't even sense them. How could they..."

Goku was pushing his senses to the limit, but nothing was coming to him. "Dammit..."

Gohan spoke up. "Well...they're Androids. So, they would be powered by electricity, not ki. So... maybe we can't sense them like we could everything else..."

Everyone flinched and turned to Gohan. Gohan nodded. "Yeah. That would be like saying we could sense a television or a lightbulb just because they have a type energy running through them. If they aren't powered by ki, they might as well be invisible to our sixth sense!"

Yamcha cried out. "That's crazy! How in the hell are we supposed to deal with that?!"

Tien growled. "This just got a lot worse..."

Piccolo quickly spoke up; he brushed his cape aside with a flourish and stepped forward. "So, we can't sense them! Oh well, we can't do anything about that! We'll just have to look for them the rustic way, with our eyes!"

Goku gripped his fist. This was suddenly more dangerous than he had ever thought it could be. He glanced back at Gohan, his precious son, and Chiaotzu, the weakest of their number and shook his head. "Okay! We're going to have to go and find them! But we should be smart about this!"

Goku turned to Gohan. "Hey son! I need you to do me a favor and go check on Yajirobe, okay? I can still faintly sense his energy, so he's still alive down there!"

He turned to Chiaotzu. "And you, Chiaotzu, I need you to stay up here and use your psychic powers to see if you can scan for the Androids. Even a vague sense of where they are would help!"

Gohan nodded. "Yes sir!"

And he flew off. Chiaotzu seemed worried. "Are you sure, Goku? I could go down and help."

Goku shook his head. "I need you to do this for me, Chiaotzu. I need someone to stay up here and watch our backs."

He took the bag of beans and tossed them to his smaller ally. "And I need you to make sure that Yajirobe gets one of these when Gohan gets back."

Chiaotzu looked down at the bag and then up at his friend. "Right! You can count on me, Goku!"

Goku smiled. And then he got serious again and turned to the others. "Okay everyone! Stay safe and spread out! We want to find these guys and warn everyone else where they are. We don't want them to hurt too many innocent people, if we can help it!"

Everyone responded. "Right!"

And then, they all descended to the city below to search for this sinister, new threat.

 _Down in the city..._

Each of the Z-Fighters flew to a different section of the city as they undertook their search. With so much area to cover all as once, they knew they couldn't afford to stay clustered up.

Krillin landed in a nearby park, scaring a skater dude as he tried to zip by on his hoverboard. Krillin looked around and cursed to himself. "Crap...what am I even looking for?"

He turned to the boy he had just surprised. "Hey you! Have you seen anybody weird around here?"

The skater stammered. "I-Is a f-f-f-flying, noseless goblin weird?!"

Krillin narrowed his eyes and grumbled. "Jeez...tell me how you really feel, huh?"

 _In the business sector..._

Goku glanced around at the huge crowds of people around him. The Saiyan was hoping that his gut would tell him if he saw the Androids, but he wasn't sure how well that was going to work. Goku closed his eyes and unfurled his tail. "Come on, tail, don't let me down. You always pointed me the right way in the past..."

Feeling a tug on his extra appendage, Goku turned and prepared for a fight, only to see that a young girl had grabbed onto it. "Mommy! This guy has a tail! Like the monkey boy in those books you read me!"

The mother, a seemingly unfettered woman, stepped up and smiled. "Oh my! You're just like Son Wukong from the old fables, aren't you? My daughter loves those books! May she take a picture with you?"

Goku nervously chuckled. "Well, uh...sure. _I guess..._ "

 _On the rooftops..._

Piccolo leapt from rooftop to rooftop and observed everyone on the streets below. "This is ridiculous. Why didn't Goku ask that damned boy for a description of what these two are supposed to look like?!"

Piccolo came to a stop and glare down at a mass of people below. All of them looked like normal, everyday folks. But that could just be a ruse. Piccolo gritted his teeth. "Damn it."

 _In the residential area..._

Tien ran up and down the streets, glancing at around all of the people who were walking down the sidewalk. "How am I supposed to tell these Androids apart from other people?"

He stroked his chin. "If they're made by a former Red Ribbon Army guy, then they'd probably have the insignia on them somewhere. Or, maybe they wouldn't to be stealthier..."

Tien took another scan of the neighborhood and then took to the air again. "Would they attack the homes of the people on this island to attract us, or would they want to catch us off-guard? Too many factors to account for at once..."

 _In the back alleys..._

Yamcha raced through the back alleys of the city as he searched around for the Androids. "Shit man. This all feels pointless. I don't know what these guys look like and I couldn't sense them coming even if I did!"

Yamcha put his back to the wall as he stopped to catch his breath. "I feel like a sitting duck. They could get me at any minute. Wh-What am I supposed to even do here...?"

He bowed his head. "Just gotta think. Why would the Androids even come here in the first place? They wouldn't know that we'd be waiting for them, so they had to have had a reason to come here. _Unless, they came just because they sensed us here and we made a self-fulfilling prophecy..._ "

Yamcha groaned and buried his face in his hands. "Damn it all, man! This Time Travel stuff sucks! Why can't the future guy be here to help us out with this?!"

But, as Yamcha stood there and tried to wrap his head around quantum physics, the shrill sound of a woman's scream echoed out from the next street over, followed by an empty silence. Yamcha groaned, his face wreathed with fear and agony. "Dammit. This just isn't fair! Why me?!"

But then, swallowing the lump in his throat, Yamcha immediately sprinted towards the source of the scream.

 _Out at sea..._

With a little bit of effort, Gohan crested the choppy waters of the south sea and took in a gasp of fresh air. "I-It's okay. I've got you..."

Heaving himself out of the water, Gohan threw the injured Yajirobe onto his back and sighed. "Okay, Mr. Yajirobe is alive. Now I just have to take him somewhere safe and then I can go and help everyone else..."

Gohan looked towards the city. "Nothing appears to have happened yet. That's good. If the crisis can just wait to start a little longer..."

Yajirobe coughed up a ton of sea water onto Gohan's shoulder. Gohan frowned and glanced over at the injured man. "First things first. Gotta get Yajirobe some help..."

" _A geezer and a fatso..._ "

Gohan flinched. "Wh-What?!"

One of Yajirobe's eyes cracked open. "They appeared out of nowhere. A geezer and a fatso. And the fatso totaled my car with his laser eyes..."

Gohan nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Yajirobe. Now I know who to look for..."

 _Moments earlier, in the city..._

Two beings calmly walked down the city streets, looking like no more than two humans when mixed with the otherwise colorful crowd. Nobody thought twice when looking at these two. One was tubby and quite pale. The other was extremely old. The strangest thing about them, by far, was their fashion sense, but that only made people think they were foreigners. The two of them walked amongst the crowd and the older one spoke. "19, read for me the profile of that dolt we attacked."

The tubby one spoke in a chilling monotone. "Human is identified as male, Warrior Sub-Class: C, Nominal Designation: Yajirobe. No skills or techniques of note, but sub-notes from tracking robots list him as a master swordsman."

The older one smiled. "This Yajirobe, was he an ally of Son Goku?"

Android 19 nodded. "Yes, 20."

Android 20 chuckled. "Excellent. That means that our prey is sure to run headfirst into a bid for vengeance. We shall have the element of surprise on our side."

As the two of them talked, they shoved their way through the crowd and walked into the crosswalk without a proper signal. Everyone in the crowd gasped in shocked horror as they witnessed the two of them walk into traffic. And oncoming driver screamed and slammed his foot to the break, just barely stopping in time to avoid crashing directly into Android 20.

The driver immediately stuck his head out the window and started yelling. "Hey, you assholes! What the hell do you think you're doing jaywalking like that?! Why don't you learn the rules of the road?! Huh?!"

Two other citizens stepped out and tried to cover for 19 and 20. One of them nervously chuckled. "Hey old man! Calm down! Can't you see these two are foreigners? They probably just don't know how the roads here work..."

The other citizen put his hand on 19's shoulder. "Come on, you two. Let's get you out of the road and we'll show you how to cross properly."

19 and 20 looked to one another, 19's eyes briefly glowing red. 20 nodded to give him blessing and 19 smiled. The tubby Android turned to the man grasping his shoulder while his geriatric partner turned to the car that had nearly hit him.

Shocking everyone, 20 thrust his hand through the hood of the car with a sickening metal crunch. And then, effortlessly, he ripped the entire engine block from the vehicle. Everyone stared in shock and horror as 20 dropped the engine onto the street and slowly walked to the driver's side of the car. 19, meanwhile, reached up and grabbed the man holding his shoulder by the sides of his head.

The older driver stammered. "Now listen buddy. I didn't mean any disrespect, I just-"

20 reached into the window and grabbed the driver by the throat, yanking him up hard enough that it split the roof of his car. The guy grabbed 20's wrist, choking out various begging pleas for forgiveness. And then, without a second thought, 20 squeezed his throat hard enough that his head popped off like a wine cork.

And, at the same time, 19 twisted his wrists and made his victim's head do a full 180-degree spin. The poor guy lived long enough to his hat fall on the ground behind him, and then he fell over dead.

Seeing this senseless carnage, all of the other citizens fled. All except for two truly frightened individuals. The other helpful citizen was frozen in place as 19 approached. "P-Please, I won't bother you! Just pl-"

19's fist slammed into the guys face and caved it completely inward, sending him flying back and through a window. The other remaining citizen, the wife of the poor, dead guy with the hat, screamed in horror, but two beams of energy pierced her throat and she slumped down.

The two Androids admired their work with sinister grins, but then their sensors suddenly began to chirp. They both turned their attention towards a nearby back alley, and then the silently rose into the air. A few second later, they both watched as another warrior, clad in orange, came running out to observe their handywork.

The human looked mortified by what he saw. Android 20 addressed his presence with a clinical tone. "19, read for me the profile of this pathetic creature."

Android 19 nodded and spoke. "Human is identified as male, Warrior Sub-Class: B, Nominal Designation: Yamcha. Notable skills include a mastery of Wolf-Style Martial Arts, training in Turtle-Style Martial Arts, and minor swordplay. Immediate family consists of a feline creature by the name of Puar as well as a notable relationship with Goku's immediate friend Bulma."

Android 20 chuckled. "A small fish. But small fish make for excellent bait."

Android 19 smiled. "Shall we go introduce ourselves, 20?"

Android 20 nodded. "Indeed."

The two Androids silently landed behind Yamcha, stalking up behind him like to predators. Kneeling, Yamcha was checking on the woman that Android 20 has assaulted. She had very little vitality left in her eyes as she slumped there, but her last moments were defined by fear as she caught sight of the two of them one last time before the injuries to her throat caused her to expire. Yamcha shook his head and closed her eyes. "Dammit. This is wrong..."

Yamcha stood up and turned, immediately shocked by the two people standing behind him. His mind clouded by the horrors he has just observed, and the goodness of his soul shining through, Yamcha spoke in a concerned tone. "Hey guys! You might wanna get out of here."

No response from the two of them. Yamcha continued. "You see, there are two killer Androids running around. And they...could...be..."

Yamcha's eyes finally feel on the Red Ribbon Army insignias on their headwear. His words paused in his throat as the realization slowly came over him. " _No..._ "

Android 20 spoke. "We are them."

Yamcha's eyes widened. He leapt over the two Androids, into the street, and took a dire fighting stance. " _I'VE FOUND THEM! CHIAOTZU!_ "

Yamcha flinched. "Ch-Chiaotzu...?"

In that moment of confusion, Android 20 struck. The mechanical menace shot forward and clamped his hand over Yamcha's mouth, squeezing it tight enough that the fighting couldn't move his jaw. Yamcha's grabbed the Android by the wrists and attempted to pull his hand away, but he couldn't make it budge. Confused and horrified, Yamcha was lifted into the air.

And, as he hung there and meagerly kicked his legs, the fighter could immediately tell that something was wrong.

 _All across the city..._

All of the other Z-Fighters could immediately tell that something was wrong. Yamcha's energy, once stable, was suddenly on the decline. As this snapped each of them into attention, they all went running in the direction their friend and ally was in, hoping that they weren't already too late.

 _Back with Yamcha and the Androids..._

Yamcha was panicking as he hung there, feeling more and more of his energy draining away by the second. He uselessly fought against the strength of Android 20 as his composure left him. In his head, he was screaming. " _Chiaotzu! Chiaotzu! Come on man, where are you?! Call the others! Please!_ "

As Yamcha hung there, being drained, a massive fuel tanker came speeding down the road. The driver, seeing the three people in the middle of the road, cried out and tried his best to swerve to avoid hitting them. Android 19, hearing the sound of squealing rubber, turned with a vindictive smile and shot his eye beams, causing the front of the truck to explode and making it slide into a nearby gas station, the resulting explosion was so massive that is sent napalm-like streams of hellfire shooting down streets and into the sky.

Yamcha glanced to the side, utterly horrified by what he saw. People were screaming indiscriminately from within the flames. Yamcha could make out the vague silhouette of a parent holding their child, trapped within the building. Even though his strength was fading, and he couldn't call out for help, Yamcha still shakily reared his fist back. "Screw this! I... I gotta do some-"

A sickening crack that would ring through Yamcha's ears for the rest of his life echoed out. The former desert bandit's arms fell limply to his sides as his vision started to blur. The last sight Yamcha saw before passing out was the unfeeling faces of Android 19 and Android 20. And then, his body just hung there, held by the mouth with one cold, robotic hand...and skewered right through his chest with the other.

Right after Yamcha had passed out, his four friends arrived on the scene. Goku's eyes instantly widened as what he saw and he cried out. " _No! Yamcha!_ "

Piccolo growled under his breath as Krillin stood there, blue in the face. Tien glanced back at the horrific fire the Androids had caused, totally speechless at the carnage and the brutality. Android 20 lowered his arms and slowly ripped his hand from Yamcha's chest. "Ah, I see, the target of our campaign of vengeance has arrived..."

Goku was furious. " _Put Yamcha down right now!_ "

Android 20 complied, tossing Yamcha to the ground at Goku's feet like little more than garbage. The two Androids stared at the Z-Fighters, the flames reflecting in their glassy, emotionless eyes. Goku was trembling with fury. Krillin knelt on the ground to check on Yamcha.

As the staredown continued, Chiaotzu finally got back on to the psychic connection. "Sorry to go missing, guys! Gohan came back with Yajirobe and we were giving him a Senzu Bean. Also, Yajirobe has given us some new information! Apparently, the Androids outwardly resemble and old man and a pale, fat guy!"

Tien responded. "Yes Chiaotzu, we know. _Don't let Gohan come down here._ "

Android 20 chuckled. "That is quite the judicious move on your part. To keep such a strategically valuable piece away is quite smart."

He stared directly into Goku's eyes. "However, not having your son around to threaten will not change the outcome of today, _Son Goku_."

 _Meanwhile, at Capsule Corp..._

Chi-Chi laid there on the table in Bulma's home office, taking in and letting out deep breaths to deal with the pressure she was feeling. Bulma moved the ultrasound wand up and down he friend's stomach and smiled. "They're looking healthy in there, that's for sure. This is the last time we have for me to say this, are you sure that you don't want to know the gender, Chi-Chi?"

Chi-Chi was exhausted. Launch dabbed sweat from her sister-in-law's forehead as Chi-Chi denied. "No. Absolutely not. I want to be surprised. Although, I must admit that I'm still really hoping for a girl..."

Bulma smiled and popped the wand away, wiping Chi-Chi's belly clean with a warm towel. Off to the side, Bardock and Gine stood. Gine smiled. "Aren't you just thrilled, Bardock? We're so close~"

Bardock's arms were crossed over his chest, his index finger impatiently tapping his bicep. "I'm getting antsy. Where the hell is Vegeta?! We've gotta go!"

Bulma sighed as she cleaned the wand, apologizing. "Sorry Bardock. You know how that vain husband of mine can be. He still hasn't made the decision of what type of armor he wants to wear. I think I gave him too many options. But, hey, I'm glad to see you like the armor I gave you~"

Bardock was wearing a unique set of armor that Bulma had constructed for him. It was the same color scheme as his old armor, but the shoulder straps were replaced by a single tube strap running around the back of his neck. He also had a new pair of boots with similar tube straps on them and red trimming at the top and new wrist bands that had red trimming near the elbows and three slightly inflated rings around the wrists to cushion impact on his hands.

The older Saiyan growled and stormed off across the room, towards the window and balcony. Gine shook her head and turned to Bulma. "Forgive him. He's nervous about the whole Android thing."

Bulma waved Gine off. "No need to explain, I get it."

Sitting on the other side of the room, near the television, Raditz chuckled as Baby Trunks and Baby Ranch hung from his hair, swing around and playing with massive smiles of their faces. Raditz gently grabbed each of them by the tail and hung them upside down. "Now behave you two~"

Ranch giggled and swung forward, clamping onto her Dad's face and knocking him over. Trunks landed on his back onto the floor, but immediately got his bearings and crawled up to join Ranch in sitting on Raditz's chest. Ranch gibbered to herself and she slapped her hand against the armor beneath Raditz's gi, a set of brown and black armor in the same style as Bardock's old set. Raditz smiled. "That's armor Ranch! Can you say armor? Ar. Mor?"

Ranch waved her hands in the air. "Ahmuh! Ahmuh!"

Raditz smiled from ear-to-ear. "There we go! Good girl!"

Once Trunks joined her, Ranch stared over at him. And then, without warning, she snatched the hat off the top of his head. Trunks' brow furrowed and he smacked her on the arm. Ranch shrieked and tackled him over, both of them tumbling off of Raditz's chest and onto the floor. "Hey! The two of you behave! No fighting with each other!"

As Raditz tried to pull the two infants off of each other, the television suddenly shifted from cartoons to the news. The reporter on the screen had a serious look on his face. "Breaking news from the southern island chain! Amenbo Island has been rocked by an apparent terrorist attack! While the source of the explosion that has rocked the island has been attributed to a crashed fuel truck, many terrified citizens have claimed to have witnessed two threatening individuals that took several lives in their initial assault. We here at Z-TV will keep you up informed as the situation unfolds."

Raditz groaned. "Great..."

He gently kissed his daughter's forehead and ruffled Trunks' hair. "Hey Dad, I think that's our cue!"

Bardock briefly glanced away from the window and towards Raditz. "Yeah. You're right. That damned Vegeta needs to-"

Bardock glanced back to the window and was immediately caught off-guard. In the split second that he had looked away, two strange beings had appeared in the air, just off of Bulma's balcony. A silver-skinned behemoth and a purple dwarf both hovered there, scowls on their faces. Lights flashed behind the purple dwarf's sunglasses, and then he smirked. Bardock shouted. "Gine! Raditz! Protect the others!"

Both of the mysterious intruders raised their hands up and charged a massive blast, both of which they fired directly as Bardock. Bardock shouted and made his energy flare before firing back a blast of his own. The resulting explosion blew away half of the top of Bulma's house.

The two mysterious attackers floated there, watching as smoke billowed from the building. The purple dwarf spoke. "Think he's dead?"

The silver behemoth said nothing and shook his head. And then, as if on cue, Bardock shot out from the smoke, his Super Saiyan power surging, and sent both of them flying with a punch and a kick. From within the building, Bulma's voice cried out. "What the hell, man?! This is my house! Couldn't you have not blown up my house?!"

Bardock snapped. "Shut the hell up, Bulma!"

Bardock snarled at his two enemies. "So, who the hell are you clowns?!"

The purple dwarf, dressed in a screaming yellow suit, a pair of black shades, and a massive, gaudy hat, smirked and chuckled. "I would be the stylin' Android 15~"

He pulled a flask from within his jacket and took a long swig. And then, putting it away, he pointed at the other one: a massive, silver-skinned behemoth with long, braided hair and a cold look in his eye. "And that right there is Android 14."

Bardock was confused. "Wait, so the two Androids came here?! Then what the hell is happening on the islands?!"

Android 15 put up his hands and charged a blast. "What's happenin' on the islands shouldn't matter to a dead man!"

He fired a blast, and Android 14 did so as well. The two attacks shot right as Bardock, but then two beams from below pierced through them both. Android 15 yelled. "Hey! Who blasted my blast?!"

Raditz rose into the air, letting his arms fall to his sides. "Double Sunday."

He stood back-to-back with his father and took a fighting stance. "So, Dad, looks like future boy was wrong. Or, maybe him telling us about the future caused a butterfly effect that changed everything...?"

Bardock took a fighting stance as well. "Don't start turning into Bulma on me. We'll figure out what's going on after we destroy these two. Now, you take the silver one!"

Bardock charged, as did Raditz, and the two of them clashed with their foes. Bardock exchanged several punches with Android 15 before managing to get a harsh, right cross on the purple dwarf. He sent the little cretin flying with a kick and narrowed his eyes. "Is that all you've got, punk?!"

Raditz, meanwhile, charged his Kaioken up to Times 20 and kicked Android 14 in the chest. The larger Android shuddered, but he did not move. Raditz growled. "Fine, you're a bit strong, I guess. _Times 25!_ "

As the fighting continued, Bardock and Raditz continued to shout back and forth to one another. Raditz blocked a punch from Android 14 and called over to his father. "This is really annoying! And I'm worried about going all out above the city like this!"

Bardock slapped 15 across the face, sending him crashing down. 15 stopped himself and came charging back. Bardock sneered. "I'm just pissed that _Trunks_ got the information wrong when he came to tell us!"

Raditz nodded. "Yeah, I... _Trunks?!_ "

Android 14 slammed his fist into Raditz's face and sent him spiraling through the air. Bardock cringed. "Dammit, I said his name, didn't I? Ah well, Trunks has been born already, not like it matters now..."

Android 15 zipped up right next to Bardock, a charged blast in his hand ready to be smashed into Bardock's face. Bardock grabbed the little, purple imp's wrist and held it tight. " _BUT IT'S STILL FRIGGIN' ANNOYING THAT THE BRAT DIDN'T TELL US ABOUT THIS!_ "

Bardock slammed 15 onto his knee and tossed him to the side. As he prepared to give chase, however, another voice spoke up behind him. "Well...don't y'all just look like a couple chickens put out to feed at three-in-the-mornin'? Seems like you done been fed some faulty info in this here scenario~"

Bardock paused, the voice speaking to him instantly pissing him off with how it spoke. He turned around as saw another floating in the air behind him, a tall fellow wearing green cargo pants, a yellow vest, and a trucker hat with piercing blue eyes and flowing, silver hair. Bardock gripped his fists, as he had noticed with 14 and 15, he couldn't sense this guy's energy signature. "Are you kidding me?! I thought there were only two Androids!"

The stranger chuckled. "Two Androids? Me-oh-my...y'all don't give ol' Doctor Gero enough credit..."

Bardock growled. "And just who the hell are you?!"

The stranger chuckled. "Well, I am Android 13! And that's your unlucky son, hoss~!"

Android 13 pointed his thumb over to Raditz and Android 14. "Hey 15!"

Android 15 nodded. "Whatever ya say, Boss Man~"

15 rocketed away from Bardock and directly at the unsuspecting Raditz, smashing headfirst into the Saiyan's back and allowing 14 to clobber him. Bardock cried out. "Shit! _Raditz!_ "

Android 13 caught Bardock off-guard with a sharp kick to the face. Bardock was sent reeling, but managed to block another strike from the southern Android. Bardock shoved 13 back and took a fighting stance. This guy was in a whole different league from the other two. They clashed again and Android 13 laughed in Bardock's face. "You wanted to know who we were, right hoss?! Well allow me to explain fer ya! We're a special unit of Androids created by Dr. Gero to clear out some of the annoyin' Saiyan element that would cut of a clear road for his revenge to be carried out! We are the Saiyan Hunters! And we're gonna kill all of you!"

Android 13 shoved Bardock away. "It's a shame though, I was lookin' forward to killin' someone that looked like Goku, m'self. Why didja have to go and dye your hair blonde?!"

Bardock cocked his head. "Dye my hair...what are you-"

Android 13 extended his hand and fired a series of stinging ki bullets. Bardock crossed his arms in front of his face and snarled. As he defended against the brunt of the attack, Bardock thought to himself. "Do these guys... _not know what a Super Saiyan is?!_ "

Meanwhile, Raditz continued his battle with 14 and 15. The elder brother was a crafty fighter, and could easily hold his own against one of these guys. But the numbers game was slowly, but surely gaining the advantage on him. Raditz shouted. "I guess I have to go all out! MAX KAIOKEN! KAIOKEN TIMES 40!"

The force of Raditz's power coming unfurled sent 14 and 15 both flying back. 15 chuckled and took a sip of his flask. "Look at that power, 14! This guy sure is something!"

14 glared over at his partner and then dragged his thumb across his throat. 15 chuckled. "Yeah, definitely."

Putting his flask away, 15 fired a hypersonic energy beam that whistled as it pierced through the air. The attack hit Raditz on the thigh and went right through his knee. "Agh! Dammit!"

Android 14 began to charge a massive ki bomb. 15 chuckled and took out his flask, ready to take another swig. But then, out of nowhere, a massive blow sent Android 15 flying away. The purple dwarf's flask went flying, as did his gaudy hat. Oil leaked from his nose and sparks began to fly from his electronic brain case. "What the hell?!"

Android 14 dropped his hands, glaring at this new foe. 15's eyes began to flash as he scanned his attacker. The attack chuckled. "So, the Androids have decided to come to me? Marvelous~"

A sinister smirk spread across Vegeta's face as he hovered there, wearing his new style armor that Bulma had made for him. "I get to break in my new armor straightaway~"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	61. Chapter 61: The Androids Attack

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 **Chapter 61: The Androids Attack**

 _On Amenbo Island..._

With the fires of the burning gas station behind them, Goku and his allies faced down the two Androids. Goku was trembling with rage as he stared down at Yamcha's unmoving body. A vein popped out of his forehead as he glared at 19 and 20. "Bastards! You'll pay for this..."

He took a fighting stance. "You hear me, Androids?! You'll pay!"

The burst of power that came from Goku made the flames flare behind Goku. Android 20's eyebrows raised. "I see. How surprising..."

He stroked his bushy, white moustache. "How peculiar that you seem to be aware of what we are. Perhaps...have you somehow been spying on us as we have you, Son Goku?"

Both Androids took a step forward and Tien and Piccolo each took a fighting stance as well. Krillin recoiled in fear. Goku called over to him. "Krillin!"

Krillin turned to Goku. "Y-Yeah?"

Goku pointed to Yamcha. "Yamcha is still alive. Take him up to Chiaotzu and get him a Senzu Bean. Hurry! Please!"

Hastily, Krillin ran up to Yamcha and hoisted him over his shoulder. "Come on buddy. Let's..."

Krillin glanced up at 19 and 20, their icy cold, blue eyes trained on him. He shuddered. "Let's get you outta here..."

As Krillin flew off, the Androids watched him. Android 20 sneered. "I had thought I had killed Yamcha. But I suppose that even the smallest cockroaches may live without a head..."

As the Androids were distracted, Tien turned to Goku and Piccolo and whispered. "Guys, what do we do? We have to get these two out of here before they cause any more harm..."

Piccolo shot a stony glance towards the various corpses near the Androids. Goku clenched his teeth. "Yeah...we can't risk any innocent civilians getting caught up in our fight with these two. We have to-"

"I agree."

Goku, Piccolo, and Tien all snapped their attention back towards the Androids. Android 20 was staring right at them. He stepped forward and spoke. "I was just thinking a similar thought, actually. The presence of the interloping humans on this island is an indisputable irritation."

Android 20's eyes began to glow golden. "Allow me to solve the issue."

And then, to the surprise and horror of the Z-Fighters, 20 shot a pair of deadly eye lasers past the three of them and into the burning gas station, making a huge explosion. They could only watch on in shock and horror as the assault continued. 20's head jerked from left to right, firing bursts of energy into various buildings and sending a mass of explosions chaining across the island. 20 turned fully to his left and began to fire, 19 bending a perfect 90 degrees at the waist to accommodate his partner's needs. As the unrelenting killing spree continued, Goku charged forward, furiously angry. " _STOP!_ "

The Saiyan from Earth slammed his fist into Android 20's face, sending the Android's headwear flying and making him stumble back. 20 turned his attention back to Goku and hatefully glared, liquid bubbling in the mysterious dome atop his head. In his thoughts, 20 was actually quite surprised at how much power Goku had displayed with that punch. But he simply wrote it off as a product of Goku's clearly enraged state. Goku roared at 20. " _I don't care what sort of grudge you have with me! Leave these people out of this!_ "

Android 20 turned around, picking up his displaced helmet and carefully adjusting it back atop his head. "I do not understand your anger. I was merely doing as you had suggested and clearing the way for our fight."

The Android put on a sarcastic smirk. He was all too aware of how angry he had just made Goku. "Do you object to my methods, Son Goku?"

As the Android snarked at Goku, Tien looked behind them and observed the horror. Almost the entire island was on fire. People were scrambling around in the frames, screaming for loved ones and screaming for help. It was an unnerving sight, to be sure. Goku was livid. "Why?! Why bring them into this?! I'm the one you have a problem with, aren't I? Why not use those eye beams on me?!"

Android 20 chuckled. "Because, hurting others hurts you Goku. You and your good nature and your kind spirit...the senseless deaths of innocent people crushes you on the inside. So, it only fits my programming to personally reduce you to such a state. It helps to fulfill the grand desires of Dr. Gero~"

Tien scowled. "Hypocrites! You're out to follow Gero's orders?! Didn't you kill him?!"

20 seemed taken aback on that question. "Killed him? No. Dr. Gero was able to finish all of us to fulfill his wishes. And then he peacefully passed away of old age. It would seem that whatever your source of information might be, it is quite faulty."

Finally, Piccolo spoke up. "Information sources aside, you've rendered this city unacceptable to fight in. Smoke and fire everywhere makes for an unfair battleground against two foes that don't require breathing."

20 turned to Piccolo. "Oh so?"

Piccolo nodded. "You want to show how superior to us you are, right? Then, shouldn't we fight on an even playing field?"

19 and 20 turned to each other. And then, they turned back to Goku, Piccolo, and Tien and smiled. 20 spoke. "Quite so. Please, lead us to this 'fair battleground' that you so desire."

 _Amenbo Outskirts..._

Yamcha's eyes popped open as the Senzu Bean took effect. Like a lightning bolt, he shot up and clenched his chest through the hole in his shirt, gasping for air out of panic. Krillin gave him a gentle pat on the back. "Hey Yam-"

Yamcha yelped in fear and shoved Krillin away. Krillin stood back and held his hands up. "Hey! Calm down, man. It's okay! You're with friends!"

Krillin motioned around, showing Yamcha that Gohan, Chiaotzu, and Yajirobe were all gathered around as well. The former desert bandit didn't speak, he simply cupped his hands over his face and continued to gasp for air. After what he had gone through, Yamcha was inconsolable.

A few silent moments passed, the sounds of flames crackling and screams echoing coming from below. Despite all of the warnings they had received, none of them had thought the Androids would be anywhere near this destructive.

Staring out across the sea, a quick blur flashed across Yajirobe's view and he called out. "L-Look!"

Everyone looked up and saw, to their surprise, Goku and the others all flying away from the island at top speed, with the two Androids following closely behind. Gohan was surprised. "Th-They're leaving?"

Chiaotzu nodded. "That's good. They'll take all of the real fight away from these defenseless people."

Krillin sighed and glanced down at the flames. "Maybe we should-"

But then, to everyone's shock, Yamcha stood and shoved them all out of the way, taking off after them five of them. "Those guys don't know what they're getting into! I have to warn them!"

Krillin shouted after his friend. "Yamcha! Wait!"

He took off, chasing after him. "Warn them of what?!"

Gohan seemed nervous. "S-Something is wrong. We should go after them."

Chiaotzu nodded. "Right."

Gohan and Chiaotzu both took off. And then, with his telekinesis, Chiaotzu grabbed Yajirobe and pulled him behind them. "Come on, Yajirobe!"

Yajirobe called out as they all flew after Goku and the Androids. "Are you crazy?! I don't want to be anywhere near those guys! Put me down!"

 _Meanwhile, on the Capsule Corp lawn..._

As the horrors on Amenbo Island played out, the Saiyan Hunters carried on their mission in West City. That mission: exterminate the extraneous Saiyans while 19 and 20 carried out their mission against Goku. Bardock and Android 13 brawled high in the air, Vegeta played around with Android 15, and Raditz fought for his life on the ground with Android 14.

The elder brother's lack of a Super Saiyan transformation was damning him as it had so many times before. Raditz was an excellent warrior after all of his training with his brother and newfound friends on Earth, but this Android had a new level of power and speed all his own.

Android 14 remained terse as he shot his hand to the side and summoned a bolt of energy, forming it into and energy spear. He charged at Raditz and stabbed at him with the weapon over and over, nearly hitting the Saiyan several times. Raditz clenched his teeth and then shouted. "HAAAAAAHHH!"

His energy flared, colliding with the point of the spear and causing it to shatter. Raditz leapt back and watched at 14 tossed the broken spear aside and summoned a new one. He took a deep breath and sighed. "Times 40 is unsustainable..."

Raditz let his Kaioken fall to Times 30, his highest, most well-mastered multiplier. Another deep breath and a sigh, and then Raditz's eyes snapped open. "Bring it, Android!"

Two spears came flying at Raditz; he dodged each of them with relative ease and then fired back a few blasts of his own. 14 grabbed two of the blasts and crushed them in his grip. The third hit him in the chest, but it did no damage. 14 charged and summoned an energy tomahawk, bringing it down hard towards Raditz's head. Raditz dodged and watched as the tomahawk dug into the ground, creating a massive fissure going both ways across the yard.

Raditz fired several more blasts at 14's face and then followed it up with a kick. But all that resulted in was a serious pain in Raditz's foot. He fell to the ground clenching his leg and snarled. "Dammit...what kind of metal are you made of?!"

14 levied his massive fist down towards Raditz, but Raditz was quick to react. He popped out of reality using his Instant Warp, appearing right behind 14 and pressing his hands onto 14's back. "Double Sunday!"

The energy blasts shot from Raditz's palms and engulfed 14. Raditz smirked, thinking he had done some damage. But, once the smoke cleared, Raditz was shocked. 14 stood there, barely fazed by the attack. The Android silently glared back at Raditz and grabbed a handful of the Saiyan by his massive ponytail. He tossed Raditz to the ground and stomped on his chest twice. Raditz gurgled, but managed to Warp out of harms way before the third stomp. Atop a nearby roof, Raditz took a second to breathe, but 14 was right on top of him.

Raditz and 14 traded blows, with Raditz getting in several jabs to 14's face and chest. But 14's resilience won the day again. His lack of fatigue or injury in the face of these strikes allowed the Android to summon another spear and nearly run Raditz through. Raditz leapt back and caught the tip of the blade with his hands. With a jerk, he snapped the spearhead off and, turning it on its former owner, he sank it into the center of 14's chest. For the first time in the fight: real damage!

Continuing with his knew lead, Raditz used the Instant Warp to bounce across the yard. He smirked and motioned 14 to come at him. 14's eyes were steely. He charged Raditz and Raditz responded by charging a Saturday Crush. Once 14 was close enough, he threw a kick. Raditz feinted off to the side and levied his Saturday Crush at 14's new wound, sending a current of ki-based electricity into the behemoth's chest.

Raditz smirked and charged another attack as 14 hovered there, paralyzed. "Shining Friday!"

But, to Raditz's shock, 14 regained his senses too quickly. The Android sneered at Raditz and grabbed the Saiyan by the throat. And then, with his free hand, he busted Raditz in the jaw. Raditz was dazed, so 14 sent him off with one last attack, a devastating kick to the gut that sent Raditz crashing hard into the ground.

 _In the sky, above Capsule Corp..._

Sending sonic booms through the air, Bardock and Android 13 traded intense blows back and forth. It was quite clear from the Bardock's point of view, even if he couldn't sense a power level, that Android 13 was the strongest of these three. As he and Bardock continued to fight, the two of them threw not only punches and kicks, but also sarcastic jabs at one another.

Bardock and 13 clashed with mirrored elbow jabs. Bardock snarked. "Nice hat, scrap heap..."

They exchanged a rapid series of punches and kicks. 13 chuckles as he caught Bardock's forearm and tossed the Saiyan across the sky. "Dr. Gero certainly had a peculiar sense of design when he was coming up with my final schematics! Not that I much care to complain~"

He charged and tried to kick, but Bardock caught his leg and headbutted 13. "You look like an idiot."

13 shook his head with a wry smirk. "You're trying to catch me off-guard with your petty insults. Organic fool! I care not for the superficial aspects of my outer appearance! I exist for one reason and one reason only, to kill me some Saiyans! So why don't you quit snarkin' at me with your _thirty-zeni-haircut_ and prepare yourself to die, Saiyan!"

13 charged again and the fight started again in earnest. 13 and Bardock zipped across the sky as little more than blurs, trading intense strikes back and forth and knocking each other around. Every now and again, when an opening presented itself, one of them would go for a more lethal blow, but the other was always prepared to dodge, deflect, or defend.

Bardock shot towards 13 like a missile and slam his knee into the Android's jaw, knocking him sideways. And then, in one swift motion, Bardock grabbed 13 by the head, flare his Super Saiyan power, and twisted the Android's head backwards. 13's eyes went blank and he began to drop like a stone...only to suddenly stop in the air and smirked at Bardock. "Did you really think that would work? I'm mechanical, son!"

13 twisted his head back the appropriate way. "Pretty half-assed idea if ya ask me. I think ya done been out in the sun without a hat on ya head for too long!"

Bardock crashed down and punched 13 across the face, grabbing his hat in one swift motion. "Well, seeing as you don't care about appearances, how about I just borrow yours?!"

13 shot back up and grabbed Bardock's wrist. "How dare you?!"

And backhand slapped Bardock across the face. "You don't EVER touch a southern gentleman's hat!"

Bardock glared. "I _know_ you didn't just _slap_ me."

He sank his fist into 13's stomach, brutalized him with a series of kicks, and then sent him flying across the sky with a spinning punch. 13 stopped himself mid-flight and dusted himself off with a smirk. "Data Collection complete."

Bardock cocked his head. "What...?"

13 smiled and pressed his right finger to his temple, making his eyes flash multiple colors. "Data Input."

13 pulled his hat back onto his head and chuckled. "I am a unique model conceived by Dr. Gero. I can, at will, instantaneously rewrite my database with uniquely calculated information based upon the fighting style of the person I'm fightin'. Unlike the 14, 15, or 19 models, I merely need to take a few hits from an opponent to extrapolate a proper sum total of their skill factors."

Bardock made a note of that. "19, huh?"

And then he struck a fighting stance. "Quit it with that damned Bulma speak..."

13 chuckled. "Let me simplify for you, ya idjit. You. Can't. Beat. Me!"

Bardock smirked. "Well, your brain computer apparently isn't perfect..."

13 cocked his head. "Oh so?"

Bardock charged at him. "Yeah! It ain't advanced enough to see the writing on the wall!"

13 and Bardock clashed once more, with 13 much more quickly reacting to Bardock's attacks, blocking and catching most of them at an excelled rate. Bardock was annoyed. He threw a punch and 13 caught it. "See?! My computer-"

Bardock headbutted him, denting in his nose. "Didn't see that coming, did it?!"

13 headbutted back. "Looks like I got more data to collect!"

 _Over by Bulma and Vegeta's house..._

Vegeta was snidely chuckling as he leapt away from and dodged every attack that Android 15 had to throw at him. Whether it be a punch, a kick, or an energy blast, 15 could not touch Vegeta. The purple dwarf was furious. Sparks could be seen flying around inside his electronic brain case. He shot another blast and Vegeta, rather than dodge or deflect, caught the attack.

He came to a halt, smirking at 15, and tossing the attack from hand to hand. 15 smiled and tried to detonate it remotely, but nothing happened. He was shocked and Vegeta laughed out loud. "Fool! I've already surrounded your pathetic, artificial energy with my own! This is no longer your blast to manage."

15 screamed. "Overconfident Saiyan bastard!"

He ripped off his right hand, revealing a gun beneath, and charged an attack. Android 15 shouted. "Die!"

And then he fired, sending a beam of energy right at Vegeta. Vegeta shrugged and tossed the energy ball as hard as he could, shredding through the energy beam and sending it straight up the barrel in 15's arm, causing it to explode.

15 recoiled back, screaming in frustration. He tried to regain himself, but Vegeta shot out of the smoke and kicked him directly in the face, shattering his sunglasses. 15 sat up, his electronic eyes glaring at Vegeta with a sinister red glow. Vegeta chuckled and beckoned. "Come on then, fool. I don't have all day."

Android 15 stood and charged at Vegeta. "I'll teach you for treating me like a joke!"

Vegeta sneered. "I would never treat you like a joke-"

And then, drawing back his fist, Vegeta through a punch right at 15's face. The Prince's fist tore through the mechanical construct that was 15's head, rending metal into scrap and sending pieces of debris flying. Vegeta shook his head. "Jokes are funny. You're more of an embarrassment that's fun to point and laugh at."

Vegeta ripped his fist away from the remainder of Android 15's head, a twitching lower jaw and a fuel-line that was spurting bursts of synthetic fuel. Vegeta pressed his hand against 15's chest and shouted. "RARRGH!"

A massive ball of energy came of out Vegeta's hand and pushed 15's corpse across the yard. It collided into the side of Capsule Corp and exploded, making it rain 15's various parts. Android 14 and Android 13 both gave pause to this, looking over to their destroyed teammate's remains. Vegeta marched over to Android 14 and chuckled. "I guess it would be your turn, eh lummox?"

14 sneered and charged, but Vegeta sent him crashing away with a heavy kick. He thrust his hand towards 14, ready to blow him to pieces, but then Raditz stepped in the way. The elder brother was bursting with red, Kaioken power. He held out his hand. "Save your energy Vegeta! I've got this!"

Vegeta chuckled. "Oh~! Does Little Raditz want to fight the big, bad tinker toy by himself?"

Raditz snapped. "I'm older than you. Now shut up and go to the Amenbo Islands! Just because Androids happened to show up here doesn't mean that there aren't more over there!"

Vegeta cocked his head. "Are you sure?"

Raditz barked at him. "Quit screwing around, damn it! You know that you had the same thought!"

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "I did. That Android 15 loser was nowhere near the challenge a Prince such as myself deserved to face. That Dr. Gero had a grudge against Kakarot, so the real opponents are most likely where he is..."

The Prince rose into the air. "So, I guess I'll head that way. Try not to die to that fool and embarrass us Raditz, okay?"

Raditz growled in annoyance. As Vegeta began to fly away, 14 stood back up and tried to follow. But, Raditz quickly stood in the Android's path and sent him crashing back to the ground with a heavy punch.

Looking out of the corner of his eye at what just happened, Vegeta cracked a small, proud smirk and sped off in the direction of the Amenbo Islands.

 _Meanwhile, with Bardock and 13..._

Bardock and 13 continued their heated brawl with more fervor than before. But something was different this time. 13 was no longer smiling, nor was he snarking. He seemed furious. He smashed Bardock away with a punch and shouted. "I will not fail the mission I was given! No Saiyan shall escape my purview!"

He turned and immediately tried to chase after Vegeta, but a heavy blast to the back caught his attention. Bardock sneered at 13. "I don't recall saying we were done!"

13 glared back at Bardock. Bardock rushed at him, ready to start brawling anew. But, this time, 13 managed to catch him off-guard. The Android turned and charged a massive energy ball, shooting it directly in Bardock's face and stunning him.

Bardock was quick to shake that off, but that split second was all that 13 needed. Bardock stared, wide-eyed, at the massive energy ball that 13 had prepared. "Let's see ya bounce back from this one, hoss!"

13 over-hand tossed the blast at Bardock. "S.S. Deadly Bomber!"

Bardock retreated towards the ground. "Bulma's gonna be pissed about her yard..."

At the last second, Bardock dodged to the side, expecting the blast to collide with the ground and explode. But, to his surprise, the attack came to a quick halt and then rapidly shot over in his direction. Bardock cursed. "Ah shit. A homing attack..."

He crossed his arms in front of his face as the attack hit him head one, sending the Saiyan crashing through Bulma's fence and into the side of a nearby office building.

13 smirked. "Target destroyed. Now, for Vegeta..."

He turned mid-air to start flying in Vegeta's direction. Just as 13 began to take off, however, a massive energy beam came shooting towards him. 13 dodged backward, but his hat came flying off of his head and was quickly incinerated. Angry, the Android glanced down to the ground below and found a new challenger glaring at him.

Gine cracked her neck and sighed. "I might be a bit out of practice, but..."

A golden flash caused Gine's hair to erupt and spike up. "I'm a Saiyan, myself. Are you just going to run off and leave me standing here, perfectly alive? Huh, _Saiyan Hunter_?"

13 scowled at her. "Now, it ain't too polite to lay hands on a fair lady..."

Gine took a fighting stance. "I might not like fighting, but I'm anything but a fair lady."

13 smirked. "Well that's good. Cuz I ain't feelin' too polite right now..."

The Android sped down almost too quickly for the eye to see and stomped his foot down onto the side of Gine's head, grinding his heel into her cheek and forcing her head into the dirt. "I take you don't leave the kitchen much, eh lady? All it took was one-"

Gine charged a blast and shot it into 13's knee, damaging the joint fairly significantly. 13 buckled and winced. "Ah! You bitch!"

Gine leapt up and slammed her heel into the side of 13's head, sending him crashing across the yard. "I might be out of practice, but it'll take more than one stomp to put me down!"

She spat blood out of her mouth and squared up. "Come on then! I'm not getting any younger!"

13 raised his hand and fired three rapid energy blasts. The attacks were too quick for Gine to respond and peppered onto her right shoulder and upper chest, blasting part of her qipao away. Gine went tumbling back and groaned, clenching her injured shoulder. "At least...I wore a bra today..."

And then, she shouted and powered-up before charging at 13. The two of them exchanged blows back and forth, with Gine occasionally managing a solid hit against the Android. They separated and Gine struck an Ox-Style fighting stance. "Gotta focus on defense. He's...definitely stronger than me..."

13, meanwhile, smirked and pressed his finger to his temple. "Data Input."

 _Meanwhile, with Raditz and Android 14..._

As Raditz fought with his Android foe, he could see that his mother was struggling against Android 13. The elder son growled and turned. "Dammit! I'm coming Mom!"

Raditz tried to speed over to her, but 14 was there in a flash. He double axe-handled Raditz to the ground and shot him in the back with a hefty blast. Raditz bounced and coughed up blood, but managed to roll out of the way as 14 tried to stab him with an energy spear. 14 glared at Raditz, summoning an energy tomahawk into his free hand. Raditz struggled to his feet. "D-Damned Android..."

Raditz charged at Android 14, summoning a blast into his hand. "I need to get past you!"

He unloaded the attack into 14's face. But, as usual, it did nothing. 14 emerged through the blast and shoulder tackled Raditz across the yard. Raditz tumbled and landed in a heap. 14 glowered down at him, his face bereft of emotion. But then, Raditz began to feebly, one-arm drag himself away and 14 adopted a sinister smile.

14 loudly stomped up behind Raditz, hoping to instill some more fear into the Saiyan before he delivered the final blow. Eventually, Raditz came to a stop and began to tremble. " _M-Mom...Mom..._ "

14 smiled wide, showing all of his teeth, and then he raised his spear high into the air to run Raditz through. But, before he could stab, 14 was shocked as Raditz turned over. Raditz glared up at 14, his middle and index fingers pressed to his brow. And then he shouted. "Hold on Mom!"

Raditz thrust his fingers directly toward the previously made hole in 14's chest and shouted. " _SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

The piercing energy drill shredded through 14's already compromised outer shell and blasted a massive hole through the Android's chest. He dropped his spear and his tomahawk and they shattered as he stumbled back, sparks of electricity and roiling smoke belching from his mouth. Raditz stood and tried to run past 14. In the distance, he could see that 13 had his mother on the ropes. "Mom!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Raditz just barely saw the attack before it was too late. He crashed to the ground to avoid the massive, energy tomahawk splitting his head in two. Raditz looked up and saw, to his horror, that Android 14 was still very much alive.

The hulking Android loomed over Raditz, his skin shifting from light purple to blood red. He looked absolutely enraged and he shouted a shrieking war cry. " _HWAAAAAAAAAAAAH!_ "

Raditz stood, looking just as angry as 14. "Damn you! Get out of my way!"

And then, with a shout, Raditz began to explode with bright red energy. "KAIOKEN TIMES 40!"

He struck an aggressive fighting stance at Android 14. "Don't think you can stop me! I _will_ move you to save her!"

Raditz and Android 14 charged into one another and clashed. They locked up and began to try to wrestle one another to the ground, looking for any advantage to kill their foe. Ultimately, the wrestling match was won by Android 14, whose brute strength allowed him to toss Raditz aside like a toy. Raditz tried to scramble to his feet, but 14 jolted towards him and kicked him hard enough to make him airborne. And then, the brute followed that up with a hefty smash that sent Raditz crashing to the ground.

14 snarled and tossed a massive energy bomb towards Raditz. Raditz caught the bomb and bent under the pressure, instantly being pushed to his knees. "D-Dammit..."

Raditz was sweating. He squeezed his eyes shut and his mind went to the same place it had gone every time he had been under pressure for the past two years. He saw them all standing there, in the light...all of them glowing with that mystical, golden power: his brother, his rival, his father, and his mother. They all stood there, like golden torches marching forward in life...while he was left behind in the dark.

What was wrong with him?

Why was that power out of his reach?

What was stopping him?

Why was he stuck like this, left to rot in mediocrity...?

" _RADITZ!_ "

Raditz's eyes popped open. He glanced out from under the energy blast and saw her peeking out from the rubble that used to be Bulma's house. Launch was standing there, a worried look on her face, and Ranch was in her arm, cooing and babbling right at him. Raditz's view switched from them and over to his mother, who was currently receiving the beating of her life from Android 13. And then he clenched his teeth. "Right. No time to fall into that pit of despair again. Not right now..."

Raditz roared at the top of his lungs, summoning even more power from within. The Kaioken Times 40 wasn't enough, so Raditz decided to jump straight to Times 50! Raditz fired a massive blast of his own into 14's blast and caused a massive burst that dispelled both.

Android 14 trembled with rage up in the sky. Raditz motioned. "Come on! Let's do this dance one more time!"

14 shrieked once more and charged down towards Raditz, ready to pummel the Saiyan. Raditz smirked. "Looks like I have to steal another move from that day..."

And then, putting all of his strength into his legs, Raditz leaped upwards and smashed the top of his head into Android 14's chest hole. Raditz smirked. "Thanks, Gohan, I owe you one..."

Raditz shoved both of his hands into the crippled 14's stomach and sneered. "Now, begone..."

And finally, sapping almost all of his energy and focusing it into his hands, Raditz launched his newest, most deadly attack. " _ **BLACK FRIDAY!**_ "

All of Raditz's energy erupted through 14's body. The sheer force of the power came blasting out from 14's mouth, his nose, his eye sockets, and even the tips of his fingers. 14's rigid skin began to warp and ripple, and then a final explosion rocketed out, sending his parts fly everywhere.

A damaged Raditz crash hard into the ground and groaned. "P-Please tell me that worked..."

He looked up into the air and breathed a massive sigh of relief. After the smoke cleared, all that was left of Android 14 was a charred, metal skeleton. It dropped from the sky like a stone and crashed onto the ground, crumbling into a pile of metal dust.

Raditz stood up, feeling woozy. "Ugh...too much energy at once. I feel lightheaded..."

A sharp crack of a punch quickly snapped Raditz awake and he turned to see that Android 13 and his mother were still fighting. Raditz began to drag himself toward the fight. "Damn it...Mom..."

Android 13 caught Gine's fist and punched her in the mouth. And then, as she recoiled, he wrapped his hand around her throat. "Lookin' like this is about over, little lady~!"

13 began to squeeze harder, but then Raditz called out. "Drop her!"

The Android glared over at the Saiyan and sneered. "You have got to be kiddin' me..."

13 sighed. "And just who's askin' me to drop her, huh? You? Lands-sakes boy, you ain't even a golden fella! What the hell do you think you're gonna do?"

Raditz clenched his fist. "I'm not...a Super Saiyan? So what...I have my whole life ahead of me to reach that level, so that doesn't matter right now..."

He shouted. "Drop my Mother!"

13 squeezed Gine's throat tighter. "Make me."

Raditz lurched forward, every part of his body aching. "Dammit..."

13 held his hand up, prepping a blast to fire at Raditz. But then, to his shock, Gine sprang back to life. She made a V with her fingers and shouted. "RADITZ! SHUT YOUR EYES!"

Raditz complied and Gine snarled. "SOLAR FLASH!"

The miniature Solar Flare blasted directly into 13's eyes and he growled in frustration. "Damn you Saiyans and your tricks!"

Gine leapt over to Raditz's side and looked to him with concern. "Your energy is flagging. Are you okay?"

Raditz sighed. "R-Running on empty..."

It didn't take long for 13's eyes to readjust. He chuckled and charged a blast. "Idiots."

But, before he could fire, another attack came at 13 from behind. A piercing arrow of energy, similar to the Destructo-Disc, shot past 13's head and blew off his ear. Sparks shot from the wound as 13 turned and glared. "You... _ain't I killed before?!_ "

Bardock stood there, a wry smirk on his face. He was a bit banged up, but his armor was intact. "Nah. Not even close. That half-assed little party balloon you tossed at me barely even damaged the building behind me. Certainly, didn't hurt my shiny new armor. Gotta thank Bulma for this later."

Bardock shouted. "Yo, Raditz! Good work killing that Android. But, you're outta power son. So go and help your brother..."

He cracked his neck. "Your Mom and I will finish this Red Ribbon Redneck."

Raditz was confused. "Why would Kakarot need-"

Bardock sighed. "Feel his energy closely, Raditz. Something is... _off_."

Raditz briefly felt around for his brother's energy, and then a sense of dread came over him. "R-Right. I'll head that way..."

The elder brother took off into the sky, his posture showing concern and worry. Bardock turned to his wife. "Ready to help me fight?"

Gine wiped blood away from under her nose. "Let's end this. I'm worried about Kakarot as well."

13 sneered and aimed a blast up towards Raditz. This was met with a quick reaction from Bardock and Gine, both of whom fired their own attacks at 13. 13 smacked Gine's to the ground. But when he saw Bardock's attack, another Destructo-Disc beam, he dodged out of the way. 13 sneered. "What the hell is that all about? My databanks don't show you knowin' that technique!"

Bardock chuckled. "Your data banks are shit. I always try to learn what I can from my teammates."

He shook his head. "Not that I owe you any explanations. You're trying to kill my youngest son. And you've already attempted to kill my eldest son and my wife. You know..."

Bardock's power flared. "I've gotta make you pay for that! You know that, right?!"

13's eyes chirp and flashed and then he chuckled, tapping his temple. "Data Input."

Bardock snarled. "Keep it up with that Data Input crap! It won't help! We've been training for you robot bastards to show up for two years! We're ready for you!"

13 chuckled. "Yeah, that much is clear. Y'all have had answers for us non-stop since we showed up. Certainly, wasn't expectin' all the hair dyin' and strength gainin' y'all got up to today. But...I bet I have a surprise you ain't got the answer for..."

Bardock was confused. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Android 13 smiled wide. "14 and 15 have been destroyed... _and that's good_..."

13 laughed out loud and grabbed the edges of his vest. He pulled it wide open and then, from the wreckage of Androids 14 and 15, four components arose. Two of them flew to the sides of 13's head, sliding seamlessly into his temples. And then the other two collided with his chest and melted in through his skin.

Bardock and Gine both flinched back, watching as 13 doubled in height and his skin shifted to an unnatural shade of blue. 13's hair spiked up high and turned a plastic shade of orange. Finally, his synthetic muscles expanded and exploded out, reducing his vest into tatters.

13 loomed over Bardock and Gine, both of whom powered up and faced him down. Bardock chuckled. "You are one _ugly_ son of a bitch."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	62. Chapter 62: Goku vs Android 19

**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: This will be the last chapter of 2019. I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who read this for an excellent year of viewership and feedback. Whether positive or negative, I appreciate everyone who took the time to even comment on my little project here. I look forward to continuing to entertain you all going into the year 2020. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!_

 **Chapter 62: Goku vs. Android 19**

 _At Capsule Corp..._

Android 13 snarled like a raging beast as he charged at Bardock and Gine. He plunged his massive fist down towards the two of them, but they were able to dodge out of the way. Gine watched as 13's fist sunk into the ground, rending and rippling the Earth around him as if it were water. 13 ripped his fist from the ground and charged into the air after Bardock. He grabbed the older Saiyan by the armor strap and pounded him across the face with his fist. Bardock crashed and tumbled across the ground, blasting himself out of the way as 13's giant foot came down.

Bardock stood and wiped the scuff off of his cheek. Gine landed next to him. "Are you okay...?"

Bardock nodded. "Yeah..."

The two of them watched as 13 continued to rampage in that one spot, snarling and screaming and stomping his foot to the ground over and over. Bardock stroked his chin. "Hmm..."

Gine saw it as well. "All of that extra power has made him little more than a raging beast. He's just going to rampage until he either gets a better handle on his new power or until we kill him."

Bardock turned to Gine. "Let's try for the latter option, eh?"

Gine smiled. "Tag team maneuvers?"

Bardock smirked. "You know it, babe."

Finally, 13's latest tantrum ended and he turned back towards the Saiyan. He snarled. Bardock and Gine both struck a fighting stance and their golden power flared. 13 roared and hammered his fists against his chest. And then he rushed towards Bardock and Gine.

Both Saiyans took a deep breath as he came towards them. 13 raised his hands for a double fist smash. But, as the fists dropped, Bardock and Gine intercepted. They each wrapped their arms around one of 13's tree-trunk appendages and heaved him into the air, swinging him wildly and tossing him at one of Bulma's nearby garages. They both watched as the building crumbled and Gine groaned. "Bulma's not going to be happy..."

Bardock took a knee. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it!"

13 popped up from the rubble and roared like a gorilla. Bardock lunged from his stance and charged at the brute. "Covering fire!"

Gine held up her hands and shouted. "MOTHER BLITZ!"

Bardock used his superior speed to weave between Gine's blasts. He smirked as the energy bolts went past him and peppered into 13's skin. They weren't doing damage, but that wasn't their purpose either. In the confusion and the blinding light, Bardock slammed his knee into 13's face, making the Android's metal nose warp and bend inward. He did a quick spin in the air, charging an energy bolt into his palm, and slammed the attack into 13's damaged ear. 13 buckled over and Bardock finished the assault with an energy-enhanced elbow drop that pressed 13 into the ground.

Bardock rose high into the air and summoned a massive energy bolt. He tossed it down at 13 and shielded himself from the massive explosion that followed.

Across the yard, Gine watched as a massive plume of smoke curled into the air, engulfing Bardock. She sighed. "He could stand to be a bit more subtle..."

Sirens started ringing out in the distance and she face-palmed. " _Great._ "

Up in the smoke, Bardock started down, trying to get a better view of the Android. "I don't think that would have killed him, but I bet he's at least-"

13 came shooting through the smoke with a wicked grin on his face. His skin had superficial damage going across it, but the blast that Bardock had shot had not done much else. 13 grabbed Bardock by the left ankle. He attempted to seize the right ankle as well, but Bardock moved his foot out of the way. "Do I look like an amateur to-"

13 smirked and reared his free hand back, balling it into a fist and coating it in energy. And then he levied a massive, powerful punch directly into Bardock's crotch. Bardock yelped, his eyes rolling back and 13 chuckled. The Android then grabbed Bardock's free ankle and swung him around in the air before slinging the older Saiyan down to the ground below.

Gine ran over to her husband. "Bardock! Are you okay?!"

Bardock whimpered like an injured puppy. Gine looked concerned, but then she and Bardock were enveloped in a red light. She turned to see a massive energy blast coming right at them and, very quickly, grabbed Bardock and leapt out of the way.

Gine glared up at 13, hovering there menacingly. She attempted to set Bardock on his feet, but the Saiyan buckled and fell to his knees, groaning in agony. Gine rolled her eyes. "Bardock, I'm sorry if you're hurt. But you aren't bleeding and nothing is visibly broken. So, pull yourself together and then join me up there to take this guy out!"

Gine charged into the air, shouting at the top of her lungs. "It's about time to finish this fight, Android!"

She tried her best, but Gine was still easily much weaker than this super-powered 13. There wasn't much she could do here by herself. She threw a punch, but 13 caught her fist with a smirk. She tried to retaliate with a kick, but 13 responded by clubbing her on the side of the head with his massive fist.

Gine cried out in pain, but 13 wasn't done. Still gripping her arm, he tossed Gine into the air and then grabbed her by the ankle. Gine glared down at him readying a blast. But then, 13 reared back his massive fist, coated it with energy, and then punched Gine directly in the crotch.

All of the air left Gine's lungs as she gasped in pain, her eyes nearly going blank. She shivered in pain as 13 grabbed her by the other ankle and tossed her to the ground next to Bardock. Gine whimpered as she laid there, face down in the dirt. Bardock, just recovering from his own critical hit, glanced over at her. "H-Hey, Gine..."

Gine couldn't lift her face out of the dirt. " _Wmmt?_ "

Bardock winced as he stood up, his legs like jelly. "Pull yourself together."

Gine sounded very annoyed. " _Kmms mh mss!_ "

Up in the air, 13 raised both of his hands and summoned another massive energy bomb. He roared at the top of his lungs and heaved it down at the Saiyans. Gine shakily stood, using Bardock as a support. Bardock gave her a pat on the back. "Seriously though, you okay?"

Gine nodded. "I have to be. We have a fight to win."

Bardock smiled. "That's the spirit."

Bardock charged a massive blast and fired it towards 13's. The two energy attacks struggled against one another, but both Bardock and 13 held firm. Gine took a deep breath and let it out. And then, she turned on her heel and shouted. "KAMEHAMEHA!"

Gine fired her attack, making it arc around Bardock and 13's struggle and directly into 13's face. The Android growled in frustration and lost his grip on the energy struggle. Bardock capitalized by pumping even more power into his attack and forcing both his and 13's blasts to engulf the raging Android.

After a massive explosion, 13's body fell from the sky like a stone. But, Bardock and Gine knew this wasn't over. They each took a fighting stance, watching as 13 stood up. The Android looked angry, all of the veins in his forehead pulsing in frustration. He roared loud enough that windows shattered and concrete cracked all throughout West City. Bardock and Gine both shouted back; letting the Android know that they were prepared to take him on.

The two sides glared at one another, and then they ran at each other, ready to continue their epic battle!

 _In the barren wasteland..._

A harsh, desert wind blew as Goku, Piccolo, and Tien landed. They had finally managed to locate an area where there was no chance of innocent life being placed at risk. Right on their heels, the Z-Fighters Android foes descended from the sky and landed, both of them glaring with their icy, blue eyes directly at Goku. Android 20 chuckled. "An excellent choice, Goku. This barren landscape shall serve as your burial plot. The sheer mountains your headstone."

Goku glared at Android 20, out of breath. "I-I don't get it. Why would your creator have you target innocents like that? Is his...his grudge really so petty that he wants to drag the people of Earth into this too?"

Piccolo glanced over at Goku as he spoke, his attention captured. Goku hadn't flown that far, especially compared to the flight from his home to Amenbo Island. And yet, he was out of breath? Something wasn't right here.

Android 20 spoke clinically. "Your feelings are irrelevant, Son Goku. At the behest of our glorious creator, Dr. Gero, we have been tasked with ending your life. The means by which we do so have been carefully thought out to provide you with as much misery as possible before your demise it met."

Goku gripped his fist tight. "And all of this over an army?! Is that really what he was so mad about?! Dr. Gero was so upset about the end of the Red Ribbon Army that he wanted to cause all of this death and destruction?!"

Android 20's voice remained clinical, but something in his eyes turned significantly more malicious. The Android almost seemed to be speaking through gritted teeth. "I was not apprised of the specific details of the revenge by our creator. Just that you needed to be educated..."

Tien flinched. "Educated? Educated of what?! We've dealt with psychotic monsters before, what could you teach us?!"

Android 20 glared at Tien. "You are ignorant. All three of you. But, Dr. Gero was a believer that wisdom could be attained by anyone, if only through suffering. So, you needn't worry Tenshinhan. Android 19 and myself plan to make Son Goku and everyone he has ever known quite wise indeed."

Piccolo sneered. "Intimidating. But how exactly do you plan to do that. What do you machines know?"

Android 20 smirked. "Everything."

Goku, Tien, and Piccolo were taken aback. Android 20 smarmily closed his eyes. "I see I have thrown you off. I will have 19 explain further."

Android 19 stared at Goku, his eyes flashing. And then he spoke in his shrill, robotic voice. "Saiyan is identified as male, Warrior Sub-Class: S, Nominal Designation: Son Goku. Skills of note include Turtle Style Martial Arts, the Kamehameha Wave, the Kaioken, and Saiyan Biological traits. Home address is Mt. Paozu, coordinates 58N 018, 439 East District. Father designation: Bardock, Mother Designation: Gine, Sibling Designation: Raditz, Spousal Designation: Chi-Chi, Offspring Designation: Gohan. Notable psychological weaknesses include: Aichmophobia-"

Goku shouted. " _Enough!_ "

The Saiyan seemed genuinely perturbed about how much the Androids new about his private life. That they knew each of his family members' names. Piccolo, however, had caught something in 19's wording that put a smile on his face. "So, you know about Goku's son do you?"

Android 20 chuckled. "Yes. Once we are finished here, we plan to annihilate Son Goku's sole heir and put his bloodline to rest for good."

Goku flinched. "Sole heir?"

Piccolo smirked. "I take it you haven't been spying on Goku for the past two years?"

20 shook his head. "There was no need. After the fight with Vegeta and Nappa, Dr. Gero had gathered all of the information on Son Goku's habits and biology to the extent that he felt the algorithm he had constructed could extrapolate a proper power growth scale in order to counteract any further boosts in power that Son Goku might have gained. After attaining that information, he chose to focus the rest of his time on building Androids to better deal with the forces that might assist Goku in the oncoming assault."

Piccolo chuckled. "So, you didn't even follow to Namek."

Tien smiled. "That's a relief."

Android 20 frowned. "Namek? What is Namek?"

Goku had heard enough. Without any more preamble, he shouted at the top of his lungs and summoned his Super Saiyan power forth. The golden light flooded out from Goku's hair and made both 19 and 20 flinch. Android 20 whispered to himself. "What the devil?!"

Android 19's eyes flashed and then he spoke. "Unable to process new information. Anomaly detected."

Goku looked furious as he stepped forward. "You Androids are going to regret not following us into space."

He gripped he fists and shouted. " _I'm really mad! You attack innocent people, you attack Yajirobe and Yamcha, and you make threats towards my entire family! This is where your rampage ends! It's over Androids!_ "

As power flowed out of Goku, Android 20 recollected himself. He stared at Goku and spoke. "This new form of yours is rather unexpected. But we were designed to adjust to such aberrations. Android 19 shall handle you."

The Android glared at Piccolo and Tien. "And I shall make sure that no interference is made."

Keeping his eyes focused on Piccolo and Tien, Android 20 pointed towards Goku. "Android 19..."

20 snapped his fingers and 19 charged at Goku. Goku charged back and then two of them clashed, beginning their battle with one another.

Goku and 19 smashed, forearm first, into one another. They traded colliding punches back and forth before Goku got in a hefty kick to the Android's gut. Goku followed that up with an elbow smash to 19's cheek that sent the robot flying backwards. Goku landed and took a fighting stance, scowling as Android 19 stood back up. The Android coldly glared at Goku and then charged again.

Tien and Piccolo stood to one side of the wasteland, watching the fight unfold. Tien was in awe at how much more fluid Goku's style had become over the two years of training. Android 20 stood on the other side of the wasteland, watching with cold intent as his partner and Goku held a very even clash. Piccolo was watching with just as much rapt attention as the other two, but he was not in the same high spirits that Tien was. Something was going on and he couldn't place it. Something wasn't right with Goku and it was bothering him that he couldn't quite suss it out.

The fight shredded across the wasteland with Goku giving it his physical all to mercilessly beat the wicked Android 19. Goku raised his fists above his head. "TAKE THIS!"

He double fist smashed Android 19 on the back of the head hard enough to make the Android bounce. But, as he went for a quick kick, 19 rolled out of the way. The Android smirked and raised his hands up. And then, he charged at Goku and let loose a heavy palm strike into the Saiyans gut. Goku was briefly stunned, but he quickly regained his wits and returned a punch to 19. 19 threw several more palm strikes in retaliation, but Goku blocked each one with his forearm before smashing 19 on the chin with a heavy knee strike.

19 backflipped back and then lunged forward towards Goku. The Saiyan dodged out of the way just in time to avoid being skewered by 19's sharp headwear, but still ate a palm strike to the chest for his trouble. Goku gurgled in pain, but delivered a swift kick to 19's ribs followed by a seven-hit combo to the Android's round face.

Goku leapt back and viewed his opponent. 19 looked a bit scuffed, but not much more than that. The Android coldly stared at Goku, righting his posture back to his normal, solid stance. Goku groaned, breathing heavily. "What the heck, man? He's not tired at all? Wow...what a strong opponent..."

19 smirked and giggled, and then he charged at Goku on foot. The Android's heavy, rapid footsteps shredded the ground beneath his feet as he charged towards Goku. Goku could tell by the stance that the Android was going to go for more palm strikes. Not wanting to absorb that hefty damage, Goku fired a few ki blasts as the rampaging robot in order to slow him. 19 smiled wide and palm thrusted through each attack, dispersing Goku's ki blasts like they were nothing. Goku flinched back and 19 was right there. He shot a heavy palm strike towards the Saiyan, but Goku dodged out of the way. 19's hand slammed into the ground beneath so hard that it sent fissures cracking all the way across the wasteland.

Goku and the Android shared a moment of staring right into one another's eyes. Goku was passionately angry, Android 19 was cold and unfeeling. And then, 19 sent a palm strike flying right into Goku's face that sent the Saiyan flying backwards. Goku skidded across the ground and 19 sped towards him. The Android looked to have the advantage. But, at the last moment, Goku backflipped back onto his feet and stunned Android 19 with a shattering headbutt to the face.

19 recoiled back, biofuel shooting out of his nostrils. And then Goku unleashed a heavy assault onto the metallic menace. " _Turtle School Power Fist!_ "

Goku slammed his fist into 19's throat before launching the Android high into the air with a massive uppercut. Goku sped into the sky around the Android before surprising him with an elbow to the cheek and a clubbing fist back down to the ground below. 19 shakily pushed himself up, but Goku was already there. His Super Saiyan power flared and he took a rushing stance. "Super Meteor Combination!"

Goku lunged forward and plunged his fist into 19's chest. The Android's eyes widened as Goku's fist sank deeper. Goku strained against 19's metal skin, but the skin held firm. Thinking quick, he pulled his fist away and delivered a spinning kick directly to the side of 19's head. As the Android went flying, Goku leapt up and then crashed down on top of him with a double drop kick. Goku shouted. "Now then!"

He tried to leap into the air to prepare the finale to his Super Meteor Combination, a Kamehameha. But, before he could get off the ground, one of 19's hands shot up and wrapped around his throat. The Android bolted off of the ground and punched Goku in the mouth. And then, smooth as silk, 19 weaved his way behind Goku, wrapped both arms around the Saiyan's torso and delivered a standing suplex.

And then 19 backflipped over the stunned Goku and did it again. And again. And two more times for good measure before leaping up and charging a Photon Shot. 19 sinisterly smirked and tossed the blast down at the prone Goku. But, Goku pulled a surprise of his own by quickly standing back up smacking the attack right back into 19's face. 19 dropped from the sky like a stone and crashed into the ground.

Goku was breathing heavy. This fight was taking more out of him than he had expected. "D-Damn it..."

But then, exploding from the rubble, 19 came back for more. He charged at Goku through the air, but Goku met him head on. He clashed with 19 mid-air. Goku pressed his hands into 19's shoulders to stop the Android's momentum and 19 responded to that by grasping Goku's shoulders tight. After a moment, Goku winced in pain and 19 chuckled. The Android reared his head back and tried to go for a retribution headbutt, but Goku quickly caught on. He let go of 19's shoulder and instead hooked his arms under 19's left arm. And then, with all of his strength, Goku shoulder threw 19 across the wasteland.

Goku stared in the direction 19 had crashed, knowing what the predictable Android would go for next. And, sure enough, 19 came rocketing back at Goku with his fist drawn. The Saiyan baited 19 until the last second before leaping into the air and driving his foot into the Android's back. Goku leapt up and tried to go for a second stomp, but 19 pushed himself off the ground and followed the Saiyan into the air. The Android delivered a brutal uppercut before grabbing Goku by the throat and heaving him back to the ground.

A tad delirious, Goku managed to land on his feet. But, 19 was right there with a shoulder ram to Goku's chest. Goku skidded back a few feet, but then came to a halt. He stood and glared at 19, clutching his aching left arm. 19 smirked and prepared for another assault. But, before the rotund Android could charge once again, his partner called out to him. "19!"

Android 19 turned to face Android 20. 20 smirked. "Perhaps that is enough of a warm-up. You should show Goku your special technique. I can only assume he is dying to see it."

Goku, a bit shakily, took a fighting stance. "Special technique, huh?"

Android 19 smiled wide and then, splaying out his arms, formed a massive ring of energy that circled around himself and Goku. The ring smashed into the ground and then produced a wall of energy which rose up and formed a dome around the two of them. Android 19 chuckled. "Photon Barrier."

And then, the Android took a wide stance. He placed his hands on his knees and then stomped each foot hard into the ground, solidifying his position. Goku nodded. "I see. So, you're like a sumo wrestler then...palm strikes and that hard stance...I get it now..."

Goku was visibly gasping for breath. "You're like sumo-wrestling pinball..."

Android 19 did not respond. He narrowed his eyes, putting on an evil grin, and then beckoned Goku forward. Goku snarled and lunged. "Fine then!"

He reared his fist back and launched a heavy punch at 19, but 19 was too quick. He caught Goku's fist with his outstretched palm and deflected it back. Goku flinched in surprise and 19 hit him with a heavy palm strike to the chest for his troubles. Goku continued to try and get a hit in, but to no avail. Every strike he tried was blocked with laser precision by 19's palm and then rebuffed with a heavy palm strike. He went for a heavy kick, but 19 didn't even go through the effort of blocking that one. The Android feinted beneath Goku's leg and lunged forward, delivering a palm strike that was only made worse by Goku's own forward momentum. The Saiyan was sent flying back and smashed directly into 19's Photon Barrier.

Goku coughed as he struggled to his feet. "D-Dammit...I'm letting myself be so sloppy..."

He glared at 19 and mumbled to himself. " _This barrier is limiting my movements too much..._ "

As the fight raged on, the onlookers continued to watch. Tien was stunned at how much ground Goku had lost. 20 was satisfied to see Goku in so much pain. And Piccolo was still concerned. He could hear it slightly more clearly now. Goku's body was making a progressively louder noise, but Piccolo still couldn't tell what it was.

Goku just barely managed to move out of the way as 19 charged at him. The Android threw a devastating palm strike that missed Goku and collided with the Photon Barrier, making the entire structure warble. Goku continued to dodge as the Android tried to hit him, managing to avoid the heavier attacks but still taking 3 glancing blows on his center mass. Goku was in agony. He collapsed to his knee and held his left shoulder tight. 19 responded to that showing of weakness by kicking Goku in the face, launching the Saiyan to the other side of the dome.

Goku knew that he couldn't take much more of this. So, he thought quickly. As 19 lunged at him to do more damage, Goku waited until the very last second to roll out of the way. Surprised and confused, the Android stumbled and gave Goku the opening he needed. The Saiyan got onto his knees and dived between 19's legs. And then, with all of his might, Goku rose up and hoisted the Android onto his shoulders. 19 was confused, but realized what was happening too late as Goku hurled him, face-first, into the Photon Barrier. And then, before 19 could recover, Goku pressed his hands onto the Android's back and fired an energy blast that forced him through the barrier.

19's technique shattered into a million pieces as the blast pushed him forward into a nearby rock. Goku fell to his knees, breathing heavily. He looked up and saw that 19 was already back up. The Android's clothes were singed and he looked genuinely angry that his signature technique had been overcome. Goku responded by sharping raising his hand and firing a massive blast. "Just stay down, dammit!"

The Android chuckled and charged forward, palm thrusting through Goku's attack and going for a devastating punch. Goku blocked the punch with his forearms and shoved 19 back with his foot. Both fighters stumbled backward. Goku regained himself and took a fighting stance. 19 took a fighting stance as well. The Android smirked and outstretched his palms. And then, to Goku's surprise, 19 summoned two miniature Photon Barriers in his hands. The Saiyan groaned. "Damn. Now he's just going to hit harder..."

Not wanting to be taken advantage of, Goku lunged towards 19. He went for a punch, but 19 blocked it with his miniature barriers. Goku jumped back before he could eat another palm strike and then went for a kick. 19 blocked that as well and laughed out loud. He took a swipe at Goku, but Goku managed to evade again.

The Saiyan landed hard, wincing in pain, and 19 saw this as another opening. The Android reached up and flicked his earring. And then he fired a pair of Eye Beams directly at Goku's chest. Goku snarled. "Blast it!"

Goku fired an energy bolt into the air and then pressed his fingers to his forehead and vanished from sight just as the beams collided. A scrap of Goku's shirt was all that was left, fluttering to the ground and burning up as it landed. Android 20 was confused. "What the devil?!"

19, however, quickly located his opponent. He stared up into the sky at Goku, floating there and out of breath, and venomously smiled at the Saiyan.

On the ground, Piccolo and Tien were both confused. Goku was handing that tub of bolts his robotic ass early on in the fight. But things very quickly started to slide downhill. Tien sneered and gripped his fist. "What the hell is going on, Piccolo?! What could have possibly happened to make the fight shift in the opposite direction so quickly...?"

Piccolo was staring up at Goku. "I'm unsure. Something is clearly off with Goku, but..."

Up in the air, Goku was reeling. He stared down at Android 19 and his vision blurred. The Saiyan looked like utter hell. His skin was sickly white and his eyes were sunken in and shadow. Goku wiped one of his sweat bands across his forehead and it came back drenched. " _This is...really...happening...huh...?_ "

Goku coughed. He thought to himself. " _I... I took all of the medicine though...except for...the emergency dose that...Bulma...from the Future...put in... the bottle..._ "

He knew that he needed to stop. That he needed to retreat to get his medicine. But then Goku looked down and saw Piccolo and Tien standing there. He thought back to what Trunks had told him two years ago about the future. And then he thought about his friends...his parents...his son...and his child that had yet to be born.

Goku coughed again. After hearing what had happened to all of them because he hadn't been there to help, Goku couldn't allow himself to leave this battlefield until these Androids were fully taken care of. And so, with all of his other options spent, Goku drew his arms to his side and began to charge his most reliable move. " _KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA...MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE..._ "

Meanwhile, as Goku floated in the air, Piccolo and Tien were joined on the ground by several new arrivals. The sound of footsteps behind them made both warriors turn, only to be met by the sight of a franctic-looking Yamcha. Tien smiled in relief. "Hey man! It's good to see you back on your feet!"

Yamcha didn't respond, instead glancing over and locking eyes with Android 20. As he stood there, frozen in fear, he was joined by Gohan, Krillin, Chiaotzu, and Yajirobe. The ronin complained. "Why the hell did you drag my fat ass all the way here?! What am I supposed to do?!"

Chiaotzu cut him an unimpressed glance. "I can't do that much against these things, but I'm still here for support. You could try being supportive."

Krillin marched up to Piccolo. "Hey Piccolo. What's going on?"

Gohan looked around. "Where's my Dad? And the other Android?"

Piccolo pointed out onto the field, right at Android 19. "Goku and the Android are fighting. It's been going on for a while now. Things aren't exactly going that great..."

Yamcha finally broke from his fearful trance, turning to Piccolo. "O-Of course things aren't going great! He doesn't know! None of you know! We have to tell Goku what's going on!"

Krillin groaned. "Yamcha! You've been saying that all the way here, bud! Would ya, maybe, like to tell one of us what you mean?"

Yamcha looked frantic. "It's-"

And then, suddenly, the entire battlefield was drowned by a blue light. Everyone looked up to see an absolutely massive Kamehameha in Goku's hands. " _HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA...MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE..._ "

Piccolo gasped. "That's a huge blast! We need to clear the way!"

Tien grabbed Chiaotzu and Gohan. "Come on guys! Let's move!"

As everyone started to run, though, Yamcha stared up at Goku in horror. The others tried to beckon him to come along to get out of the blast zone, but that wasn't Yamcha's biggest concern. Rather than run, Yamcha fruitlessly shouted to his friend. " _GOKU NO!_ "

But it was too late. Not hearing Yamcha's pleas, Goku thrust his hands and fired his blast at Android 19. " _HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!_ "

As everyone else fled, and Yamcha stared on in horror, both of the Androids stared at the massive energy beam raining down from the sky. Android 20 smirked. And Android 19, with a victorious glint in his eyes, merrily shrieked and raised his hand towards the blast. The Kamehameha collided with the Android and everyone watched on, expecting the foe to be engulfed. But, to their shock and horror, the blast came to an immediate halt. It slammed into Android 19's hand, lurched forward just a bit more, came to a halt, ballooned in the Android's palm, and then disappeared altogether, funneling into 19's hand like water down a drain.

Goku gasped, flinching back in shock, and everyone else stared in disbelief. Android 20 chuckle to himself. Android 19 playfully stared up at Goku, wagging his finger at the confused Saiyan with an electronic chuckle.

The rest of the Z-Fighters ran up to Yamcha. Krillin shook his taller friend. "Yamcha! What the hell just happened?!"

Yamcha stammered. "Th-The Androids...back when that old man Android grabbed me in the city, I instantly felt off. He wasn't hitting me, I wasn't fighting...but my energy was leaving my body so quickly. It was like he was stealing it away from me..."

Tien's eyes widened. "So, those Androids can suck out people's energy?"

Piccolo thought hard. He thought back to everything he had observed in the fight between Goku and 19. All of the palm strikes. All of the holds. All of the grabs. And then it dawned on him. " _THAT BASTARD HAS BEEN EATING GOKU ALIVE THIS ENTIRE FIGHT!_ "

Gohan gasped. "What?! My Dad..."

Piccolo sneered. "Damn it. He used the cover of the fight to distract us from his real goal. He's been draining Goku to empty. But then what was-"

Piccolo's ears twitched as the sound reverberated even louder. He glared up to the sky at Goku, who looked positively awful. "What's happening to you Goku...?"

Goku cringed in pain. It was clear that he was struggling. All of his friends stared at him with worry on their faces. But then, Yajirobe screamed and shouted. " _GOKU! LOOK OUT!_ "

Goku opened his eyes to see that 19 was right there, upside down. The Android smirked at Goku and then laid into him with a clubbing kick over the top of his head. Goku plummeted to the ground like a stone, but 19 raced ahead to meet him on the ground. His freefall came to a sudden stop when he slammed, throat first, into 19's waiting hands.

The Android squeezed his grip around Goku's neck tight, making the Saiyan gag as even more of his energy was juiced from his body. But, Goku still had enough wherewithal to slam his knee into 19's face and send the Android stumbling back.

Goku landed hard on his knees and quickly scrambled to his feet, barely managing to catch a heavy punch from Android 19. He tried to retaliate with a punch of his own, but 19 merely slapped the hand away. Summoning some of Goku's own energy into his hand, 19 slammed a massive energy blast into the Saiyan's chest and sent him flying back. And then, the rotund Android leapt into the air with a front flip and landed all of his weight onto Goku's stomach.

19 grabbed Goku by the hair, holding his prey's face still as he rained several punches down. With a mighty crack, blood began to pour from Goku's face. And then, feeling confident, 19 wrapped his hand around the Saiyan's throat again. Goku gurgled as he felt more energy draining from his body. He had to get away from this. With all other avenues blocked, Goku opted for his best chance at escape. He quickly raised his fingers up to his forehead and then, firing a small flash of energy above 19 with his free hand, Goku vanished from the Android's grip. 19 was briefly confused, not realizing that Goku had once again locked onto his own energy signature to teleport.

The Saiyan appeared directly above 19 and shouted. "ABSORB THIS!"

19 turned and Goku thrust his hand towards the Android's face. " _Shockwave Fist!_ "

The forceful burst shot forth from Goku's hand and smashed right into 19's face. Having had no time to defend whatsoever, the Android was helpless as the shockwave rippled across his metallic mug and made his outer facial shell spider web.

19 rolled around on the ground in pain, clutching his damaged face. A vein popped out of Goku's forehead and he summoned an absolutely massive ki blast. With his hands clenched over his own face, 19 would have no way to absorb this one. Goku prepared to fire...but then the blast dispelled. Goku wheezed and doubled over, clenching his chest.

Gohan gasped and cried out. " _DAD!_ "

Goku looked up, wincing in agony and saw that 19 was glowering over him. The spider web cracks that spread across the Android's face only served to make him look even more inhuman. His icy cold, blue eyes stared at Goku with murderous intent. Feebly, Goku tried to slam his fists into 19 for a double punch, but caught both. Goku tried to wrestle his hands away, but his strength was gone. 19 smirked, and then he forcibly bent Goku's fists back.

Two loud cracks echoed through the air and Goku fell to his knees, crying out in pain. 19 chuckled and then tossed Goku's broken hands aside. Goku deliriously tried to kick at his attacker, but 19 simply grabbed his ankle, squeezing it and stealing more energy, before jabbing Goku in the face. Goku nearly fell onto his back from that, but 19 caught him. The latched his hands onto the sides of Goku's head and gave it a mighty squeeze to steal even more power. And then, he delivered several headbutts in a row, until Goku's forehead split open and blood began to pour.

Everyone watched on in horror as the fight steadily fell out of Goku's favor. Krillin cried out. "Damn it! What are we all just standing here for?! We have to do something!"

The others all felt the same way, but then they looked over and saw Android 20 coldly glaring right at them. If he was anywhere near as powerful as 19, none of the humans nor Gohan would be able to handle him. But that didn't stop Tien. "Don't stare at that old bastard like he's invincible! I'll fight him if I have to!"

This fully grabbed 20's attention. "Please. I welcome the attempt."

The humans and Gohan all struck fighting stances, ready to throw themselves at Android 20 if it meant even one of them could pass by to go and help Goku. Piccolo, meanwhile, had his attention focused on his friend and rival. "Damn it Goku. What's going on with you? What is that noise that I keep hearing...?"

Piccolo closed his eyes and listened closer. The noise kept getting louder. He could almost make it out...

 _ **~BA-DUMP ~ BA-DUMP ~ BA-... ~ BA-... ~ ...DUMP ~ … ~ … ~ BA-DUMP ~ BA-… ~ BA-… ~**_

Piccolo's eyes snapped open. He stared over and got a look at just how ragged and pale Goku had become. And then it dawned on him what was happening. "No. Those sounds. It... can't be! Dammit! _DAMMIT!_ "

Without warning, Piccolo charged past everyone else, flying past Android 20 and rushing straight towards Goku. However, his path was quickly cut off by the very same Android. "Excuse me, Piccolo. I do not believe I-"

Piccolo snarled. " _GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!_ "

The Namekian's eyes widened and glowed with power, and then he shot his Eye Beams directly at Android 20. 20 responded with Eye Beams of his own and an intense beam struggle commenced. The shockwave caused by the two sets of Eye Beams was enough to send Chiatozu and Yajirobe flying back. Krillin shouted. "Wh-Whoa! How much power does Piccolo have?!"

The monk turned towards 19 and Goku. "Well, now we have an opportunity! We can head over and help Goku!"

Tien nodded. "What's going on with Goku though? He's so helpless all of a sudden."

Gohan gasped and everyone turned towards him. The look on the boy's face made it all too clear, he had come to the same conclusion that Piccolo had. "My Dad doesn't just look like he's beaten up! He's pouring with sweat! And his eyes are bloodshot! And he's so pale! It...it must be the Heart Virus! _The Heart Virus is attacking my father!_ "

A look of utter horror streaked across Krillin's face. But then, he instantly focused up. "Damn it! Get off my friend you bastard!"

Krillin and Gohan both rushed in, with Tien hot on their heels, to help save Goku from Android 19. The wicked Android was having the time of his life, gripping on Goku's throat with one hand and palm striking him in the face with the other. After one more hefty strike, the last of Goku's resistance left him and his Super Saiyan form dispersed. 19 sinisterly grinned and prepared to wrap his other hand around Goku's throat, but was quickly distracted by Gohan and Krillin's shouting.

The rotund Android stood up and looked to see what was going on. He saw the beam struggle between Piccolo and Android 20 and the three foolish humans that were racing towards him, and he sighed. Just as Krillin and Gohan were about to reach him, 19 summoned another Photon Barrier. He mockingly laughed as the two humans slammed into it.

Krillin, Gohan, and Tien all pounded their fists against the glass-like energy dome, but could do nothing to actually break it. 19 smirked at them and heaved the barely conscious Goku off of the ground, pressing him against the dome to where Gohan could look him in the eye. And then, 19 wrapped both hands around Goku's neck and began to squeeze. The Android shrieked with glee as he drained the life out of Goku. "Yes! Yes, friends of Son Goku! Stare and allow despair to fill you! Son Goku's life is forfeit to the desires of Dr. Gero, just as the rest of your lives shall be! Despair! _Cry out!_ "

Gohan cried out. "No! No! Dad!"

Krillin kicked the dome. "Son of a bitch! Let us in! You can't do this!"

Tien shouted. "Both of you move!"

Gohan and Krillin turned to see Tien standing there, a familiar diamond shape formed between his two hands. "Let's see your dome stand up to this, monster!"

Android 19 chuckled. He knew the technique that Tien was going to use and he knew that it would not work. His Photon Barrier was clear like glass, but it was so much stronger. The only person who might be able to break through would be Piccolo, and 20 was keeping Piccolo busy~!

19 laughed out loud. This would be the end of Son Goku!

In then, from out of nowhere, a blow collided with the dome and the glass shattered.

A boot buried itself into 19's cheek, causing a massive dent in the Android's face and making some of his cracked, metal faceplate chip off. The Android went flying backwards, crashing onto the ground behind Android 20. Both 20 and Piccolo ceased their attacks at this new occurrence, turning and glaring towards the dust that 19's sudden flight had kicked up. Within the cloud, a new shadow could barely be made out.

But, once the shadow started to chuckle, Piccolo immediately knew who it was. "Oh...so nice of you to join us. Where the hell are Bardock and Raditz?! Did the three of you decide to take a nap?!"

The shadow ignored Piccolo, instead speaking to another. "I see you're having some trouble, Kakarot. Mind if I cut in?"

Android 20 flinched. "Wh-What?! Him?! But, how?! What happened to the Saiyan Hunters?!"

A harsh wind blew and cleared the dust cloud, revealing Vegeta standing there with Goku slung over his shoulder. The Prince smirked and glared at Android 20 and the shakily recovering Android 19. "I hope this one lasts longer than the last Android~"

 _Meanwhile, back at Amenbo Island..._

The bright yellow chassis of the Time Capsule stood on the sheer ledges overhanging Amenbo Island. The hopeful yellow exterior, however, reflected a scene of absolute dread as it reflected the sight of hellish flames. The three travelers who had arrived into the past in this machine all stood and stared in abject horror.

Not one of them could force a word as they stared down at the horrors of bloodshed and death. People rushing back and forth in the smoke and wreckage, carrying the injured and the near-deceased away from the flames and towards what could only be barely described as safety. The emergency responders on the ground were trying their best, but the destruction was just too great for them to fully manage.

Eventually, after standing there and trying to process it for long enough, Future Ranch swallowed the massive lump in her throat. "G-Guys..."

Future Trunks mumbled to himself. "Even though we came back and warned them. All of this destruction still...

Future Ranch gripped both of her friend's shoulders. "We...we can't just fly off and not help these people. We have to go down there and help out a quickly as we can...and then we have to go and join the others."

Future Trunks cringed. "There are two different battles going on. One to the North, one to the West. Did they split up...I don't-"

Future Ranch pulled her shell-shocked boyfriend close. "We'll work that out once we get done helping these people. Right?"

She looked over at their third compatriot. He nodded. "Right."

She looked back at Future Trunks, who looked like he was about to throw up. "Right?"

He shakily nodded. "Right."

Future Ranch nodded. "Okay then. Let's get moving!"

And so, solemnly, the three of the Future Trio descended down to Amenbo Island to provide assistance to the people there. None of them were sure of what had become of the past since their interference, but they were all sure that it was nothing good.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	63. Chapter 63: Not Only Goku

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Happy New Year everybody! Let's get into it!_

 _ **Chapter 63: Not Only Goku**_

 _At Capsule Corp..._

Chi-Chi flinched as the Capsule Corp building settled, dust falling from the ceiling. She rubbed her pregnant stomach. "Is this place going to be okay? They're really going at it out there..."

Launch gently tried to reassure her sister-in-law. "Everything is going to be fine, Chi-Chi. I worked in this building for years. It's been through earthquakes and everything. It'll hold up just fine."

The dust went up Launch's nose and she sneezed, her hair turning blonde. The building shook again and Launch cringed. "But, goddamn, they are going at it pretty hard."

As the two of them huddled, alongside Bulma's parents, Bulma stood off to the sight deeply in thought. Trunks cooed and thrashed about in her arm as she stroked her chin, observing the remnants of battle on the outside lawn cameras. She stared at Android 14's charred skeleton and Android 15's shattered remains. "Interesting..."

But, suddenly, Bulma and the others were all shocked. The ceiling flexed inward and burst through, something heavy crashing into the ground beneath it. Bulma ran over to check what it might be and sighed. "Oh, hey Gine. You okay?"

Gine groaned, wincing in pain as she sat up. The Saiyan mother held her injured arm. "I've been better..."

She tried to stand, but fell to her knees. Chi-Chi and Bulma both ran over to check on their mother-in-law. Chi-Chi scolded her. "No! None of that! You're done fighting for now!"

Blonde Launch rubbed Gine's back. "You gotta take care of yourself, Moms. You're getting older and stuff."

Gine sighed, voluntarily releasing her Super Saiyan form. "Fine. I'm not needed anyway..."

Chi-Chi rubbed Gine's shoulder. "No! Don't say that. You're always needed..."

Gine shook her head. "No, I mean I'm not needed for the rest of that fight. Now that I'm out, Bardock has taken that Android farther out of the city. And now, that Android is finished!"

Bulma nodded. "I figured that Bardock was holding back. Not wanting to hurt the people of West City and all."

Bulma cocked her head. "But, now that he's gone and the Android is gone with him..."

She smirked. And then, she immediately turned and ran for the door. Dr. Briefs called out. "Bulma! Where are you going?!"

Bulma called back. "Send some support techs out after me! It's time to harvest some technology!"

She leaped up as she went out the door, clicking her heels and making Trunks laugh. And then she was gone. Panchy giggled. "Our daughter is so excitable~"

Dr. Briefs grumbled and walked over to the phone, placing the support request Bulma had asked for.

High above West City...

Fists clashed as Bardock and Android 13 fought back and forth. With Gine removed from the equations and the people of West City far out of the danger zone, Bardock could now go all out against his robotic foe. 13 went for a knee to Bardock's face, but Bardock caught it with the bottom of his foot and shoved it back down. Bardock rushed at 13 and delivered a series of heavy strikes to the Android's arms and chest, eventually breaking his guard and then punching 13 right in the eyes. 13 flinched back and Bardock followed that punch to the eyes with a blast. 13 snarled and Bardock flew into him, grabbing the Android by his bright orange hair and repeatedly slugging him across the jaw, sending shockwaves from the sheer force of his punches. " _YOU! DON'T! EVER! TOUCH! MY! WIFE!_ "

And then, Bardock charged all of his energy into his fist and hammered it over the back of 13's head. Bardock smirked as 13 limply floated there, in the air. But then, the older Saiyan was caught off-guard by a shattering blow to the gut. This punch forced the wind out of Bardock's chest and made blood shoot from his mouth. Bardock gurgled and 13 chuckled, but the Bardock latched on to 13's arm.

The Android looked confused and Bardock chuckled. "That pain ain't shit. _You_ ain't shit!"

Bardock swung around 13's arm and slammed his elbow into the Android's jaw, dislocating it. And then, he bounced off of 13's forearm and delivered a spinning kick to the Android's temple. And finally, Bardock grabbed 13 by the arm once more, throwing the hulking Android over his shoulder and sending him higher into the air before chasing and landing a double foot stomp into the center of the Android's metal chest.

Bardock bounced back and observed his work, smirking at the sight of his boot-prints in 13's chest. 13 glared, grabbing his dislocated jaw and forcing it back into place before lunging at Bardock one more. Bardock laughed, dodged out of the way of 13's various swipes. "I gotta say...you're strong, you're tough, and you certainly are as deadly as Future Boy made you out to be..."

The older Saiyan splayed his arms out wide, each of his fingertips glowing with yellow energy. "But you have your limits! _DESTRUCTO-DART SALVO!_ "

Android 13 halted in his descent, crossing his arms over his face and roaring in pain as the Destructo-Darts pierced through him like knives through butter. Bardock sped upwards towards 13 and tried for another punch, but 13 caught him by the fist. The Android glared down at his foe and spoke in hefty, broken speech. " _ **You...not Goku! You...no win!**_ "

Bardock chuckled. "You got that right, ya blue ape! I'm not Kakarot! I'm Bardock!"

Bardock's Super Saiyan power flared and the pressure sent 13 flying back. Bardock shouted. "And if your name is my unlucky number! Then my name is your hex!"

And then, Bardock charged at 13 once more, ready for more combat.

 _Back in the wasteland..._

Android 19 got to his feet, dusting himself off and then looking into the lens on his palm to see his reflection. He now had a massive, ugly boot-print on his face from the recent sneak attack he had endured. The rotund robot glared across the battlefield, right at Vegeta, with utter disdain. And then, he walked over and resumed his post at Android 20's side.

Android 20 looked unimpressed, glaring at this new addition to the battlefield. "Vegeta, eh?"

Vegeta smirked and chuckled. Over in the Prince's grip, Goku weakly held up his hand. "Th-Thanks Vegeta...you saved...you saved my...butt..."

Vegeta glared at Goku. "Shut the hell up, Kakarot! Why would you waste everyone's time trying to handle these clowns while you're sick?! You could have let real warriors handle these fights while you stayed home with your measly heart virus!"

Goku groaned, finally fading out of consciousness. "Sorry..."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Hey! _Yumcha!_ "

Yamcha flinched. "M-Me?! That's not how you pronounce-"

Vegeta cut him off by throwing Goku's unconscious body at him. "Catch."

Quickly, Yamcha held his arms up and grabbed Goku out of the air. He glared at Vegeta. "Be careful! You could have hurt him!"

Vegeta totally ignored Yamcha, marching towards Androids 19 and 20. "You know, I thought that purple one would be as pathetic as it would get. But now that I've seen you two, I don't know. A fat clown and an old man...are these really what we were warned of two years ago?! You both looked outdated..."

The Prince smirked. "So, I can only imagine that your warranties have expired..."

Android 20 grumbled. "My my. How a fluke victory over a secondary project has help your ego grow. Tell me, Vegeta, do you fancy yourself immortal?"

Vegeta motioned at the Androids. "Only one way to find out."

20's gaze fell upon his target, Goku. But, Vegeta stepped into that line of sight. "Are you both so pathetic that you see the sick and infirm as a primary target? I was told to fear you. But, at the moment, all I fear is death from boredom!"

Android 20's eyes flashed. "Let us correct that."

And then, without warning, he and 19 both charged. Vegeta took a fighting stance, ready to face them head on. But then, a surprise knee to Android 20's stomach halted him in his tracks. 19 kept flying, halting just short of Vegeta. The rotund robot turned, looking confused. Android 20 fell to the ground and glared up at his foe, the ever-present Piccolo.

Android 19 growled, preparing to attack Piccolo. But, 20 motioned for him to stop, standing with a chuckle. "And, as it turns out, Vegeta is not the only ego in the room. We have Piccolo as well. Do tell me, both of you, what makes you so sure you can fight us? Goku is the best of you, and we reduced him to a dying mess. Where do you both find this confidence from?"

Piccolo closed his eyes. But then, he smirked. In the background, Vegeta chuckled and cracked his knuckles. Android 20 was confused, but Piccolo readily answered him. "You accuse us of arrogance...but isn't it the height of arrogance to assume that Goku is the only one to exceed your faulty expectations?"

Vegeta laughed. "What fools."

Losing their temper, 19 and 20 each charged. 19 prepared to strike Vegeta and 20 prepared to strike Piccolo. However, both of their attacks were easily blocked. 19 flinched as Vegeta squeezed his arm. "Huh?!"

20 gasped as Piccolo deflected his fist. "What?!"

Piccolo's smirk faded into an angry snarl, and then he shouted. " _RARRGH!_ "

The Namekian busted Android 20 in the face with his flattened palm and sent the geriatric droid flying back. Vegeta, on the other hand, allowed his Super Saiyan power to flow forth. The force of his energy exploding out rippled over 19's clothes, detaching his covering from over his electronic brain and incinerating it. Vegeta leaned in close to 19, his face reflecting in the Android's glassy eyes. "Tell me, machine! Do your kind experience fear?!"

Android 19 snarled, raising his other hand to punch Vegeta. But, Vegeta countered that with a backhanded slap across 19's chubby face. 19 was taken aback, cringing as Vegeta squeezed his trapped wrist even harder. "You really are pathetic, taking a fluke victory over a dying man as a sign of strength!"

Vegeta kicked Android 19 in the stomach hard enough that the shape of his foot could be made out on the Android's back, sending 19 skidding backward. 19 sneered and flicked both of his earrings, firing an entire salvo of Eye Beams at Vegeta. But Vegeta was unfazed. The Prince moved as quick as lightning as he sped towards 19, weaving between the Eye Beams as if they were standing still. He appeared in front of 19, the same wicked smirk plastered on his face, and slugged the Android in the face.

19 recoiled back, biofuel spurting from his nose. Vegeta chuckled and took that opportunity, reaching up and grabbing 19 by the earrings before tearing them, alongside the majority of 19's outer ears, clean off. 19 screeched in pain and glared at Vegeta, only to receive a heavy chop to the throat.

19 rubbed his throat and then lunged at Vegeta, unleashing a barrage of rapid strikes at the Prince. But, to the Android's surprise, every last punch was avoided by no more than a casual dodge from the Prince. 19 raised his hand into the air to trying and hammer Vegeta over the head, but Vegeta effortlessly caught it and sent 19 flying into the sky with an elbow strike to the chin.

Vegeta raced into the air after 19, but 19 was ready for him. Screeching at the top of his lungs, 19 summoned his Photon Barrier again and sealed him and Vegeta within, in the air. Vegeta looked around and chuckled. "What sort of parlor trick is this?"

Android 19 smiled wide. "This is your doom, fool!"

He charged at Vegeta, and threw several palm thrusts in an attempt to steal the Prince's energy, but Vegeta still dodged every strike with ease. 19 circled behind the Prince to strike, but Vegeta was ready for him. He countered 19's attack with a backhanded punch and then turned and kicked the Android away. 19 collided with his own Photon Barrier and glared at Vegeta. He reached up to flick his earrings, to launch more Eye Beams, but found nothing there.

Vegeta chuckled. "What's the matter?! Out of long-range attacks?!"

The Prince extended his middle and index fingers towards the Android and laughed. "Worry not! I have one for you!"

A field of energy gathered around Android 19, and then Vegeta sharply jerked his fingers into the air and caused a massive explosion. The force of the Volcano Explosion within the field caused it to burst like a balloon. 19 floated in the air, singed and stunned, only to be smashed back down to the ground by Vegeta.

The Prince watched as 19 hit the ground, forcing the earth beneath it to collapse into a massive crater. And then he descended after the Android.

Watching on from his own fight on the sidelines, Android 20 was shocked that the total domination of his partner. In his distraction, however, the elderly Android was met with a rocking punch to the jaw from Piccolo. Piccolo sneered. "Why don't you focus on your own problems?!"

 _Down in the crater..._

Vegeta landed in the crater and stared at his half-buried enemy. "Like I said: pathetic. You are utterly pathetic."

The Prince stepped forward, extending his hand and intending to charge a blast. "Now, why don't we end this?"

Before Vegeta could charge the blast, however, Android 19's eyes snapped open and he leapt up, grabbing Vegeta by the hand. Vegeta's eyes widened, instantly noticing his energy leaving him, but he maintained his cool. Android 19 chuckled. "Ah yes! I have you now! And now, I shall absorb all of your energy!"

Vegeta chuckled, lightly tugging at 19's ironclad grip. "All of my energy huh? My...how frightening~"

Android 19 squeezed harder and Vegeta chuckled. "It's a shame, you know? If an actually skilled fighter had this little energy stealing ability of yours, they might be fun to fight. But, no, a pathetic junkheap like you has to end up with such a power..."

19 laughed out loud. "Skill?! Pah! Skill is unnecessary when the opponent is too weak to fight back. As you are right now!"

He squeezed tighter. "Can't you feel it? The lifeforce draining away, along with all hope of victory?"

Vegeta smiled. "Oh yes. Hope of victory is, indeed, fading fast."

Android 19 chuckled. "So, you accept your f-"

Vegeta leapt into the air and kicked Android 19 in the face hard and fast enough that the Android had no time to release his grip. As a result, the offending hand that was so harshly gripped around Vegeta's wrist was ripped asunder like a piece of paper.

19 bounced against the wall, hatefully glaring at Vegeta before lunging at the Prince with his remaining hand. Vegeta feinted back and dropped 19 with a swift headbutt to the back of the head. 19 hit the ground hard, but immediately scrambled to grab Vegeta by the ankle. Vegeta leapt up, avoiding 19's grip by an inch, and then stomped down on the Android's remaining hand before sending him flying back with another harsh kick.

Android 19 rolled across the ground, smashing into the wall. His arms hung limply at his sides, leaking biofuel into two massive puddle beneath the Android. Everyone around the rim of the crater stared in silent awe as Vegeta lifted his foot and picked up the recently severed hand.

The Prince smirked. "I see. These lenses on your palms must be your method of stealing energy. I get it now..."

Vegeta marched over to the unmoving 19. "Hey..."

No response. Vegeta flared his power. " _Wake up!_ "

Android 19 flinched and then came back online. He thrust his arms towards Vegeta, as if to launch a blast, but could only stare in horror at the sight of his leaking arm stumps. Biofuel spurted from hanging tubes and, suddenly, 19 felt very small. He stared down at his missing hands, both lying at Vegeta's feet. Vegeta stepped forward, making sure to stomp one of the hands into pieces as he walked. "So, Android, do you wish to continue? Or, perhaps, have I inspired some fear into you...?"

19 was silent, staring up at Vegeta who seemed to tower over him. Vegeta glared down at the Android and chuckled. " _Run._ "

 _Outside of the crater..._

Unaware of what had happened to Android 19 in the crater, Android 20 continued his one-on-one fight with Piccolo. The Android charged a cloud of ki into his hand and thrust it towards Piccolo. "Photon Wave!"

Piccolo scoffed and thrust his hand forward. "Destructive Wave!"

Both waves of energy clashed and produced a medium-sized explosion. From within the smoke, Android 20 charged at Piccolo, but Piccolo easily blocked his strike. He threw a punch back at 20, but 20 blocked it with his forearm. Android 20 chuckled. "I shall concede. You have some measure of strength. But-"

Piccolo elbowed Android 20 in the ribs and followed that up with a sharp chop. 20 barely dodged, watching as the force of Piccolo's chop made the ground fissure. Piccolo glared at his foe. "You talk too much."

The Namekian charged at the Android and threw another punch, sending 20 tumbling across the desert. The Android stood and snarled. Piccolo scowled. "You have somewhat decent power. But you're skills are a joke compared to real warrior.

Piccolo struck a fighting stance. "As much as I hate to say it, I agree with Vegeta. If Goku wasn't sick, he would have crushed the two of you by himself."

Android 20 sneered. He charged back at Piccolo again, unwilling to accept the Namekian's criticisms. And he paid dearly for his impulsive move. Piccolo easily found an opening, kneeing 20 in the gut before sending him to the ground with a hammer fist to the back. 20 bounced and Piccolo went for another slashing chop aimed directly at the Android's throat. 20 managed to push himself out of the way and fall back, getting back to his feet. But he knew that that was almost his head.

20 smirked, trying to maintain a presence. "I say. You certainly are able to put up quite a struggle, Piccolo. Will I really have to use my full power to defeat you?"

He raised his hand at Piccolo and shouted. "Photon Field!"

A series of energy bolts shot from 20's hand and rocketed towards Piccolo. Piccolo sniffed and then managed to dodge most of the blasts with little effort. The Namekian reached out and grabbed the last of the flurry of blasts from the air, crushing it in his grip like an egg. "Was that your full power?"

Piccolo flinched. In his distraction, dodging the blasts, the Namekian had lost track of Android 20. He looked around. "Where did?"

20 quickly charged from behind, wrapping his arms around Piccolo and clamping his hands over Piccolo's eyes. He chuckled. "No, my green friend. My full power is, in fact, your full power added on to my own!"

Piccolo did not panic. He felt his energy leaving his body, but he had a simple solution. He reached up and pressed his hand to his own shoulder. And then he fired a blast through himself. Android 20 gasped, falling to the ground and just barely avoiding the attack. He looked up and saw Piccolo looming over him, his left arm hanging onto his body by a thread. "Are you insane? You've cost yourself an arm!"

Piccolo reached up and grabbed the arm, ripping it off and tossing it at Android 20 before growing an entirely new one. "I thought you said that you had observed our battles here on Earth. Or, did you mean that you immediately stopped observing the moment the battle had finished?"

Android 20 stood, growling. "Don't you dare look down upon me!"

Piccolo struck a fighting stance. "I'm more looking down on your idiot creator that I am on you. Dr. Gero seems like he designed you lot to fail."

Android 20 took a stance of his own. "Why you-"

However, this exchange was cut off by a sudden, shrill scream from the crater. Android 20 and Piccolo both turned their attention towards it just in time to see Android 19 struggling to escape. The handless Android managed to pull himself out of the hole, struggled to his feet, and then started to run off without so much as addressing his partner. Android 20 called out. "Android 19! Where do you think you are going!"

Android 19 called out. " _I do not wish to die!_ "

A burst of power behind 20 made him turn to see Vegeta rising from the crater, a sadistic look upon his face. To 20's horror, Vegeta thrust his hand towards 19 and began to charge a blast. Panicked, Android 20 called up to Vegeta. " _Enough!_ "

Vegeta snapped at 20. "Shut your damned mouth!"

20 flinched. Vegeta continued. "Enough?! Bullshit! It's only enough because you're losing! You're losing this fight and you've lost your backbone because your perceived advantage has slipped away!"

The smile returned to Vegeta's face and he glared towards 19. "If there is anyone you should appeal to, it should be your incompetent creator for designing you to be so weak. And, more importantly, for ignoring the sheer might of the ever-growing Saiyan Spirit!"

Android 20 was stunned silent. Vegeta cackled. "But, don't worry. I will send both of you whimpering robots off with a bang! A big bang!"

A massive ball of explosive ki ballooned into Vegeta's hand and he shouted at the top of his lungs. " _BIG BANG ATTACK!_ "

The attack launched from Vegeta's palm and soared towards Android 19. The Android continued to run in a vain attempt to escape. "Please don't kill me! _Please don't kill me!_ _PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!_ _**PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!**_ _**PLE-**_ "

The blast collided with Android 19's back and exploded, creating a huge mushroom cloud as a result. Android 20's pupils shrunk as he watched his ally, and near equal in strength, all but disappear before his very eyes.

In the distance, the sound of metal hitting rock rang out as a single piece of Android 19 tumbled across the desert. The Android's head bounced a few times before rolling across the ground, eventually coming to a stop with his fear-laden expression staring up to the sky.

Android 20 was shaking in his boots, horrified and suddenly feeling quite outmatched. He turned around and gasped at the sight of Vegeta and Piccolo both standing right there. Android 20 sneered. "You-"

He dodged with a yelp as Piccolo thrust his fingers towards him, firing a Special Beam Cannon that nearly took 20's head off. Piccolo was grim as he stepped forward, flourishing his cape. "You will not be far behind your ally. This little Android invasion is finished."

Android 20 threw up his hands. "I-I beseech you! Spare me a moment to regroup!"

Piccolo was blunt. "No."

And then he charged at Android 20, looking to finish things. 20 gasped in terror, staring death in the face. But then, he glanced over and an idea came to mind. Reacting quickly, Android 20 raised his hands and fired two massive energy blasts directly towards, Gohan and the others. Gohan cried out, as Tien pushed everyone behind himself. Piccolo cursed. "Dammit!"

And then, quick as a flash, Piccolo and Vegeta both jumped in front of and dispelled the blasts. But this instance was all that Android 20 needed. A quick as lightning, the Android turned tail and ran, speeding off into the nearby mountain range. Piccolo snarled. "Damn it all!"

And then, without a word to anyone, Piccolo tossed aside his cape and turban and gave chase to his foe.

Vegeta chuckled, shaking his head, as he watched Piccolo speed off. "Cowardly Android..."

The Prince stepped forward, gripping his shoulder and cracking his neck. "I suppose I should give chase as well. Wouldn't want that pathetic loser getting away where we can't find him."

As Vegeta prepared to fly off though, he suddenly sensed a familiar presence approaching. He turned, as did the others, to see an exhausted Raditz slowly descending to the ground. The elder brother looked a wreck, but Vegeta greeted him with a bit of civility. "Raditz! I see you managed to defeat your Android! What a pleasant surprise."

Raditz narrowed his eyes at Vegeta. He slowly walked over, flipping Vegeta off as he did so, and checked on Goku. "It's good to see that he isn't dead..."

Yamcha nodded. "Y-Yeah. We cut it pretty close, but Vegeta showing up when he did was actually helpful for once..."

Raditz rolled his eyes. " _For once._ "

He shook his head. "Yamcha. Would you mind taking Kakarot back to his home. There should be an emergency dose or two left of the vaccine that the Future Guy brought."

Vegeta snidely smirked. "Yes, run along. Wouldn't want you getting impaled again..."

Vegeta chuckled as he pointed at the hole in Yamcha's shirt. He shook his head. "Seriously though, run along. Kakarot's life is in your hands and I won't be very happy if you allow my best rival to die before I have the chance to defeat him in battle."

The Prince turned and his Super Saiyan power flared. "I have an Android to hunt!"

Krillin ran up. "Wait, Vegeta! Before you go, I-"

Vegeta cackled. "I have no time to regard weaklings like you!"

And then the Prince took off, shooting like a golden missile off into the distance. Krillin scowled as Vegeta disappeared. "What an ass."

Krillin turned, revealing the bag of Senzu Beans hanging open in his hand. He pulled out a bean and offered it to Raditz. "Here. Unlike Vegeta, you're not to self-absorbed to accept this, right?

Raditz gratefully took the bean. "Certainly not."

The elder brother chewed and swallowed the bean, and his power shot back up. Raditz sighed in relief. "I needed that..."

He turned to Yamcha. "And you need to make sure you take a bit of that vaccine yourself. It's a virus we're dealing with here, so I don't want you to get sick."

Yamcha nodded. "Th-Thanks man."

Raditz nodded back. "Of course."

Everyone waved farewell to Yamcha, watching as he and Goku set off. Once Yamcha was out of sight, Gohan spoke up. "Dad is going to be okay, right Uncle Raditz?"

Raditz nodded. "I'm sure he will be."

Tien turned towards the mountains. "We should go search for the Android with Piccolo and Vegeta. The more eyes searching for that bastard, the better."

Raditz nodded. "Agreed. Let's all spread out and search."

And so, they all left. Raditz took off, followed by Gohan and Krillin, and the Tien, and then Chiaotzu, who once again used his telekinesis to pull Yajirobe along, much to the samurai's protests. "Hey! Why the hell do you keep making me go along with all of this!"

 _In the mountains..._

Android 20 was hidden under a rocky outcropping, barely able to see out in a fissure between the rocks. His eyes narrowed as he saw his green-skinned hunter flying around overhead. 20 knelt down and mentally cursed to himself. " _Damnation..._ "

He gripped his fist tight. " _I had not anticipated that Android 19 might fail. He was my most well-balanced unit._ "

The Android thought hard, stroking his moustache. " _Not to mention the apparent failure of the Saiyan Hunters. With Vegeta being present, that means at least one of them must have been destroyed..._ "

He smirked. " _But, at the same time, it was_ _ **only**_ _Vegeta that showed up. So... how many soldiers do I have left in the field?_ "

Android 20 activated his built-in radar, performing a wide-scale scan for active Androids. His results came back as there being only one left in the field. 20 scowled. "No matter. One piece of support is better than none, I suppose. And, being that the remaining unit is a Saiyan Hunter, they must have gone into their super mode by this point..."

Android 20 pressed his fingers to his temples and sent out his recall signal. "To me, my Androids!"

 _Back in the sky above West City..._

Bardock shouted at the top of his lungs and slammed his fist across Android 13's cheek. He followed that up with a knee to the chin and an energy blast to the face. The force out the attack propelled him backwards and Bardock came to a stop a few feet away from 13. But that space was covered in an instance by the incensed Android, who charged at Bardock with the force of a tank and shoulder-rammed the Saiyan across the sky.

Bardock managed to bring himself to a stop just in time to block a double-fist smash attempt from the Android, repelling his hulking foe back with a solid kick to the stomach. Bardock cracked his neck. "Resilient bastard..."

Bardock charged energy into his fist. " _Haaaaaaah!_ "

Android 13 did the same. " _ **Raaaaaaaaaaagh!**_ "

And then they charged at one another. Android 13 shouted at Bardock, right as their fists made contact. " _ **S.S. Deadly Hammer!**_ "

Their fists collided and the sheer force sent rippling shockwaves across the sky. Clouds were shredded by the sheer power on display and reduced to little more than puddles of liquid that quickly fell to the ground below. Lightning shot out from both sides, burning away Android 13's glove and shredding Bardock's armband. Eventually, the feedback became too much and Bardock and 13 were both blown back by the ensuing explosion.

The smoke cleared and Bardock chuckle. Blood trickling down his face, he held up his burnt hand and chuckled. "I gotta say, Android...you are pretty tough. But I think I've had enough of dealing with you. It's time to finish this crap once and for all."

13 chuckled, recognizing Bardock's stance from his databanks. " _ **Riot Javelin...?**_ "

Bardock shook his head. "Nah. That move is retired. I've come up with something that I feel is a better replacement for it."

Android 13 was confused. "Huh?"

Bardock responded by shouting at the top of his lungs, making his power flare. The sheer force of Bardock powering-up made the surrounding landscape quake. Android 13 watched as the energy surrounding Bardock slowly focused, tightening up into a single ball in his hand that sparked and shot lightning. Bardock smirked at 13. "Get ready big guy! This one is gonna hurt!"

Android 13 snarled, facing Bardock down with a defiant scowl. Bardock chuckled. "Perfect."

And then, the older Saiyan thrust his hand at 13, extending his middle, ring, and index fingers to form a triangle of sorts. Bardock called out the name of his new attack. " _RAVAGER CANNON!_ "

The beam of energy, maroon in color, shot out of Bardock's fingers and sailed towards Android 13 like a speeding bullet. The attack moved so fast through the air that it practically whistled as it shot. Android 13 had no time to react and, as a result, he was barely able to move his head. The attack crashed into the left side of 13's face and shredded into the metal. 13 screamed in pain as the rail of energy went through his face. Eventually, the beam finished and shot over the horizon, exploding in the hills in the distance.

The older Saiyan chuckled, letting his arm fall to his hip. "So, how'd you like it? How'd it feel, Android?"

Android 13 couldn't form words, floating there in a stupor. Half of the Android's head, from his left upper jaw upwards had been totally obliterated, leaving warped metal and sparking wires in its place. 13's remaining eye was wide with shock. Bardock smirked and took a fighting stance. "Ready for another go?!"

Android 13 snarled in frustration, more sparks shooting from his critically damaged head. He powered-up, preparing to charge Bardock again. But then, in an instance, everything came to a stop. All of the rage faded from 13's face and he just floated there in a silent trance.

Bardock cocked his head. "The hell? Did he...did he die...?"

Android 13 had not died. Rather, he was receiving a signal within his head. The recall signal. 13's wits came back around and he nodded his head. " _ **Master...**_ "

And then, without so much as addressing Bardock, Android 13 turned tail and shot off in the opposite direction, flying off at top speed. This genuinely caught Bardock off-guard. "Hey..."

This was followed up by anger and offended rage streaking across Bardock's face. "HEY! GET BACK HERE!"

Bardock's power flared and he gave chase to his fleeing foe.

 _Down at Capsule Corp..._

Bulma stared up into the sky, watching as a dark blue streak sped off, quickly followed by a glowing, gold streak. Eventually, both figures disappeared off into the distance. Bulma planted her fist into her hip. "Hmph."

One of the Capsule Corp employees walked over. "Miss Bulma, we have managed to collect every salvageable piece of the two robotic entities as you have requested. The remains of each have been placed in sealed, labeled bins for you to examine at your own convenience."

Bulma nodded. "Good work. Put them in my secure vault. I'll look them over when I get back."

The employee flinched. "When you get ba-"

Bulma reached into her pocket, clicking a Capsule and summoning her Capsule Hover-convertable. She climbed in, making sure to secure Trunks in the built-in baby seat, and took off after Bardock and Android 13. Bulma smirked as she gunned the engine and flew at top speed. "We can't let such amazing tech get away like that, can we Trunks?"

Trunks happily cooed and babbled next to his Mom. Bulma smirked. "Mama needs to get her hands on that Android!"

 _Back inside Capsule Corp..._

Gine sighed as she finished off her glass of iced tea. "Thank you Panchy."

Bulma's mother nodded with a smile. "Anytime, doll. If you stick around a bit longer, I'll have some fresh chocolate chip cookies ready~"

Gine shook her head. "I'm sorry, we can't really afford to wait."

The Saiyan mother got to her feet, with some effort. "Me and Chi-Chi and Launch have to get back to Mt. Paozu so that we can be there to help Kakarot..."

Launch looked confused, her blonde hair bobbing. "Is somethin' up with Goku?"

Gine nodded. Chi-Chi, looking rather worried, focused to feel out her husband's energy. Once she got a lock on it, she shuddered. "I-I haven't been paying attention. What's going on? Is it the heart virus?!"

Gine sighed. "I don't know. But I don't really have time to wait around and find out. Food and healing can wait, we have to go now!"

 _Back in the mountains..._

Piccolo was growing impatient as he continued his search for the rogue Android. The Namekian closed his eyes tight and listened carefully for any disturbances. Android 20 might have been stealthy, he might have had no energy signature, but he still had a physical presence. And, with Piccolo's finely attuned hearing, he would notice is such a presence were to make even the slightest noise.

The mountains were quiet, the wind had died down. Now, it was just a matter of waiting for the Android to screw up.

From his hiding spot, Android 20 scowled. Piccolo was a nuisance. If 20 was going to have any chance at ridding himself of the Namekian, he would have to find the appropriate angle to attack from. Android 20 turned around, looking to put some distance between himself and Piccolo. As he turned, however, his shoe scuffed against the rock and Piccolo was instantly on him!

Piccolo whipped his arm towards 20's hiding spot, smashing through rock and shredding through the ground. 20 scowled and took to the air, flying low to avoid sight-based detection and fleeing Piccolo's deadly hand. As he flew, 20 cursed. "Blast it! That was sloppy! Now I'll have to-"

Suddenly, 20 was illuminated from the left side by golden light. He turned and saw, to his horror, that Vegeta was right there! The Prince chuckled. "Hello."

Vegeta threw a harsh punch. 20 jerked his head out of the way, barely dodging in time and watching as the force of Vegeta's blow made the large piece of rubble behind him explode into pieces. Vegeta went for another hit, swinging his fist downward at the Android. 20 acted quickly, maneuvering around Vegeta's fist and grabbing him by the arm before using the Prince's momentum to toss him directly at Piccolo's hand.

The Prince snarled, using Piccolo's palm to kick off of and charging back towards the fleeing Android. 20 dropped as Vegeta sailed over him, hitting the ground and then shoving both of his feet into Vegeta's stomach, sending the Saiyan flying high into the air. Vegeta chuckled as he flew up. "You're only delaying the-"

A sharp stone, laden with Android 20's energy, flew up and smacked Vegeta on the forehead. Vegeta snarled and clenched his head as 20 stood there with a smirk. Vegeta wiped his glove across his forehead, scowling when it came back stained with his own blood. Vegeta screamed. "How dare you?!"

Vegeta raised his hands above his head and charged a massive ki blast. "Burn in hell, Android!"

Piccolo gasped at the sight of this. "No! Vegeta! Think before you act!"

But it was too late. Vegeta heaved his energy blast down and right into the waiting hands of Android 20. The Android laughed out loud as he sucked up that sizeable portion of Vegeta's power. Once the blast was gone, Vegeta and 20 both stared at one another. 20 chuckled and Vegeta looked utterly dumbfounded. And then, 20 sped off deeper into the mountains, leaving Vegeta to look like a massive fool.

Vegeta was quickly snapped out of his stupor by a harsh shove. He glared over at his assailant and saw and equally furious-looking Piccolo glaring at him. " _WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! DO YOU HAVE ANY BRAINS BEHIND THAT MASSIVE FOREHEAD OF YOURS?!_ "

The Prince snarled. " _Who do you suddenly think you are?!_ "

As Gohan and the others approached, a rumbling shockwave threw them all off balance. Krillin shouted in fear. "What was that?!"

Tien and Chiaotzu both stared up into the sky in awe. Yajirobe screamed in fear. Gohan shook his head. "What's going on?!"

Up in the sky, Piccolo and Vegeta were locked up with one another, both of their auras flaring from how angry they were. The Saiyan and the Namekian pushed harshly against one another with hateful scowls on their faces. Krillin's face sank. "Oh no. _Oh no_..."

The two both pushed at one another even harder and the mountains around them crumbled. As the others watched on, unsure of what to do, Gohan took the initiative and charged in. "Guys!"

The boy got between Piccolo and Vegeta and forcefully shoved both of them back, making them separate. The two of them looked furious and nearly charged at one another again. However, Gohan quickly talked them down. "Mr. Piccolo! Vegeta! Please stop!"

They both paused. Gohan nodded. "L-Look. I get that you two don't really like each other, but we need to focus for now. Okay? That other Android is still running around, right?"

Swallowing a lump in his throat, Krillin joined Gohan. "For real. Let's just, like, solve the threat at hand before we start fighting each other..."

Gohan stammered "Y-You two can go at it all you want once we finish this last Android. Okay? You can actually have a proper fight to see which one of you is really stronger than the other..."

Piccolo scowled at Vegeta, but then looked down at Gohan. Vegeta snarled at Piccolo, but then did the same. Both warriors, in spite of their strength, did each have some measure of respect for the boy: as a student and a fellow Saiyan respectively. Simultaneously, they both spoke. "Fine."

Gohan sighed in relief. "Okay. Good..."

He looked to Krillin, and then to Tien and Chiaotzu. "Now, let's find that Android!"

 _Back in the wasteland..._

A harsh wind blew, sending the shoulder-length, shaggy black hair of Future Trunks and Future Ranch's partner fluttering in the wind. He looked confused as he knelt there, staring at the strange sight the three of them had spotted on the ground.

He observed it with curiosity.

Ranch observed it with revulsion.

And Trunks observed it with horror.

The three of them stared at the singed head of Android 19, none of them knowing what to say about what was clearly the remains of an Android at their feet. On one hand, it was certainly a triumph that this Android had been destroyed. On the other hand...

Trunks spoke up. "Something is wrong here. I can feel it..."

Ranch tried to comfort him. "Trunks..."

Trunks shook his head. "N-No. We...I think we might have screwed something up..."

 _Back in the mountains..._

Hidden from his foes once more, Android 20 took the time to quietly reflect on every encounter he had been through today in an attempt to glean new information. As he sat there, deep in thought, 20 scowled. " _Damn the luck. For such an improbably outcome to have occurred..._ "

The biorhythms that had been recorded for each of Goku's miserable ilk did not project their strength advancing this much in any natural way. Not even with the available training habits for each subject being taken into account. Even random new additions such as Goku's family and Vegeta, who very little information was available for, were set to the same standard of growth that Goku was...and yet even Vegeta still exceeded the expected parameters.

And they all kept mentioning having received a warning of the Androids, but what could have been the logical source of such a warning?! How could they have so thoroughly anticipated the attack that they could have gained such might?!

Android 20 pictured the three biggest thorns in his side from today. Not only Goku, but Vegeta and Piccolo as well had displayed a much higher power metric than any algorithm had anticipated. With all they had displayed thus far, 20 calculated that each was approximately equal to...

Mocking, youthful laughter rang through the back of 20's head.

 _...one of them._

Android 20 stroked his moustache as he thought more onto the battles that Android 19 had experienced. The more he thought about it, the more he was positive of one thing...if Goku had not been stricken by whatever affliction had begun attacking him, then Android 19 wouldn't have made it to his battle with Vegeta.

And now, 20 was being hunted by Piccolo and Vegeta, both quite mighty in their own right and, unlike Goku, seemingly free of said affliction.

Android 20 nodded and peaked out from his new hiding spot, scanning each of the Z-Fighters individually. Chiaotzu, Tien, Krillin, Gohan, Vegeta, and then Piccolo. Out of all of them, Piccolo had the strongest and most stable readings. Therefore, he would be the first target. Being careful of the Namekian's hearing, 20 took to the air and silently hovered closer.

In order for him to win this, 20 had to objectives to fulfill. His primary goal was to flee back to the laboratory in order to summon more reinforcements other than the remaining Saiyan Hunter. However, his secondary goal should be fulfilled first. If 20 was to make his daring escape, he would have to drain his two biggest threats of their vitality.

Android 20 smirked as he hovered behind Piccolo, unnoticed.

And then, as quick as a bolt, the Android jumped onto Piccolo's back. He wrapped his legs and his right arm around Piccolo's body and then clamped his hand over the Namekian's mouth. Piccolo struggled around, grunting under 20's grip. But the Android was locked in tight. Android 20 chuckled and whispered in Piccolo's ear. "Such a shame, Piccolo. If only Vegeta had not awarded me this extra strength..."

Piccolo snarled underneath 20's grip. He closed his eyes and focused his mind, sending out a mental signal to everyone in the vicinity. "Gohan! Krillin! Everyone! I've found the Android! He's draining me of my energy! Hurry over here!"

Piccolo could feel everyone suddenly turn and start rushing towards him, but he feared it would be too late by the time they arrived. 20 was drinking away all of his power and, in spite of his struggles, he was unable to get loose.

Meanwhile, on the ground, another onlooker was debating what he should do. Yajirobe, ever the coward, was staring up at the predicament Piccolo was in and debating what to do. On one hand, it would be cowardly to run off and leave Piccolo hanging...on the other hand, Yajirobe was a self-serving, card-carrying coward. He shook his head. "S-Sorry Piccolo, I'm out..."

As he started to slink away however, he thought back to how Goku sent someone to come and collect him when the Androids attacked him. He thought about the smug look on 20's face before 20 shot him down, which pissed him off. And then he thought harder about how Goku still thought about him, even when a crisis was breaking out. "Ah man...why do you have to be such a good guy, Goku...?"

Back in the air, Android 20 chuckled as he drained more of Piccolo's power. "Soon, my friend. Soon. Soon...revenge against Goku shall be complete. Unfortunately, you will not be around to see it..."

Piccolo's resistance was weakening. But, as all seemed lost, Android 20's grip was suddenly totally loosened. Piccolo and 20 both gasped in pain as, to their collective shock, a katana slashed through both of their sides. 20 released his grip on Piccolo and Piccolo lurched forward. The Android clenched his sparking side. "Who would dare...?"

Android 20 glared down to the ground and saw Yajirobe staring up at him, a snarky smile spread across his face. Yajirobe flipped Android 20 the bird and laughed. "How's that feel, ya old geezer?! That's for my ride you destroyed!"

20 snarled and charged a blast into his hand, aiming it squarely at Yajirobe. Yajirobe screamed in fear, but the attack was halted by a sudden strike. Android 20 cringed as he felt a fist sinking deeply into his cheek. The force of the punch sent 20 spinning and caused his helmet to fly off. The helmet fell down and landed in Yajirobe's hands. He chuckled and put it on his head, flipping 20 off again. "Yeah! Up yours! Nice save Pic-"

Yajirobe gasped at the sight of Piccolo's side, gushing with purple blood. He could barely speak as the Namekian glared down at him. " _I so sorry...please don't kill me..._ "

Piccolo waved the ronin off, simply regenerating his wound. And then, the Namekian focused his attention back onto Android 20. 20 glared up at him, looking totally livid. As the two stared each other down, the other warriors all leapt into the fray. Vegeta chuckled. "It feels like you lost some power, Namekian. Perhaps I should-"

Piccolo interrupted. "I did lose some power. The only difference is that mine was stolen rather than given."

Vegeta scowled. Piccolo cracked his neck and floated down to 20's level. "Everyone back off. This fight belongs to me."

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	64. Chapter 64: Temporal Turmoil

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: A bit of credit is due here. My editor, StevenBodner, usually helps me when it comes to writing choreography for these fights. But, this time around, something a bit different happened. He helped with the choreography of every fight in this chapter...but the entirety of Piccolo v 20 was written entirely by him. I wrote it to fit my writing style, but everything else was all him. So, I just wanted to congratulate him on writing such an engaging fight scene. And I wanted to thank him for helping me out with all of this._

 _ **Chapter 64: Temporal Turmoil**_

 _In the wasteland..._

Bulma hunched over the latest piece of technology as a harsh wind blew over the desolate plains. In the car, in the background, Baby Trunks could be heard cooing in his car seat. Bulma chuckled. "One second, baby~"

She reached down and touched the tech, hissing and jerking her hands back. "Ow! Dammit!"

She touched it again, allowing her hands to adjust to the heat. Eventually, she managed to get a hold of it and pick it up. Android 19's head rattled as it was lifted from the ground, burnt scraps falling out of the hole that formerly lead to the Android's neck. Bulma smirked as she stared at her reflection in 19's dead eyes. "It's like an Android slot machine! Jackpot!"

 _Back in the mountains..._

The Z-Fighters were all gathered around in a circle that surrounded Piccolo and Android 20. This time, the killer Android would not be allowed to escape. Android 20 smirked. "Simpering fools. Do you think you have won this simply because you outnumber me? The hatred of Dr. Gero knows no bounds, and you all shall-"

Shooting forward, Piccolo punched Android 20 in the face, sending the geriatric droid flying back and crashing into a rocky wall. 20 smashed into the wall, clearly shocked. "H-How? I drained so much of his power! How does-"

Piccolo charged at 20 and tried to deliver a kick, but 20 was able to dodge. The Android backflipped up the side of the wall and tossed an energy blast at Piccolo, but the Namekian was able to easily deflect it away. 20 glared. "That was a fluke. It must have been. I have drained so much power from you that it should be no matter at all to kill you, Piccolo!"

20 sprung off of the wall and skidded across the ground. Then, once he regained his footing, he launched himself back at Piccolo, with his arm drawn aside for a chop. 20 rained down his strike upon Piccolo, but the attack was quickly caught. 20 gasped and Piccolo smirked. And then, the Namekian returned another harsh punch to the face. 20 dropped to the ground like a stone and bounced, eventually landing and lying still.

Piccolo landed on the ground in front of 20 and loomed over his foe. 20 snarled. "Insolent pest!"

He threw another punch, but Piccolo easily caught it again. He squeezed 20's fist hard enough to make the servos in the Android's fingers pop. And then, before 20 could react, he hammered the Android across the face for a third time with a heavy punch. This punch made 20's right eye go lazy, partially rolling upwards. He snarled and went for a punch of his own, but Piccolo feinted back. The Namekian chuckled and then he leaned in again. Gripping 20's trapped hand tight, Piccolo unleashed a series of fierce strikes onto the Android. With one last vicious punch, Piccolo sent 20 crashing across the ground, sliding into a nearby pile of rubble.

Piccolo chuckled. "I think I'm about done with my warm-up..."

Android 20 shakily stood. "War-"

Piccolo cleared the distance between the two of them in a flash, doing a mid-air spin and delivering a mighty kick that sent 20 sailing through the air and back into the rocky wall once more. 20 crashed, making the imprint of himself in the rocks even larger, before sliding down to the ground in a heap. 20 was fuming as he stood back up. "Damn these accursed calculations! How could the algorithms have not quantified this?! Goku and Vegeta's strange metamorphoses could not have been accounted for...but what have you done to become so strong?!"

Piccolo smirked. "I mean, I did take off my weighted clothing..."

20 scowled. "Do not play me for a fool, green man! Your weights are irrelevant in such an unprecedented boost in strength!"

The Android thrust his hand at Piccolo, firing a massive ki blast. "Burn, fool!"

Piccolo cocked his head. "Hmph."

He held up his hand and grabbed 20's blast. The force of the attack caused Piccolo to skid back just a bit, but no more than that. Piccolo reared back and then, with all of his strength, he shoved the attack back at Android 20. 20's eyes widened in shock, but he quickly raised his hand up and reabsorbed the blast. "Imbecile! Have you forgotten that I can just reabsorb my own blasts?!"

The blast collided with 20's hand and began to flood back in. On the other side of the attack, Piccolo smirked. "No. I haven't."

After the blast had disappeared, Android 20 was shocked to see that Piccolo's hand was right there. In his distraction, the Android had not noticed that his Namekian foe had stretched his arm outward. Piccolo's hand shot right at 20, the sunlight glinting off of his sharp fingernails, and 20 had no time to react nor dodge. Piccolo's claws dug into 20's hand, slicing through his skin and into the machinery. Piccolo's fingers clenched around the lens imbedded in 20's palm and the Namekian pulled his arm back, ripping the device from 20's palm in one swift motion.

20 yelped in shock, stumbling backward and glancing down at his mangled hand. "H-How dare you?! How dare you?!"

Suddenly, to 20's surprise, Piccolo's hand shot forward again. It wrapped around the wrist of 20's undamaged hand and yanked the Android forward. The hapless Android was dragged back to Piccolo at high speed, only to be stopped in his tracks by a sudden, harsh kick to the gut. 20 gurgled, feeling the already large slice in his side increase in size. He snarled. "D-Damn you..."

Piccolo didn't respond. Instead, with cold efficiency, he delivered another five punches to his Android opponent before sending him flying into the air with a kick. Piccolo chased his foe into the sky and continued his assault, landing several critical strikes against the Android that launched him about. 20 cringed in pain, only regaining his senses just in time to avoid having his head blown off. The strike that Piccolo threw towards 20's face missed by a razor's edge, grazing the side of the Android's head and tearing off an ear.

Hearing the static where he once received auditory input, Android 20 lost his temper. "This is impossible! Inconceivable! Absolutely outrageous! The calculations made were flawless! This does not get with the figures that were presented! How did you manage to become so strong?!"

Piccolo smirked, retracting his arm. "You keep going on about numbers and calculations. It's pitiful."

20 snarled. Piccolo cracked his neck, his antennae bouncing as he did. "It's a shame too. I bet your calculations might have been fairly accurate...if only we had been training with our normal routine the past two years..."

The Android sneered. "You keep saying that! What does it all mean?!"

Piccolo was smug. "You might have technology and predictive algorithms on your side, but what you didn't have was knowledge. You didn't know about Planet Namek. You didn't know about the training that so many of us have done in the afterlife. And you certainly didn't know about our knowledge of you...or for how long we've known..."

20 flinched, suddenly quite terrified. He had not considered that metric. With hesitation in his voice, he posed the question. "H-How long?"

Piccolo didn't verbally answer. He simply smirked and held up two fingers. 20 was stunned. "T-Two weeks...?"

The Namekian shook his head. 20 stammered. "T-Two months?!"

Piccolo's smirked faded. He replied coldly. "Two years."

Android 20 was gobsmacked. "Two years?! How?! There were never any alerts on the scanners surrounding the laboratory. There were never any bugs, nor spy robots detected! How could you have known of the coming attack for two bloody years?!"

Piccolo cracked his knuckles and stepped towards his foe. "Ask your algorithms."

Desperate, 20 snarled and charged at Piccolo. "Damn you!"

The Android threw a series of rapid strikes, punches and kicks and swipes, at Piccolo. But, the Namekian was unfazed, dodging each and every attack as if a mere child was trying to hit him. Piccolo looked indifferently bored with Android 20's meager fighting style. Eventually, the assault slowed and 20 began to pant. Piccolo chuckled. "And here we go. I'm not going to pretend I understand technology all that well, but I figured that this would happen eventually. You and that other rotund fool both rely on stealing other people's energy to function. You're both walking batteries constantly on the drain!"

Piccolo got up close. "Sooner or later, you were going to give out. And with how sloppily you fight, I'm going to assume that sooner is more likely!"

20 growled. "How dare you mock me?! I will-"

The Android was cut off by another heavy knee strike smashing into his stomach. Piccolo grabbed him by the hair and yanked him up. "It's about time to show you what a fighting style actually looks like!"

And then, Piccolo's final assault began. He delivered a mighty palm strike to Android 20 that sent the Android sailing into the air. Piccolo gave chase, not letting 20 have any time to recover and delivering an overhead club strike to the side of the Android's head. 20 cringed, spinning in the air only to be stopped by a harsh kick to his undamaged flank. He then followed this up with a kiai that sent 20 flying through the air.

20 sneered, regaining his wits in time to see Piccolo charging at him. The Android smirked and readied his hand to grab the Namekian, hoping to absorb more of the foes power. Piccolo saw this and rolled his eyes. Instead of being grabbed, Piccolo ducked 20's grab and, instead, wrapped his arm around the Android's elbow, locking the arm in place. And then, using his own elbow, Piccolo spun around and struck 20 directly in the face.

20 was on the backfoot, and Piccolo took this at his chance. The Namekian raised his hand high into the air and roared with fury, and then he chopped off 20's forearm in one swift motion. 20 gasped in terror as he recoiled back. He stared down that the sparking nub of his former arm in shock. There went the last of his absorption lenses. He stared up at Piccolo, who simply discarded the severed arm to the ground below. 20 raised his damaged, remaining hand at Piccolo. "N-Now...that's enough..."

Piccolo snorted. "For once, I agree with Vegeta. _You only say it's enough because you're losing!_ "

And then, Piccolo stretched out his arm one last time. He shot his hand down to Android 20 and wrapped his grip around the Android's remaining wrist. Against his will, 20 was yanked into the air to the waiting Namekian. Piccolo reared back his free hand and thrust it forward, smashing it into 20's shoulder and blowing off his other arm. 20's pupils shrunk as he stared over at the damage. "Wh-What?! No! NO!"

But Piccolo wasn't done there. With a rapid spin, he twisted in the air and slammed his leg into 20's damaged side. The sheer force of the kick made 20's slashed torso totally crack in half, allowing Piccolo to essentially tear him in half with his foot. 20 floated in the air, armless and legless, looking utterly horrified. And then Piccolo scowled at him. "Here's a bit of data for you to put in your algorithm. No matter what data you have, or what numbers you calculate, if you underestimate your opponents to a degree such as this...you might as well set your winning calculations to zero!"

And then, with one last brutal punch, Piccolo knocked Android 20's head from his shoulder, sending it crashing to the ground where it bounced and rolled until eventually coming to a stop.

20's torso fell from the sky like a stone, smashing against a nearby rock and break into hundreds of pieces.

Piccolo landed as the others watched on, all of them impressed. Gohan shouted to his teacher. "Good work Mr. Piccolo!"

Tien shouted as well. "Nice one, man!"

Krillin sighed in relief. "It's over. Thank Kami it's over..."

Chiaotzu chuckled and gave Krillin a pat on the back before looking over at Yajirobe. "Why are you still wearing that?"

Yajirobe scowled, adjusting Android 20's helmet atop his head. "I've been dragged all over hell and creation today! And that was after my car got destroyed! I'm keeping something, even if it's that Android's stupid hat!"

As the rabble all talked to one another, Vegeta stood to the side with an irritated grimace on his face. "Damned Namekian. He'd better not let this go to his head. I am still the strongest warrior!"

Raditz rolled his eyes. "Sure you are..."

On the ground, Piccolo walked over to Android 20's head. As he got closer, the Namekian was surprised to find that his foe was still functional. Android 20 snarled. "Damn. Damn damn damn. How...how is this possible?! This cannot be where it ends! My vengeance has not been attained yet! I refuse to die like this...!"

Piccolo sneered, holding out his hand and charging a blast. "You don't really have much of a say in the matter anymore."

Android 20 roared in frustration. "You will pay for this! I will eviscerate you for this slight! Do you understand me, Piccolo?!"

Piccolo narrowed his eyes at 20, ready to fire his blast. "I doubt it. Now die."

But, as Piccolo readied himself to fire his attack, his ear suddenly twitched. He heard a sound that was out of place, and it was directly above him. "What the he-"

Suddenly, dropping from the sky like a stone, Super Android 13 dropped down onto Piccolo. With a purple splatter and the sound of bones crushing, Piccolo was stomped into the ground hard enough that it made the rocky platform he and 20 were on explode. Reaching down, Android 13 grabbed 20's severed head and leapt off of the crumbling plateau and onto another one nearby. The Android roared. " _ **Master!**_ "

Everyone stood in shock at the sight of Android 13's hulking, blue form. The missing half of 13's head shot sparks as he stood there, gripping 20's head. Android 20 chuckled. "Oh my! How good to see you 13. This is perfect!"

Android 20 glared into 13's eyes and shouted at the top of his voice. " _COMMENCE THE AMALGAMATION PROCEDURE, POST HASTE!_ "

Android 13 nodded. " _ **Yes!**_ "

And then, to the shock of everyone, Android 13 pressed Android 20's head to his chest. But rather than being crushed against his larger counterpart, 20 began to sink into the hulking Android's synthetic flesh. As he sank into the bluish-white chest of the behemoth, Android 20 chuckled. "It appears as if things are not quite finished yet~"

The moment 20 disappeared, 13 collapsed to his knees. The blue Android's remaining yellow eye suddenly went black. His body twitched and his skin writhed and, after one final gasp, all that was left of 13's mind disappear. His head began to melt, turning into a viscous blue paste, only to suddenly reform. 13's face remained mostly the same, except the missing half of his face had been replaced. Replaced...by Android 20's smirking mug.

The new hybrid Android stood up straight, chuckling in a new, warped voice. "Well, why are you fools just hovering there! Come! Come and die!"

Vegeta chuckled, cracking his neck. "Fine. I'm game. Let's go at it, Android!"

The Prince hovered forward, his Super Saiyan power flaring. But, as he prepared to charge, a beam of energy shot up from the ground in front of him. Once the dust had cleared, Vegeta stared in front and saw a totally green form. He sneered. "Still alive, Namekian?"

Piccolo pressed his hand to his chest, summoning a new gi to cover himself with. "It takes more than a mere dismemberment to defeat the Demon King. Now...step back, Vegeta. I said before, this guy is mine!"

Vegeta scoffed. "No! The old man was yours. This stitched-together abomination has yet to be claimed, so I claim him as my opponent!"

The Prince shoved Piccolo to the side and charged forward, fist drawn. "I will destroy him!"

Vegeta's fist clashed into Android 13-20's arm and created a shockwave that made the surrounding area crumble into dust. The Prince pulled his fist back, hooking his arm around 13-20's and using the off-hand to punch the Android in the face. Vegeta smirked, only to be shocked at how little his blow had affected this new beast. 13-20 chuckled and grabbed Vegeta by the wrist. "You will be surprised at how durable Android 13's super mode was designed to be."

And then, 13-20 reared back his head and smashed it into Vegeta's, giving the Saiyan a bloody nose and sending him flying back.

As Vegeta sailed back, he was suddenly caught by the ankle. He looked down, ready to defend himself, only to see that the one to catch him was Piccolo. Piccolo smirked at the Prince. "How goes the fight? Ready to tag out?"

Vegeta snatched his foot away and scowled at Piccolo. "Piss off!"

He charged at 13-20 once more, getting into a brawl with the hulking Android. The two of them traded blows back and forth with Vegeta's anger clearly frothing beneath the surface. Vegeta summon a massive blast into his hand and slammed it into 13-20's chest, but was surprised at how little it did. "What the hell?!"

13-20 chuckled. "You'll have to try harder than that. I might no longer have energy absorption, but it will take more than a meager energy blast to dismantle this sturdy form!"

Vegeta snarled. "Damn it!"

13-20 went for a crushing blow, but was quickly sent flying by a heavy kick to the face. It was clear that the kick did little damage, but 13-20 was still sent stumbling. The Android and Vegeta both glared at this intruder and found him to be Piccolo. Vegeta snarled. "Did I request your pathetic assistance?!"

Piccolo sneered. "You nearly just got your head caved in, idiot! Learn to pay attention!"

Vegeta growled. "Are you seriously implying that he would have dealt any sort of damage to me? Him?!"

Piccolo glared at Vegeta. "Yes, I am. Both of us are worse for wear at the moment. Our energy reserves are flagging. We need to work together right now in order to get this finished!"

Vegeta shouted at Piccolo. "How dare you imply that-"

In a flash, 13-20 chose to interrupt Vegeta and Piccolo's conversation. He charged in and slammed his foot down onto Vegeta's head, forcing the Prince deep into the ground. And then, as Piccolo went to defend himself, 13-20 seized the Namekian by the head and drove him into the ground as well. 13-20 chuckled. "I will kill you both! This is the end!"

Underneath 13-20's hand and foot respectively, driven into the ground, Piccolo and Vegeta glared at one another. Piccolo grumbled. "Are you ready to team up now?"

Vegeta was clearly pissed. But, after a moment of furious annoyance, he gave in. "...fine."

13-20 laughed. "Fools! I have assumed an entirely new level of strength! Do you honestly think that a simple team-up will-"

Suddenly, the Android was interrupted by two explosions erupting beneath him. Thrown into the air, covered in scorch marks, the brute glared down and saw Piccolo and Vegeta both staring up at him. Piccolo cracked his neck and Vegeta stretched his shoulder. And then Vegeta spoke to Piccolo. "This is one time only. After this, you're next of my list."

Piccolo snorted. "I couldn't agree more."

And then, the two of them charged into the air at 13-20. The Android threw a punch at Piccolo, but the Namekian did a flying leap over his foe and kicked him square in the back. 13-20 stumbled and was met from the front by a kick to the gut from Vegeta. He reeled over in pain and the Prince leapt above him. Piccolo chopped 13-20 in the back of the neck and then Vegeta fell from the sky, smashing an energy blast directly into the back of the Android's head and sending him crashing to the ground below.

The two of them charged down to the ground, ready to deliver more punishment to their foe. But, 13-20 sprang back up. He grabbed Piccolo and Vegeta, each by the back of the head, and slammed them together before driving them back into the ground. The Android raised his hands above his head and charged a blast. "This will finish you!"

Gohan shouted. "No! Piccolo! Vegeta!"

He leaped from his spot and attempted to fly in to help. 13-20 glared and prepared to toss his blast at the boy, but Piccolo quickly put a stop to that. The Namekian stood and wrapped his arms around 13-20's torso before suplexing the hulking bastard into the ground. Vegeta followed up with a blast of his own, rising into the air and spamming multiple ki blasts down onto the blue behemoth.

The smoke rose into the air and Vegeta smirked, only to be surprised by a massive ki blast coming at him. However, a stretchy, green arm shot in from the side and pulled Vegeta out of the way at the last moment. 13-20 rose from the smoke, growling. Piccolo rose into the sky next to Vegeta and Vegeta stared at him with contempt. "How dare you lay your hand on me?!"

Piccolo nodded. "You have a point. I should have let you die."

The two of them went from sniping at one another to focusing back on their foe. They both charged at 13-20 once more, powering-up until their aura shot off of them like flames. They both tackled into 13-20's gut and sent him flying back before peppering him with more blasts. The Android charged back at them, totally ignoring their attacks. But, the both of them were counting on that. Once he was close enough, Vegeta shot into the air and Piccolo did his thing. The Namekian used the Multi-Form technique to split into two versions of himself. One of them flew out of fighting distance and the other one weaved behind 13-20, using his stretching arms to bind the Android in place. The other glared up to the sky and shouted. "Vegeta! Do it now!"

Vegeta shouted at the top of his lungs, slamming his hands together and firing a beam of blue energy. " _FINAL CRASH!_ "

The beam engulfed both Vegeta and the Piccolo clone, incinerating the Namekian away and driving the Android into the ground, creating a massive explosion. Piccolo joined Vegeta in the air and glared down at the rising plume of smoke. He turned to Vegeta. "You think it's over?"

Vegeta shook his head. "Not till the fish jumps."

Piccolo cocked his head. "Fish?"

Vegeta flinched, clearing his throat. "Y-Yeah. Fish. Cuz, he's...he's blue...and..."

Piccolo was confused. "Was that an attempt at a joke?"

Vegeta sneered. "If you don't appreciate my sense of humor, then-"

13-20 rocketed out of the smoke, screaming like a madman. Piccolo and Vegeta both rebuffed him, sending him back to the ground with a pair of coordinated strikes. Piccolo snarked at Vegeta. "So, is it over?"

Vegeta scowled. "Shut the hell up!"

The Prince charged a blast in his hand and the Namekian charged a blast in his mouth, and then they both fired down, creating and even bigger explosion than before that shredded a massive crater into the ground. Vegeta and Piccolo both hovered there, waiting for the Android to return. They knew this wasn't over. Soon enough, their fears were proven correct as 13-20 rose from the ashes and faced them down once more. Piccolo snarled. "This is going nowhere."

Vegeta struck a fighting stance. "If you aren't up for the challenge then get lost, Namekian!"

However, to the surprise of the two warriors, 13-20 suddenly took damage from a different direction. Five energy beams, made from the same energy as the Destructo-Disc from the looks of it, shot through 13-20's chest and zip off into the distance. The Android growled in pain and frustration and turned to glared at his new attacker, seeing Bardock, the father of Goku, hovering behind him. "You! How are you alive?! Hadn't 13 killed you?!"

Bardock looked annoyed. "Nah. Not even close. But that hunk of junk did lose half of his face in the attempt."

He narrowed his eyes at 13-20. "Now...who the hell are you and why the hell are you grafted onto my opponent?!"

Vegeta snapped at Bardock, looking angry. "Oh no! Not you too! I already have to share this fight with that worthless Namekian! You aren't going to step in too, old man!"

Piccolo looked annoyed. "Technically, it's my opponent whose consciousness is controlling that thing, so you should both step back and follow my lead to finish him off!"

Bardock sneered. "Okay, first off, shut the hell up Vegeta! I felt your little light show earlier; you've gotten to kill two Androids! And, as for you Piccolo, I don't give a damn about technicalities and I certainly don't give a damn about teamwork for an enemy that I had nearly killed before he ran off! _Both of you sit down, shut up, and butt out of my fight!_ "

Bardock's Super Saiyan power flared. Vegeta's did as well. In response, Piccolo rose his power up to meet the other two.

As the three of them floated there, forming a circle around Android 13-20, they started to scream and shout at one another. This was done much to the chagrin and the embarrassment of the other Z-Fighters on the ground. Raditz cupped his hand over his face. "Seriously, what is the matter with them?! They're treating this like a game..."

Tien nodded. "Couldn't agree more. They're letting the upper hand we've gained against these Androids go to their heads."

The three-eyed warrior turned to Raditz and smirked. "So, what's say we steal the final blow out from under them?"

Gohan, Krillin, Chiaotzu, and Yajirobe all flinched at Tien's bold statement. Yajirobe stammered. "A-Are you trying to piss the three of them off?!"

Krillin was more focused on the danger of the situation. "Forget making them angry! How can you be sure that the two of you have enough power to take that Android down?!"

Tien chuckled. "We don't."

Gohan gasped. "Wh-What? Then what do you plan to do?"

Tien glanced up at 13-20. "We might not be able to destroy that Android ourselves, but if we were to knock it out of the path of Vegeta, Piccolo, and Bardock, then Krillin could easily slice him into pieces with a few Destructo-Discs..."

The three-eyed warrior turned to his shorter comrade. "Right, Krillin?"

Krillin shivered. "B-But what if he dodges?"

Tien smirked. "That's what Chiaotzu's telekinesis is for. Can you hold him steady for roughly three seconds, Chiaotzu?"

Chiaotzu seemed uneasy, but he nodded. "Yeah Tien, definitely."

Tien turned to Raditz. "There we go. We have a plan. So... what do you say?"

Raditz glanced back up at the bickering threesome, and then he turned to Tien. "I'm in. Let's do it."

Tien nodded. "Okay then..."

The two warriors both crossed their arms over their chests, and then they both summoned forth their maximum power. Raditz shouted. " _Kaioken Times 40!_ "

Tien shouted. " _Kaioken Times 50!_ "

Bardock, Piccolo, Vegeta, and 13-20 all stared down at this sudden development in confusion. Vegeta snarled. "What the hell?!"

But, in an instant, the three bickering warriors were caught unaware. Both Raditz and Tien shot up and hit 13-20 with all of their might, knocking the Android out of range of Piccolo, Vegeta, and Bardock. 13-20 snarled. "Who do you two think you-"

Suddenly, the Android was frozen in place as Chiaotzu's telekinetic powers overwhelmed him. Unable to budge, 13-20 glared down where Chiaotzu was and caught sight of a technique that truly inspired fear. Krillin was stood there, Destructo-Disc overhead. The monk smirked. "Gotcha!"

And then he tossed it. Vegeta, Piccolo, and Bardock watched as the attack flew right towards their opponent, unable to react in time to prevent losing their chance at the kill. Everything seemed to be set. It looked as if the battle was finally going to come to an end. But then, a voice called out. "Okay! Who the hell is that?!"

Chiaotzu lost focus at the unfamiliar voice. "Wh-What?!"

In that brief loss of focus, Chiaotzu's telekinetic hold was broken and 13-20 managed to twist most of his body out of the way of the attack. The disc cleaved through his ankle, lopping off his foot, and the Android cried out in pain. Everyone turned towards the new voice and where all surprised to see the source. The Boy from the Future, the one that had warned the Z-Fighters of the Androids was hovering there. Next to him was a young woman with bluish-black hair. And next to her was the source of the voice, a young man with shaggy black hair.

Piccolo grumbled. "Oh, so now you three show up huh? It took you long enough! We've nearly defeated the _five_ Androids that showed up!"

The Future Trio looked utterly gobsmacked. Bardock spoke up. "What the hell was that warning anyway?! Two Androids?! How could you overlook three additional threats?! If me, Vegeta, and Raditz hadn't been at Capsule Corp, who knows what might have happened!"

Still no response from the three of them. Vegeta snarled. "Well?! Do you have anything to say for yourselves?! Any explanation for what might be going on?!"

The purple-haired boy spoke. "N-No... this...this is all wrong..."

The young woman spoke. "Five Androids, and yet..."

Krillin called up to them. "H-Hey! What's going on?! What are you guys so quiet for?!"

Finally, the shaggy-haired youth spoke. "All of the Android's we've seen today. That pale one we found in the wasteland, this blue behemoth, and the old man that's attached to him...we don't know who any of these Androids are..."

This revelation threw all of the Z-Fighters for a loop. They all flinched back, looking shocked at the news. Raditz called down to the shaggy-haired boy. "Wait...what about a purple dwarf, a silver colossus, or a trucker?! Do you recognize those descriptions?!"

The woman looked up, perplexed at what had just been said to her. "D-Dad, what are you going on about?!"

Raditz looked frustrated, confused as to what was going on. "I'm talking about-"

And then it hit him what had just been said. " _...Dad?_ "

All of this confusion, however, was quickly broken by an even more perplexing sight. Her radio blasting, Bulma suddenly came rocketing towards the scene in her hover car. She called out through her speaker. "Hey guys! What's up? Are there more Android parts out here for me to collect? I'm just a regular Android undertaker today~"

Baby Trunks giggled at how happy his mother sounded, broadcasting his adorable laughter through the entire mountain. Bardock slapped his hand onto his forehead. "You have got to be kidding me..."

The purple-haired youth called out. "What is she doing here?!"

Vegeta shouted over at his wife. " _DID YOU BRING THE GODDAMNED BABY TO A BATTLEFIELD?!_ "

Bulma went to shout back at her husband, but then a somewhat familiar sight caught her eye. She stared over at 13-20, watching as the wind blew 13's fiery hair over the top of 20's head. "Is that...? It can't be..."

Seeing an opening to escape, 13-20 laughed out loud. "Fools! You should have killed me when you had the chance! Now I shall escape and released Androids 17 and 18 to kill you all!"

Piccolo flinched. "17?!"

Bardock gasped. "And 18?!"

Everyone else reacted with shock at the new that yet more Androids were in waiting to be unleashed. And then, before any of them could react, 13-20 charged a massive blast into his hand and threw it at the ground. " _PHOTON HOLOCAUST!_ "

The attack hit the ground and then bloomed like a flower of destruction, shredding the entire landscape for miles around. Bulma screamed in fear, attempting to turn her car away, only for the blast to be blocked by a shadowed figure. As everyone else defended themselves from the attack, 13-20 dived to the ground and burrowed his way down, his escape tunnel quickly being sealed over by debris.

The attack continued on, spreading out farther and farther until eventually dissipating, leaving only a flattened landscape riddled with chunks of debris in its wake.

Once the bright light died down and the smoke started to clear, the purple-haired youth began to frantically glance around. "No! No no no! Where...where is she?! What happened?!"

He looked around, his heart-rate accelerating. "M... _B-Bulma! Bulma!_ "

No response. The boy was panicking. He shot to the ground and frantically began to search for the wreckage of the car. Thinking the worst, thinking that both Bulma and her baby had died in that blast, the boy began to panic. But then, thankfully, he heard the sound of an infant babbling in the distance. The boy ran through the smoke, going to help, only to find an unexpected, but welcome sight before him: Bulma, Baby Trunks, and Bulma's car were all fine...and Vegeta was sitting on the hood looking slightly more damaged than he had moments earlier.

The Prince was breathing heavily, but he still found energy to glare at the purple-haired youth. "What the hell do you want? _Idiot!_ "

As the smoke cleared, the others all rejoined the group as well. Raditz and Bardock both walked up, covered in minor scratches and burns. Tien and Chiaotzu showed up soon after that. Followed up by the young woman and Piccolo, and then the shaggy young man and Gohan. Finally, Krillin and Yajirobe returned to round out the group. 13-20's attack had claimed no casualties.

The dust settled as the entire group sat down to regroup. Vegeta's face had a seemingly permanent smile on it as he glared down at the Future Trio. "Two Androids?! Two Androids, eh?! What sort of laughable, half-assed reporting was that?!"

Bulma glared at her husband. "Vegeta, calm down! It's an honest mistake! You can't be mad at them for it!"

Vegeta spat. "Oh shut up, you irresponsible moron! Why the hell did you bring our baby, my heir, here?! He's not old enough to fight yet! He can't defend himself! Are you out to end my bloodline?!"

Bulma sneered at Vegeta. "That's rich coming from the deadbeat ass that abandoned his family in a dangerous spot to go and seek a better fight! There were still two killer Androids at our house when you ran off! They could have attacked us and the best defense you left behind was Bardock!"

Bardock flinched, taking offense at how Bulma worded that. "What the hell did I do?!"

Bulma and Vegeta both turned to Bardock and shouted. "SHUT THE HELL UP!"

And then they turned back to one another and continued to argue. Vegeta turned and look in the car, seeing 19's burnt out head sitting in the passenger seat. "And what the hell is that?! Why do you have that rotund mistake's head in your car?! I destroyed him; he should stay destroyed!"

Bulma spat back at him. "Do you think I'm going to rebuild him?! Do I look stupid to you?!"

Vegeta snarled. " _You brought our infant son to an active warzone!_ "

Bulma paused, not sure what to say to that. She shook her head. " _Keep your nose out of my business Vegeta! You're not my boss!_ "

Finally, Bardock stepped in again. "Okay. Calm down before this gets any worse. _Both of you._ "

Bulma and Vegeta both took a deep breath and let it out. Then, they both returned to scowling at one another. But, now, Vegeta spoke in a slightly lighter tone. "It's nice to see that my wife is tough enough to handle a pathetic attempt of an attack like that..."

Bulma grumbled. "J-Just sit down so I can get the first aid kit and treat some of those cuts you have. I don't want them to get infected..."

Vegeta sat with an irritated sigh as Bulma reached into the car and pulled out Baby Trunks and a first aid kit. She handed Baby Trunks and a bottle to Vegeta. "Feed him while I bandage you up."

Vegeta took the baby and the bottle, pressing the bottle into his son's mouth as Bulma started spraying his wounds with disinfectant. "Whatever..."

Piccolo rolled his eyes. "Okay, now that that's over...I think it's time that we got an explanation as to what's going on..."

The Namekian turned to the Future Trio. They all flinched at his intense stare. Bardock joined Piccolo. "I agree. Look, we kept your secrets just fine for the past two years, but now all of your conditions have been met so it's time to start talking. Tell us everything that we need to know about what's going to happen next and don't hold a single detail back, got it?"

The boy shuddered. "H-How do you-"

Bardock was blunt. "Piccolo hears well and I read your lips two years ago."

The purple-haired boy glanced away, his hands in his pockets. "A-And you're sure that everything is okay..."

Piccolo nodded. "Positive. As you can see, the proof is literally in Vegeta's arms."

Vegeta was taken back by this, looking down at his son and then back at the Future Trio.

The purple-haired boy, clad in his Capsule Corp denim jacket, his work pants, and his work boots stepped up, the sunlight reflecting off of the handle of his sword. "Fine...then allow me to introduce myself first..."

He glanced at Gohan, and then at Vegeta and Bulma. "M-My name is Trunks. And I am the son of Bulma Briefs and the Saiyan Prince Vegeta from 17 years in the future.

The young woman stepped up, her bluish-black hair and bright red bobbing in the wind. She was dressed in a plain, yellow tanktop, tucked into her camouflage pants, and a pair of black and brown Saiyan armored boots. Her tail was lazily wrapped around her waist like a loose shawl and she had what appeared to be a Kalashnikov AK-107 hanging across her back. She glanced at Gohan as well, and then focused her attention directly on Raditz. "My name is Ranch. And, well, I am the daughter of Launch and Raditz from 17 years in the future..."

She gave a gentle wave to her father. "Hey Dad..."

The final member of the trio stood off in the distance, twiddling his fingers as if he didn't know what to say. Bardock called over to him. "Hey! What about you?! What's your deal?!"

No response. Krillin flinched and called over. "Is everything all right, guy?"

Still no response. Future Trunks and Future Ranch both moved to go and say something to their counterpart, but they both stopped in their tracks. They watched, to their surprise, as young Gohan marched over to their friend and reached out. "Excuse me..."

Gohan grabbed the boy's jacket and gave it a tug, he yelped and turned, staring down at the young, half-Saiyan. Gohan gently smiled at him. "You don't have to be scared. We're all friends here. None of us will hurt you..."

The young man, with his shaggy black hair, his blue denim jeans and tail, his black boots, his white muscle shirt and brown bomber jacket combo, and his mysterious weapon wrapped in a cloth strapped to his back swallowed a lump in his throat. He still didn't speak. Gohan was gentle, though. "How about we just start with a name?"

Suddenly, the boy blurted out seemingly faster than he even thought. "Daikon!"

Gohan cocked his head, confused. "Daikon?"

He turned to the others and they all responded with similar confusion. Future Trunks and Future Ranch both looked stunned. Gohan turned to face the young man again. "I'm sorry, but-"

The young man interrupted. "My name is Daikon. I'm Raditz and Launch's son from 17 years in the future. I, uh, I probably haven't been born yet but..."

He nervously chuckled. "...yeah. That's me."

He walked past Gohan, marching directly up to Raditz. "It's...uh...super risky to tell you guys who I am before I've been born so, uh...you and, um, Mom will still have me...right, D-Dad?!"

Raditz awkwardly stared at his apparent son. "S-Sure thing, uh, son...I'll make sure that Launch and I, uh, p-put it on the To-Do-List..."

A nervous thumbs-up from Raditz. Future Daikon returned and equally nervous thumbs-up.

As that went on, Bulma and Vegeta both stared in shock at their son from future. Future Trunks normally looked towards them as well, unsure of what to say. Leaving Vegeta and the baby for a moment, Bulma walked over to her older son and began to poke and prod at him. She lifted his arms, tugged on his hair, and simply just stared in his eyes for a moment before cracking a warm smile. "Wow, my baby grew up to be such a handsome young man..."

She turned back to her husband. "Isn't he handsome, Vegeta?"

Vegeta glared at his apparent son. He glanced over at Future Ranch and Future Daikon, and then down at the baby in his arms. And then he looked back at the young man. "Boy, where is your tail?"

Future Trunks flinched, both at the question and at the harshness in his father's voice. His hands trembled. "I... I, uh...I..."

Eventually, the stammering stopped and he just hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry..."

Bulma waved that off. "Don't worry about that. Your father is an ass. You don't owe him an explanation for anything."

Future Trunks nodded, smiling at his mother. But then, he looked past her and saw the irritated look on Vegeta's face.

Piccolo spoke up. "How about we drop family politics for now and get into the real meat of this discussion. What's going with these Androids?"

Tien spoke up. "Are you really telling us that not a single Android we've met so far has been one that attacked your timeline?!"

Future Trunks shook his head, looking positively confused at this whole situation. "No. Not a one. And it's not even, like, the existed and one point and were defeated..."

Future Ranch sighed. "None of us have so much as ever heard of any of these guys. W-We had always wondered if there were numbers before or after 17 and 18, but...we had just hoped that they were failures or that they had never existed to begin with..."

Vegeta loudly injected his opinion to the situation. "Idiots! All three of you are idiots!"

Bulma cut him off. "Cool it, Vegeta! They're not idiots, they're kids. Give them a break!"

She glared at her husband and then turned to the others, sounding rather angry in her tone of voice. "None of you understand any of the theorems or calculations that would actually go into time travel. It's not just a trope in movies that killing a mosquito in the past can have dire consequences that change how the future flows. Butterfly effects are entirely possible in all of this! So, the lot of you need to cut these three a break! Because there's no way they could have guessed that anything like this might have happened! _AND_ , their warnings saved most of your lives from being ended!"

Everyone backed down in the wake of Bulma's words. Everyone except Vegeta. "They didn't even bother to tell us the correct numbers for the enemy we'd face!"

Bulma got in his face. "But they did accurately tell you the day of the first attack! So, guess what Vegeta: _that means they saved your ungrateful ass from being killed!_ "

Vegeta was shaking with anger. Bulma was glaring directly into his eyes. "Now, lay off our son. You understand me?"

The Prince set Baby Trunks back into his seat. And then, he stood and sneered. "To hell with this! I will not be scolded for being furious that we weren't given complete information!"

He marched past Bulma, his energy flaring, and then he took off. "The lot of you can stand here and talk! I'm going to find that Android and tear him to pieces!"

And then, before anybody could stop him, Vegeta took off and flew into the distance. As he did, Krillin called after him. "Vegeta! Wait! At least eat a Senzu Bean f... _he's gone_. Damn that guy..."

Bulma didn't look impressed. "He's just showing his ass right now. I know he's smart enough to know that I'm right and that this isn't anybody's fault. He's just pissy."

She looked over and saw, to her disdain, that Vegeta's words seemed to have actually gotten to the Future Trio. The three of them stood there, their heads hung over, looking absolutely miserable. She quickly spoke up. "Nope! Absolutely not! The three of you stop that right now!"

Future Trunks looked up and his mother wrapped her arms around him. "Don't let him get you down, okay? He's that way with everybody..."

Raditz wrapped his arms over Future Ranch and Future Daikon's shoulders, pulling his apparent children close. "Yeah, don't let the angry rambling of a fragile ego get to you. He'll get over himself soon enough. For now, you need to look at the good you've done so far..."

Piccolo nodded. "I sensed the three of you when you arrived back here in our time. I wondered what you were doing at first...but the three of you delayed coming over to us to help people on Amenbo Island, right?"

Tien's eyes widened, but then he nodded. "Oh, that's why they're covered in ash."

Chiaotzu chuckled. "That's really good! You took the time to help all of those people~"

Krillin spoke up. "And let's not forget that you stepped in two years ago and got rid of that Aka guy. Who knows what he might have done if you hadn't!"

Bardock grunted. "And the vaccine. That's important."

Gohan nodded, smiling wide. "Yeah! You brought that vaccine back that saved my Dad from the Heart Virus! We'll never be able to thank you enough for that!"

The Future Trio smiled. Even if just a little, everyone's words did make them feel better. In their heads, they were all ecstatic. This is what it felt like to be part of the Z-Fighters. Future Daikon spoke up. "So, where is he anyway...?"

Gohan flinched. "My Dad?"

Future Ranch nodded. "Yeah. I've wanted to meet Uncle Goku for the longest time. What happened to him?"

Piccolo stepped forward. He took a Senzu Bean from Krillin and quickly ate it, restoring his full strength. "The residual effects of the Heart Virus hit him when he was fighting Android 19. He should be fine, probably. But we'll worry about him later."

The Future Trio all looked worried that, even after the vaccine, Goku had still gotten sick. But they listened to Piccolo and chose not to dwell on it at the moment. Piccolo turn away, towards the forest in the distance. "Vegeta was right about one thing. We can't afford to wait any longer to chase that Android down. Who knows how much trouble he could cause if we wait any longer..."

The Namekian sneered. "We can't sense him. And that's a problem. So, in order to find him, we'll just have to split up and search around for him with our eyes. It'll be like finding a needle in a haystack, but-"

Bulma suddenly interrupted. " _ **Oh! Oh my gosh! I just remembered!**_ "

Piccolo turned to Bulma. "What?! What is it?!"

Bulma ran back to the car. She grabbed Baby Trunks into her arm and grabbed her phone with her free hand. "That Android! I remember where I've seen him before!"

Tien cocked his head. "You've...seen that Android before...?"

Bulma nodded. "Yeah, back when I was really young. I saw a guy that looked like that Android!"

She scrolled through her phone, looking intensely. "I know it's somewhere on the Capsule Corp website..."

After a minute, Bardock began to lose patience. "We don't have time for this Bulma."

Bulma snapped at him. "Shut up! It's a really old picture. I was like two and Tights hadn't even gone off with that alien friend of hers..."

After another moment, Bulma smiled. "Bingo! I found it! It's..."

The smile faded from Bulma's face. "No way..."

Piccolo was also losing his patience. "What?! What is it?!"

Bulma held up her phone, on it was a picture of a much younger Dr. Briefs and another scientist, with fiery red hair, who looked strikingly similar to Android 20 albeit younger. The two of them were stood on either side of a conceptual robot design with both excavation tools and weaponry attached.

And underneath the picture was a caption: Capsule Corp Exploration Robot C-6, Dr. Briefs...a _nd Dr. Gero_.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	65. Chapter 65: Dr Gero

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _ **Chapter 65: Dr. Gero**_

 _In the sky near Mt. Paozu..._

Carefully flying through the air, trying his best to avoid jostling his travel partner too much, Yamcha scanned around. "I know I have to be getting close. It's been so long since I've been to Goku's house..."

Slung over Yamcha's shoulder, Goku shuddered and let loose a heavy gasp of pain and clutched his hand over his heart. He began to cry out in pain and Yamcha gave him a gentle pat on the back. "I'm sorry, bud, I know. We're almost there. Just a bit longer..."

Yamcha looked around, trying to spy Goku's house. He glanced forward and, in the distance, he saw a hovercar landing. He closed his eyes and sensed and felt Gine's energy. "Okay, bud, let's go get you some medicine."

And so, Yamcha flew forward towards Goku's house.

 _In the mountains..._

" _WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP!"_

Bulma glared at Yajirobe. "Excuse me?!"

Yajirobe shook his head. "You heard me! It sounds like nonsense! How in the hell could a human turn himself into an Android like that?! You're saying the guy actually removed his brain and put it in a robot, cuz-"

Bulma marched up to Yajirobe, getting nose-to-nose with the rude ronin. "You live in a world where aliens, gods, demons, and mutants exist and you're saying a _CYBORG_ is impossible? _Really Yajirobe?!_ "

Yajirobe started to sweat. "Uh, I..."

Tien spoke up. "That would explain the brain in the jar..."

He closed his eyes. "I suppose this is what he meant by peacefully passed away...the human Dr. Gero doesn't exist anymore..."

Piccolo sneered. "And we just let him escape..."

He clenched his fingers around his bicep. " _Damn it._ "

Chiaotzu sounded worried. "If he stays alive, then the stream of Androids could possibly never end..."

Piccolo snarled. "Then we don't let that happen! We have to find him and we have to kill him!"

Future Ranch seemed nervous. "I agree but...do we even know where he went? He said that he was going to go and awaken...17 and 18, but the three of us have no idea where 17 and 18 originated from to begin with..."

Bulma spoked up. "Well, it stands to reason that Gero would probably store his experiments in his lab, right? So, we just have to find that lab. And, given that he burrowed away instead of flying off, I'm willing to be its somewhere on this continent..."

Krillin turned to her. "What makes you think that?"

Bulma glanced over at Krillin. "He can fly at super-sonic speeds and he has no energy signature. Why go through the trouble of burrowing away if not to travel a short distance and avoid being spotted?"

Future Trunks nodded. "That makes sense. Good deductive reasoning, M-Mother..."

Bulma smiled at her son from the future. Gohan spoke up. "So, we have a search area, we just need an idea of what we're looking for now. Before we all head out...could the three of you describe what Android 17 and Android 18 look like?"

Future Daikon nodded. "Y-Yeah, of course. We should have done that to begin with..."

He cleared his throat. "Android 17 is a teenage boy with black hair, blue-eyes, and a lean frame. Android 18 is basically his twin, blue eyes and a lean frame. But she has blonde hair. Honestly, the two of them look like normal people...17 looks like a cool boy and 18 looks like a beautiful girl, it's just..."

Future Daikon paused and glanced over at Future Trunks, who was shooting him a sideways glare. "Oh, sorry Trunks. I just meant..."

Future Trunks was green in the face. "Did you really just call her beautiful...?"

Future Ranch quickly spoke up. "Okay! Let's not turn this into a thing! We've given an accurate description, now we should get a move on before the worst happens, right? We should probably head out in teams just so we can watch each other's backs! No one wants to get ambushed alone!"

Piccolo glared off into the distance. "Try telling that to Vegeta. Damned fool, rushing off before being told anything about what's going on..."

Bulma waved Piccolo off. "Don't worry about Vegeta. I'll catch up to him and fill him in on everything."

Piccolo turned to her. "Your husband's impulsiveness is going to get him killed."

Bulma sighed. "Possibly. But, you're still alive so we still have Dragon Balls. So, that's a blessing I guess..."

She turned and called back to her son. "Hey, Trunks, would you be willing to join me and yourself to go and hunt down Vegeta. I'd love to talk and I could use some help tracking your father's power level!"

Future Trunks nodded, walking over to his mother. He watched as Bulma bent over, moving a rock and quietly chuckling before picking up one of Android 20's severed hands, with the energy absorption lens completely intact. Future Trunks warmly smiled. "I would be happy accompany you."

Piccolo turned to the others. "The rest of you group off too. Look around carefully. He was fairly damaged and he's down a foot, I can't imagine he's gotten too far away."

The others all nodded. Future Trunks and Bulma took off in her hover car to go and find Vegeta. Tien and Chiaotzu went off, with Chiaotzu towing the ever-protesting Yajirobe behind him. Future Ranch and Future Daikon took off. And Bardock, Krillin, and Gohan flew off shortly after them. Finally, only Piccolo and Raditz remained. Raditz sighed. "Just the two of us, huh?"

Piccolo nodded. "Looks like it."

The two of them proceeded to take off as well. Everyone's mission was set: find and destroy Dr. Gero.

 _On the ground in the northern mountains forest..._

Future Ranch and Future Daikon both walked along through the forest, looking for any signs of their target. Both of the teenagers were on edge as they carried on, both ready to reach for their weapons at a moment's notice. After a bit more walking, the two of them came across exactly what they were looking for: a massive hole in the ground.

Future Daikon knelt down and grabbed a handful of the recently disturbed soil. Future Ranch glared at the nearby trees and saw several of them damaged or nearly knocked over. Future Daikon stroked his chin. "So, it looks like Gero isn't very comfortable in that massive, bulky body of-"

A rustling in the bushes made the two teens flinch in shock. Future Ranch reached behind and grabbed her gun, aiming it towards the bushes. Future Daikon reached for his weapon but, before he could draw it, the intruder hopped out of the bush, revealing itself as little more than a rabbit.

A brief moment of silence, but then Future Ranch began to laugh. " _Oh...oh my gosh...look at us, so on edge..._ "

Future Daikon chuckled. "Yeah..."

Future Ranch slugged Future Daikon in the arm. "You really do take after _our Dad_. Know what I mean, _Bro_? _Always so on edge..._ "

Future Daikon grumbled and turned away, a blush and a pouting look on his face. " _Sh-Shut up!_ "

 _Near sheer cliffs in the northern mountains..._

Chiaotzu stood grimly over the long-dead corpses of two hunters. Tien stood behind him, looking just as grim. The three-eyed warrior knelt down and turned the hunter over, finding a pair of small burn marks directly in the center of the man's forehead. The other hunter had the exact same marks. Tien closed his eyes, remembering Dr. Gero and Android 19's liberal use of Eye Beams and his squeezed his brow. "Sick monsters..."

Yajirobe stood off to the side, shivering from the cold. "Why the hell do you keep dragging me to morbid crap like this?!"

 _A house on a plateau in the northern mountains..._

Bardock, Krillin, and Gohan all stood in front of a massive house in the middle of the forest. Bardock crossed his arms over his chest and stared at the abomination: a purple, blue, and green painted house with multiple pink flamingos and lawn gnomes in front. He turned to Krillin and Gohan. "Th-There's no way this is Gero's lab...right?"

Gohan was equally as confused. Krillin, in a moment of bravery, walked up to the door and pressed the doorbell. Swinging jazz music echoed out and multiple people within the house could be heard rustling about. Bardock and Gohan both prepared for a fight, but then the door swung open and a single man in a leopard skin robe stepped into view. "Hey there, swingers! Welcome to The Vinnie's hip and hopping bachelor pad! Are you more of the happenin', hepcats that The Vinnie met on his dating app?"

Bardock's face turned bright red. Gohan cocked his head. "S-Swingers? D-Dating app? What-"

Multiple scantily clad women showed up at the door, giggling and practically hanging off of "The Vinnie". Bardock grabbed his grandson and shoved him behind himself. "Nope."

Krillin, a sly smile on his face, stepped forward towards the house. "I certainly-"

Bardock grabbed Krillin by the back of his shirt and tossed him across the yard. "Nope."

Krillin cried out in pain and Gohan ran to his assistance. Bardock was blunt. "Do you know if there's any mad scientists making robotic hellspawn on this mountain?"

The Vinnie shook his head. "Nah man, that ain't The Vinnie's scene. Now, why don't you groove on in here onto the bearskin rug and-"

Bardock turned away without so much as an acknowledgement of the strange man. Krillin moaned. "I think you broke my arm!"

Bardock snapped back. " _Suck it up and eat a goddamned Senzu Bean!_ "

 _Near some caves in the northern mountains..._

Piccolo and Raditz both went as fast as they could, searching through a multitude of caves dotting the sides of the mountain. As they searched, Raditz tried to think of a way to express his problems. Maybe an even-tempered person like Piccolo would get it? Raditz cleared his throat. "H-Hey Piccolo..."

Piccolo grumbled, popping out of a cave without any sign of Dr. Gero. "What? Did you find something?"

Raditz shook his head. "N-No. I just, um...I..."

Piccolo rolled his eyes. "Spit it out."

Raditz sighed. "My daughter, you know...she showed up from the future and I just...I'm still getting used to Ranch as a baby. Not to mention Daikon. Now they're here as teenagers and... I just..."

He swallowed a lump in his throat. "I was wondering if maybe you could give me some parenting advice?"

Raditz turned and found Piccolo staring at him, looking positively bewildered. "Raditz...I...I don't have kids..."

Raditz responded. "You have Gohan."

Piccolo shook his head. "I'm not Gohan's father, Goku is."

Raditz nodded. "Y-Yeah. But Kakarot is... _a 'soft father'_. And that's great and all, but this new Ranch is a teenager and I was wondering if _a 'hard father'_ might be able to give some advice..."

Piccolo looked confused. "What are you on about?!"

Raditz fumbled his words. "Y-You know...Kakarot is a 'let's skip chores and go camping' type. You're a 'are you keeping your grades up' type. And this version of Ranch is a lot older than my infant Ranch and according to the parenting book Launch and I read that requires a different approach, so I'm just wondering what...you...might..."

There was so much television static going on in Piccolo's mind that it could practically be heard by bystanders. Raditz shook his head and sighed. "Never mind..."

Raditz walked into a cave, hoping that maybe he would find Dr. Gero's lab so that this awkward conversation could become a thing of the past. He immediately came running back out with a horrified look on his face. "Crap crap crap!"

Piccolo sneered, preparing a fighting stance, only to be shocked to see a rather large dinosaur head pop out. The long-necked beast roared at the two intruders into its territory. Raditz was gasping. "I think...I walked into...her egg nest..."

Piccolo nodded. "Oh, so she's a parent. Well...maybe she could help you with-"

Raditz snapped. " _Shut the hell up!_ Let's...let's just look elsewhere..."

And then, Raditz flew off with a burning red face. Piccolo shook his head, tiring of this mess, and followed along. Dr. Gero had to be somewhere on this mountain.

 _In the sky above the northern mountains..._

Bulma and Future Trunks flew through the air in Bulma's hovercar. Future Trunks sighed and closed his eyes. "I can feel him a bit farther ahead..."

Bulma squinted and nodded. "I think I see him..."

Future Trunks sighed and slumped into his seat. Bulma glanced over at him with a frown. He looked stressed, beaten down, and just plain tired. A bit playfully, Bulma nudged her son with her elbow. Future Trunks turned to look at her and she smiled.

In spite of how he felt inside, Future Trunks smiled back.

Bulma glanced from him and back at Baby Trunks, staring up into the air at nothing with a look of wonder on his face. "You two are a lot alike..."

Future Trunks rubbed his face. "Ya think so?"

Bulma nodded. "Yeah. Pretty quiet when left to your own devices, but still with that look of wonder sparkling in your eyes. Even with all you've been through...I'm glad that look hasn't been taken away..."

Future Trunks sighed and nodded. "At least you're happy to see me."

Bulma shook her head. "Vegeta's an ass. But, in spite of how much of an ass he is...he does care about his kid. Ever since he and Goku killed Frieza and he decided to stay here on Earth, I've watched him change... _in certain ways_..."

Future Trunks nodded. "Really?"

Bulma smiled. "Yeah. Vegeta will never not be Vegeta. On the outside, he's always going to be the same, smarmy, overbearing, annoying, cocky, condescending jerk. It's just who he is. He's the type of guy that you have to really read...the kind that you have to scrape the crust off to really understand him..."

Future Trunks flinched. "Scrape the crust?"

Bulma nodded. "You've gotta be forceful. Vegeta is fluent in 'complicated', but he only speaks 'blunt'."

Future Trunks nodded back. "I think...I understand..."

Bulma smiled. "Just watch and learn~"

She pressed a button on her console and the bubble dome of the car folded back. And then, Bulma lovingly called for her husband. " _HEY JACKASS! GET OVER HERE! YOU MISSED OUT OF SOME IMPORTANT STUFF!_ "

Vegeta paused and shot the approaching Bulma and Future Trunks a sour look. "Both of you piss off! I'm hunting an Android; I don't need any anchors weighing me down!"

The Prince started to fly again, but Bulma floored the pedal and quickly caught up, grabbing him by the tail. "Hey! For real Vegeta! You need to stop and listen!"

Vegeta scowled at Bulma. Bulma scowled back. And then, Vegeta groaned. "This had better be relevant information..."

 _Back in the forest..._

Dr. Gero, in his hulking new body, stopped to rest and overview his damaged form. He glanced down at his missing foot and the various holes in his chest, watching them shoot sparks, and he snarled. "Those damned fools..."

Gero growled under his breath. "Android 13 is the sturdiest frame I've constructed. He was meant to withstand force up to that Spirit Bomb technique that Goku's family produced. And yet..."

The Doctor shook his head. "I cannot afford to waste any time on such matters for now. It is not much farther to the lab from here..."

Gero stood and lumbered out into the open. "I must return and-"

Two sharp gasps.

Gero quickly turned, glaring towards the source of the noise. And, when he did, Son Gohan and Krillin came into view. Dr. Gero chuckled. "Well, I see that lesser warriors have banded together in a fruitiless attempt at survival..."

The Doctor loomed over his smaller enemies. "Perhaps I take advantage of this good fortune in order to rid myself of several nuisances..."

As the monstrous Android lumbered towards them, Gohan and Krillin both took a fighting stance. Gero looked confident that he would succeed...but then Krillin smirked. "Gotcha!"

Gero flinched. Gohan cried out. "Grandpa!"

Shooting through the air like a whistling arrow, Bardock crashed into Dr. Gero's back and kicked the Android to the ground. "Sup?!"

Gero rolled over on the ground and stared up at Bardock. Bardock smirked, summoning forth the golden light of his Super Saiyan power, and cracked his knuckles. "So, wanna pick on the small fry? Is that your strategy, old man?"

Dr. Gero stood and snarled at Bardock. Bardock chuckled. "Made an entire army of shitty robots to attack my poor, younger son eh? Well...I can't let that sort of thing go without an ass-kicking..."

The Doctor flinched back and Bardock chuckled. "Krillin! Send out an energy signal to alert the others!"

Bardock bent over and lunged at Dr. Gero. "I'm gonna spend our free time taking this asshole down a few hundred pegs!"

Krillin nodded. "Yes sir!"

He turned to Gohan. "Let's do it, bud!"

Gohan nodded. "Right!"

And then, the two of them got started on sending out energy pulses to alert the others. As they did that, Bardock got to work on schooling his Android foe.

Dr. Gero glanced past Bardock and saw Gohan and Krillin focusing their power in the background. The wicked Doctor was visibly panicked. "Cease that at once!"

He charged a blast and prepared to fire it at Gohan, but Bardock quickly intercepted. He grabbed the Android by the hand, dispelling the blast and squeezing his fingers tight. "Nah! No chance!"

Bardock snorted. "Aiming at non-combatants ain't just disgraceful, old man. It's friggin' rude to think you can ignore me!"

The older Saiyan reared his fist back and rocked Gero square in the jaw. And then, with a second punch, he sent the Android crashing into a nearby rockface. Gero struggled to his feet and scowled. "Do you think this is some sort of social interaction? I do not wish for a fair fight; I wish to kill you!"

Bardock charged forward and grabbed Gero by the head, smashing his forehead into the Android's face. "Then go ahead and try to kill _me_!"

Gero stumbled back and sneered. "D-Do you think that it would be troublesome for me to kill you, fool?! Piccolo and Vegeta could barely harm me when they were working together, what could you possibly-"

Bardock shot forward and slammed his fist into one of the holes in Gero's chest, twisting it around and ripping it out. Sparks and bio-fuel shot from the gaping wound and Gero fell to his knees. Bardock chuckled. "Do I look easy to bluff with? Piccolo reduced you to a severed head! Vegeta was toying with you! And I was handling 13 like a toy before you took him over!"

The older Saiyan smashed his knee into another hole, making cracks spread across Gero's chest. "Not to mention how awkwardly you move in this body. You're toddling like a child!"

And then, Bardock spun on his heel and sent Gero tumbling back with a harsh elbow jab to the throat. He cocked his head. "This battle is basically over, ya know..."

Gero roared and shot up, grabbing at Bardock. Bardock responded by jumping up, stooping himself on Gero's forearm, and then leaping in the air and delivering a spinning axe-kick to the back of Gero's head. Gero hit the ground hard enough that it shattered around him, making the earth shatter and rise up. Bardock smirked as he rose into the air. "Now then, let's remove the other half of 13's ugly face!"

Bardock made a triangle with his fingers. " _RAVAGER CANNON!_ "

Thinking quickly, Gero extended his arm and shot a blast towards Gohan and Krillin. Bardock snarled. "Damn it!"

The older Saiyan fell from the air, getting between Gohan and Krillin and firing the Ravager Cannon at Gero's blast. The result was a massive explosion that created a thick cloud of dust. Bardock sneered. "Shit!"

Bardock turned and shook Gohan and Krillin by the shoulder. Both of them snapped out of their trance. Krillin looked around. "H-Huh?! What happened?!"

Bardock turned and pointed. "He's running off! Let's get after him!"

The three warriors charged through the dust and came out on the other side to the sight of three blasts coming at them. Reacting quickly Bardock slapped the blasts aimed at Gohan and Krillin from the air and allowed his blast to hit him dead center. Gero laughed out loud, a few feet away. "TAKE-"

Bardock's attention snapped to Gero, putting the mad doctor under the harsh scrutiny of his glare. Gero flinched back. "...that."

A brief staredown occurred. And then, taking his best option, Dr. Gero turned tail and started to run in the opposite direction. Gohan turned to his grandfather. "Are you okay, Grandpa?"

Bardock waved Gohan off. "Don't worry about me! Chase him down!"

He turned to Krillin. "And you keep sending out energy signals! He won't get away this time!"

The three of them chased Dr. Gero as fast as they could, easily able to track the Doctor based on the damage his awkward, massive body was leaving in its wake. Eventually, the dense forest opened into another valley and, to their collective shock, the three of them did not see Gero. Bardock snarled. "Dammit!"

Gohan was confused. "But we were right behind him, where could he have gone?!"

The three of them continued to look around for a moment. But then, Krillin looked up and his gaze fell upon a cave high up in a nearby rockface. Krillin pointed up. "Guys! A cave!"

Bardock looked up and nodded. "Yeah...that cave don't look natural..."

He motioned to his two partners. "You two stay behind me, I don't want you getting caught in the crossfire."

Gohan and Krillin both nodded. Slowly, Bardock rose up into the air, prepared to defend himself. But, as he peered into the cave, the suspected attack never came. Bardock nodded. "I see..."

He glanced down at his two companions. "It's safe you two! Come on up!"

Krillin and Gohan both rose into the air and their gaze fell upon the same thing Bardock was staring at: a massive, steel door emblazoned with the Red Ribbon Army insignia. Bardock landed inside the cave and stepped forward, running his hand over the cold steel. "Looks like this is the place..."

 _Inside the lab..._

Dr. Gero cringed as he heard several strikes levied against his door. He lumbered deeper into the lab and grabbed his universal remote from its case on the wall. With a press of a button, Dr. Gero turned on the lights and his messy workshop of horrors came into view. Tools and various papers littered the ground. The skinned remains of his rotting corpse were stored in several trash bags in the corner. Several white chambers stood open, their doors high in the air. Gero glared at the capsules that had once contained 13, 14, 15, and 19. He lamented and collapsed into his chair. "So much wasted technology! Bah!"

Gero took a long look at the two capsules between #15 and #19, #17 and #18. "I cannot believe that I am forced to rely on those two..."

Remembering the last time Androids 17 and 18 had gone out-of-control, Gero grimaced. He stared down at the stump where Android 13's foot was once attached and shook his head. "I cannot activate them like this..."

The banging against his door continued as Gero lumbered across the lab. First things first, the Doctor reached into a bin of spare parts and produced a skeletal, metal foot. He sat back down and began the process of attaching the new limb and thought on what else he should do.

First, Gero glanced off to the side and saw a lonely, white capsule sitting in the corner. He observed the thick layer of dust on it. "Damn...there's no time to remove him from this lab..."

With the foot attached, Gero stood up once more. "But he is ultimately able to be rebuilt. I have the majority of his data stored in my drives..."

The Doctor walked over to his computer and turned it on. Opening his master program, Gero turned his attention not to the lab he was in, but into another. "Site Beta is too close in proximity to this soon-to-be-active warzone. I must transfer _that_ to Site Omega for safe keeping..."

Gero cycled through his active projects until he came upon the one thing he kept secret from everyone else, even Android 19. The words flashed across Gero's glassy, artificial eyes as he moved the cursor over the transfer button. _**Project Perfection**_ was quickly selected to be transferred, and the Gero closed out his program and smashed the computer with his fist. "Now..."

He turned towards the #17 and #18 capsules. "... _those two_."

Grabbing his remote, Gero approached the capsules with trepidation. His hand shook as he stared at the red window on each, seeing the silhouette of their faces hidden behind. He gripped his empty hand and scowled. "I have no choice. But the reprogramming should have been successful this time around..."

The Doctor reached out and pressed the button on the #17 capsule. The door been to rise, depressurizing and whirring until it came to a stop. And, within that capsule was Android 17. The dark-haired young man opened his eyes, consciousness flooding back into him. His eyes darted from left to right and then he pulled himself from his former prison. Android 17 stood up and looked over at the patchwork Dr. Gero. "Good morning, Dr. Gero. How are you today?"

Gero was taken aback, but he quickly nodded in response. "G-Greetings Android 17."

Feeling a bit calmer, Gero walked past 17 and towards the #18 capsule, complete unaware of the scowl that appeared on 17's face when out of Gero's line of sight. The doctor reached out to press the button and cringed at the sound of another pounding thud. 17 turned to the door. "It would appear we have solicitors at the door. Should I greet them, Doctor?"

Gero shook his head. "Not yet. First we must awaken your counterpart."

Reaching down, Gero pressed the button to open the #18 capsule. Once the door was raised, a blonde-haired young woman stepped out. She turned to Gero and smiled, speaking in a calm voice. "Greetings Dr. Gero. Lovely weather we're having."

Gero cringed. "You too, eh?"

On one hand, Dr. Gero was thrilled to see that his reprogramming had worked. On the other hand, staring into the icy blue eyes of those two made him grip his universal remote, his one kill switch should they get out of hand, ever tighter. Another bang on the door and Gero snarled. "Meddlesome fools!"

Android 18 glanced over to the door. "Guests?"

Gero shook his head. " _Interlopers._ "

Android 17 nodded. "I see...and are these the same interlopers that did... _this_ to you?"

Android 18 looked Gero up and down. "Yeah, addressing that elephant in the room..."

17 chuckled. "You look like a patchwork Frankenstein Monster, what happened? Did you, uh, build that body in a rush?"

18 glanced at the clothes. "No, wait. Look at the pants and the suspenders. I think this might be Android 13...just with the Doctor's head grafted on. But, then again, the Gero parts of his face do appeared to be mechanical...except for that braincase on top..."

17 smirked. "Didja go Android, Doctor? Last time we were online, you seemed nervous to take the plunge. Scared to become like us~"

18 rolled her eyes. "I bet he settled and just built a body like Android 19's..."

17 looked around. "Where is that guy, anyway?"

Gero scoffed. "Enough! Enough senseless babble! We have more important matters at hand!"

The Doctor turned towards the door, a hateful look in his eye. The allies of Son Goku are gathering right outside that door. "In order to complete our goal of eliminating the Saiyan filth, we must dispose of those pests first!"

Android 18 chuckled. "Goku's allies, huh? You've never told us much about them...only their names..."

Android 17 smirked. "What are they like?"

Gero sneered. "They are little more than irritations in the road towards our ultimate goal. You shall both eliminate them by my command! Am I understood?"

With his back to them, Dr. Gero could not see the look in the eyes of either of his creations. Android 17 maintained his calm tone. "Of course, Doctor..."

Android 18 did as well. "We live to heed your commands, Doctor."

Gero nodded, not noticing either of his "obedient" Androids stalking up behind him. "Excellent. I am glad to see that the two of you are-"

Android 18 leapt up and kicked Dr. Gero in the back of the head. Android 17, meanwhile, charged in and wrapped his hand around the universal remote, snatching it from the off-guard Doctor's hand. Gero turned, enraged. "What the devil are you two doing?!"

Both of the Androids glared at Gero, a venomous mixture of humor and hatred in their eyes. Android 17 squeezed the controller and crushed it to pieces. "You will never put us to sleep again, old man..."

Gero raised his hands in defense. 17 turned to his counterpart. "Hey, 18, do you want a piece of him?"

18 smirked and laughed. "I don't think anyone has ever wanted a piece of that ugly face. I'll just sit this one out, you have fun 17~"

Android 17 nodded. "Right."

And then, before Gero could protest, Android 17 charged and shoved Gero into a wall. Gero raised a fist and attempted to strike his defiant creation, but Android 17 responded with a harsh kick to the side of the face. Gero's hulking frame pushed itself up to find 17 glowering over him. "I'm going to enjoy tearing you to pieces, Doctor~"

As 17 began to hand Gero the beating of his life, Android 18 glanced around the lab. It was a lot more unkempt than she had remembered. It reeked of dust and rot. But, one attraction caught the young woman's attention: in the corner of the lab, one more unopened casket laid flat.

 _Outside the lab..._

Gohan and Krillin continued their assault on the heavy, metal doors of Gero's lab. But, nothing they tried proved effective. Krillin turned and shouted to Bardock. "Hey man! How about a little bit of help?!"

Bardock shook his head. "Not yet. We shouldn't rush headlong in. We have no idea what that wrinkled bastard has hidden in that little den of his..."

The older Saiyan stared out the cave opening, nodding his head. "Looks like we're about ready to go in though..."

Gohan and Krillin both turned, seeing what Bardock meant. One-by-one, everyone else arrived. Piccolo and Raditz, followed by Tien and Chiaotzu and the protesting Yajirobe, followed after that by Future Ranch and Future Daikon, and then rounded out by the arrival of Vegeta, Future Trunks, and Bulma bringing up the rear.

Bulma tapped her chin. "So, this is the place eh?"

Baby Trunks babbled in her arms. Future Trunks seemed nervous. "M-Mother, should you hang back just in case of trouble?"

Bulma quickly waved off his concerns. "Trunks and I are fine, uh...Trunks. We're both hearty and we have Vegeta here to block us from danger! Right, Vegeta?"

Vegeta sighed. " _You have too many doctorates to be this overwhelmingly stupid..._ "

The Prince raised his hand. "But, if you insist, I think it's time we blasted that damned door down!"

Bardock smirked and nodded. "Agreed. Gohan and Krillin have been knocking for long enough!"

Piccolo, as well, raised his hand. "Let's end this!"

But, before any of them could fire, Future Daikon jumped in the way. " _HOLD ON A SECOND!_ "

Piccolo, Bardock, and Vegeta all looked confused. Future Ranch spoke up. "Look, I'm all for going in guns-a-blazin', but we should be a bit more careful about this..."

Future Trunks spoke up from the rear. "We don't know whether Dr. Gero has awakened 17 and 18 yet. We don't even know how they're awakened to begin with. If we aren't careful, we might end up waking them up ourselves and-"

Vegeta snapped. "Will the three of you just shut up already?!"

All three members of the Future Trio flinched. Vegeta sneered. "All the three of you have managed today is to disappoint and mislead all of us with your inaccurate warnings! So, shut your mouths and stand aside!"

Future Ranch glared at Vegeta. Future Daikon grabbed ahold of her shoulder, preventing her from losing her temper Launch-style. Future Trunks stepped up, trying to remember his mother's advice about talking to Vegeta. "L-Look...I know we haven't had the best track record today, but you need to listen! These two Androids are leagues above the level you've dealt with so far! They killed everyone in the future and brought humanity to its knees! I know you want to get this over with, but the three of you need to just stop for a minute!"

Hearing reason, Piccolo and Bardock both seemed to yield. However, Vegeta refused to lower his hand. Future Trunks looked to him pleadingly. "Please, Father..."

Vegeta didn't budge. Bulma snapped at him. "Vegeta! Our son is trying to reach out to you, quit being an ass!"

The Prince turned his glare to Bulma. "You're standing here, on the precipice of disaster, with our infant child. Shut the hell up with your unwanted parenting advice!"

As Vegeta and Bulma snarled at one another, Baby Trunks giggled and kicked in his mother's arms. Krillin groaned. " _Think about the legendary arguments that child must have heard by now..._ "

Future Trunks sounded desperate. " _Please_..."

Vegeta's hand fell a bit, the Saiyans glare didn't diminish, but one could almost see empathy creeping into his eyes. He looked at his son and seemed to briefly consider listening to him, but then a pained scream rang out from behind the door.

A muffled Gero cried out. "D-Damn you!"

And then, a younger sounding voice spoke up. "C'mon, Doc...is that really all you've got?"

At the sound of the smooth, calm voice, the Future Trio all went white. Future Daikon shook his head. "No..."

Future Ranch's hands were shaking. "Damn it..."

Future Trunks swallowed a lump in his throat. "We were too late..."

Instantly, the rage and indifference filled Vegeta's eyes again and he levied his hand at the door. "Good! Then it doesn't matter what I do now!"

Vegeta charged a blast into his hand and then before anyone could stop him, and almost before Piccolo and Bardock could leap out of the way, he fired it directly at the door. The resulting explosion knocked Krillin and Chiaotzu off of their feet and a cloud of dust blew over the Z-Fighters.

Once the dust settled, the Future Trio saw that their worst fears had been realized: Androids 17 and 18 were both awake, and staring right at the Z-Fighters. Doctor Gero was knelt on the ground next to Android 17, his right arm laying on the ground in front of him after having been crudely torn off. 17 and 18 looked at one another and then back at the Z-Fighters. And, surprisingly, they both smiled.

The Future Trio were shaking, out of fear and of anger, at the sight of their hated tormentors.

Android 17 stepped forward and held out his hand. "So, these are the friends of Goku I've heard so much about..."

Suddenly, to 17's surprise, Future Ranch reached behind her back and pointed her gun directly at his chest. Future Ranch snarled. "Not another step!"

Android 18 chuckled. Android 17 cocked his head. "And... what is that supposed to do exactly? I'm an Android, sweetie. I have reinforced-"

Future Ranch barked at him. "I know what you have! But don't think this won't hurt, monster! This gun doesn't function with standard bullets, it uses my ki!"

17 could see that her hands were shaking. He smirked and reached down to the holster on his hip, producing his own weapon. "Are ya sure you wanna get into a wild west standoff with me, darlin'? I mean, you got a mighty fine piece there...but I'm willin' to bet I got more bullets than you do~"

Future Daikon looked furious. "Cut the accent and cut the crap!"

17 flinched and then turned to 18. "These guys are so on edge, huh?"

18 stared at them. "Yeah, they're all sweating bullets..."

Krillin and Chiaotzu stood back up and 18's gaze fell upon Krillin. The monk stared back at her, scared that she might attack. But then, playfully, 18 winked at him. Krillin gasped and fell back onto his butt. 18 chuckled. 17 looked unimpressed. "What the heck are you doing?"

18 sighed, standing up and stretching. "Just trying to get a feel for the kind of fight we're about to have. We might've stood a chance before you so carelessly ripped off the old man's arm. But now...I think we need back-up, 17..."

She turned, walking towards the rear of the lab. "How about we wake up our unknown friend back here?"

Dr. Gero lifted his head, snarling in 18's direction. "Don't you dare! You hear me?! Don't you even think of awakening Android 16!"

At the back of the group, Future Trunks gasped. "16...? 16?!"

Android 18 turned and glared at Gero. "And why shouldn't I, exactly?"

Dr. Gero stammered. "A-Android 16 is highly unstable! He might kill us all if you awaken him!"

17 rolled his eyes. "What a load..."

He glared across the room at 16's capsule and scanned it with his close-range sensors. 17 chuckled and shook his head. "Oh please..."

He smirked at Gero. " _That_ is what's going to kill us?! That hunk of junk?! Are you really going to say that that guy, made of older parts and inferior tech, is able to match me in a fight?! Face it, Doc, I'm the strongest Android you've ever made!"

17 turned to 18. "Go ahead! Pop him open!"

Gero cried out, stumbling forward and falling to his knees. "No! You don't understand! I... I have modified the design of Android 16 to run more efficiently with lesser technology! He is more powerful than you could imagine! P-Please, I beg you...don't awaken him..."

Gero gripped his hand, squeezing his eyes shut. " _Please, just let him rest..._ "

17 and 18 blew Gero off. 18 continued her stride forward. "Rest? I think he's been sleeping long enough. I've never gotten to meet this guy and, with how much you're protesting, I really want to~"

Gero snapped. Leaping from his knees, he lunged at Android 18. " _I SAID STOP!_ "

 ***bang***

Gero fell to the ground in a heap, bio-fuel forming a puddle under his face. 17 stood behind him, smoke curling from the barrel of his pistol. "Keep your hands off 18, you old bastard."

The Doctor shakily pushed himself up, the eye on the 13 side of his face having been replaced with a bullet hole. Gero stuttered. " _Please...leave him alone...he doesn't deserve to have to face this cruel, hateful world..._ "

Android 18 bent open, her finger hovering over the button. "Now, let's see who our mystery friend is~"

As 18 prepared to awaken the latest in the long line of Gero's creations, every one of the Z-Fighters present, alongside Future Ranch and Future Daikon, took a fighting stance. Everyone except for Future Trunks. The poor, tormented boy of the future stared as 18 moved to unleash yet another horror into his life.

Another horror to add onto all of the horrors that she had already inflicted onto his world.

Future Trunks was frozen in those memories, hearing the sounds of echoing explosions and hellish screams of torment. And then...the stump of what was once Future Trunks' tail twitched, hidden away inside his pants.

The boy reached forward, grabbing Bulma by the arm and pulling her out of harm's way. And then, bursting into his Super Saiyan form, he shouted at the top of his lungs in a crazed voice. " _IF THEY SET THAT ANDROID FREE IT'LL BE THE END OF ALL OF US!_ "

Future Trunks held his hands in front, charging his Finish Breaker and screaming in fury and rage. " _NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ "

Their eyes widening, everyone else dove to get out of the way of the oncoming attack. As they all leapt away from the explosion, Vegeta managed to grab ahold of Bulma and Baby Trunks and fly them out of the blast radius. The result explosion was massive enough that it leveled the mountain containing Dr. Gero's lab into rubble.

The Z-Fighters and the Future Trio all hovered around the smoking ruins to the once mighty mountain. Raditz called over to Future Trunks. "Are you insane?! That could've killed most of the people standing there!"

Krillin groaned, Yajirobe hanging onto him like a scared cat. "That was close..."

Bardock shook his head. "Like father, like son..."

Vegeta took umbrage to that. "Shut your mouth! I would never do an attack so pointless as that!"

Future Trunks flinched. "P-Pointless...?"

Future Ranch frowned, staring at the slowly forming silhouettes in the smoke. "Damn..."

Future Daikon growled. "Not even a scratch..."

Once the smoke finally, fully dissipated, it was revealed that Android 17 and Android 18 stood there, completely unharmed. 18 held the #16 capsule high above her head. They both glared up at Future Trunks, annoyed. And then 17 called up to him. "Ya done?! Got that all out of your system?"

18 rolled her eyes. "Whether he's done or not, I'm not letting anything else interrupt this!"

She threw the capsule to the ground and then pressed the button. As the lid to the capsule slowly, shakily rose, Android 18 lost patience and kicked it off of the hinges. "C'mon 16! It's time to wake up!"

The lid went flying and clattered down to the rubble below, falling in front of the half-buried but still functional Dr. Gero. Gero groaned. "N-No..."

Floating above, the Future Trio stared in horror as yet another unknown entity appeared before them. A massive, muscular fellow stood from the capsule. Clad in green armor and topped with a shock of red hair shaped into a mohawk, Android 16 was awake.

Android 17 whistled. "Man... big fella, ain't he~"

17 chuckled and waved at his new friend. "Yo! How ya doin', bud? Happy to be awake?"

Android 16 did not respond. 17 was a tad taken aback, but 18 stepped in. "So, I imagine it must be nice to be out of that cramped coffin. Enjoying the fresh air?"

Still no response. 17 was getting a bit annoyed. "Hey...were you, uh, designed without a vocoder or something? Are your sound drives corrupted? Are you stuck in Japanese mode, maybe...?"

Android 18 scowled. "Hello?!"

Android 17 scowled as well. " _Ōkikute kasabaru baka o itte kudasai!_ "

Finally, Android 16 spoke. "Son Goku."

He turned towards the Z-Fighters and they all took fighting stances. He gazed at each one, his eyes flashing as he did. And then, once he was sure that they were not the one he was programmed to target, Android 16 turned again, and flew off towards the east. Android 17's jaw dropped. "Huh..."

Android 18 turned to him. "So...do we follow him...?"

17 shrugged. "I, uh...do we have anything else better to do?"

18 took a moment to glance up at the Z-Fighters and the Future Trio, and then she shook her head. "Not really."

17 smirked. "Then, I guess we follow him~"

Future Trunks stared in disbelief as the three Androids disappeared over the horizon. As he floated there, shell-shocked, Future Ranch and Future Daikon both flew up and comforted him. Future Daikon put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Trunks..."

Future Ranch pulled him into a hug. "It's okay, Trunks. It's..."

She stopped, not sounding too sure of herself. The Future Trio all floated there, all agreeing on one thing for sure: this was bad.

But, the three of them were quickly snapped out of their funk by the sound of what had quickly become familiar ranting. On the ground below, the ruins of Dr. Gero's former lab, Vegeta was raging as loud as he could. The Prince's golden, Super Saiyan power surged as he shouted. "Damn those damned Androids! How dare they?! _HOW DARE THEY?!_ "

The Future Trio landed, watching as Vegeta lost his temper. Future Trunks tried to reach out. "F-Father..."

But, with a surge of power hitting him head on, Trunks was forced to slide back. Vegeta snarled and gripped his fists tight. "They dare...?"

He remembered the derisive response the Android had upon looking at him. How they just ignored him. Vegeta was livid. " _They dare ignore the Prince of All Saiyans?!_ "

Piccolo shielded his face from the dust and mumbled to himself. "Whining child..."

Future Trunks took a deep breath. And then, before anyone could stop him, he stepped forward. "Father! Listen! This is a good thing! They've left us alone! We can regroup now and try to come up with a plan! They might go after Goku and, if Goku's sick, then he won't be able to defend himself! So, we should-"

Vegeta turned and shoved Future Trunks out of the way. "To hell with Kakarot! They'll never so much as see his face! I will _crush_ them!"

Future Trunks gasped. " _Wh-What?!_ "

Gohan spoke up. "Vegeta! That's not a good idea..."

Tien nodded. "They outnumber you. If you rush in alone, _you're_ the one who will be crushed."

Vegeta sneered. "Weaklings and cowards, all of you! Do not dare to assume I would perform the same way you all would! These Androids are nothing to me!"

The Prince prepared to take off. But, before he could get off the ground, a hand reached out and grabbed one of the shoulder straps to his armor. Vegeta turned, snarling, and saw that Future Trunks had dared to lay a hand on him. Vegeta snapped. "Boy...you had better remove your hand from me..."

Future Trunks shook his head. "No! Not until you listen!"

Vegeta yelled in Future Trunks' face. "Listen to what?! Are you going to tell me another half-story? Or try to frighten me with tales of subpar robots?!"

Future Trunks shook his head. "No! Listen! The Androids you fought before might have been weak, but these two are in a whole different class! You can't face them alone!"

Vegeta spat. "And who's going to stop me?!"

Future Trunks yelled back at him. "I am! I won't let this happen again!"

A vein popped out of Vegeta's head. "Let what happen again?!"

Future Trunks shouted as loud as he could. " _I WON'T LET YOU DIE BECAUSE YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW WEAK YOU ARE!_ "

Bulma gasped. Everyone else's eyes widened. Future Ranch and Future Daikon froze in place. Future Trunks stared at his father as his head lowered. "Now then, could we just-"

Vegeta, in a quick and brutal display, punched Future Trunks in the mouth, and then again across the face before violently kneeing him in the gut. The boy keeled over in pain, the air knocked from his stomach and blood trickling from his busted lip. Krillin called out. "Whoa! Hey!"

Tien snapped. "Vegeta! Stop!"

Raditz and Gohan prepared to step in, but Piccolo held his arm out to stop them both. Bulma shouted. "Vegeta! What the hell is wrong with-"

Vegeta held up his hand. " _Be quiet._ "

The Prince reached down, grabbing Future Trunks be the hair and practically spitting every word into the boy's dazed face. " _You, as my offspring, should know better than anyone that I am not weak. I will show you, boy, just how wrong your pathetic premonitions of the future are when I bring back those Androids' heads..._ "

Vegeta tossed Future Trunks to the ground and turned away. " _Now don't let me see your face again._ "

And then, Vegeta took off without another word, leaving everyone else standing there in silence. All except for Baby Trunks who loudly began to cry. Once Vegeta was out of sight, Future Ranch immediately sprinted over to Future Trunks. With tears of rage and sadness in her eyes, she heaved her boyfriend onto his knees and held him close.

Raditz stepped up. "Ranch...I'm so..."

Future Ranch's hands quivered as she held Trunks tight. "That guy..."

She clenched her teeth. "How do you all put up with that guy?! I... _I hate him_..."

Raditz looked away from his daughter, scratching the back of his head. "It's...we always try to say that there's some good in him somewhere, but-"

Future Ranch snapped. " _Where?! Where is there a single drop of good in that arrogant, hateful little man?!_ "

She looked at everybody and no one could think of anything to say. But then, a shaky voice spoke up. "M-My Mother..."

Future Ranch looked down. "Trunks...?"

Future Trunks pushed himself up, coughing and wiping the blood from his face. "My Mother, when she told me stories about him...she always said that he was a man that valued his pride and his strength...and his value in other people's eyes..."

Finally, Future Daikon spoke up. "None of those are excuses, dude! He's your _father_ and he just beat the shit out of you over a _petty insult_! He-"

Future Trunks cut his partner off. " _HE DOESN'T DESERVE TO DIE OVER THAT THOUGH!_ "

The half-Saiyan lowered his head. " _I... I don't want for him to die again..._ "

Bulma stared down at her teenage son, her eyes becoming misty. She held Baby Trunks close. Taking a deep shaky breath, she spoke. "He's the worst, sometimes. The worst that anybody can possibly be..."

Future Trunks looked at Bulma and Bulma looked back at him. " _Please don't let Vegeta die..._ "

Seeing Bulma's hands tremble, tenderly embraced around her infant son, Future Ranch and Future Daikon relented. Bulma turned to Piccolo and the others, her face looking more vulnerable than Bulma had in a long time. "You'll help them, right?"

Piccolo closed his eyes and sighed. "I think-"

But then, Piccolo's ear twitched. He turned and glanced over his shoulder and saw a sight that he had almost forgotten about. A vein popped from Piccolo's head. " _You!_ "

Attempting to lumber away, Dr. Gero turned and faced his Namekian foe. Sparks shot from the various, damaged parts of Gero's body and Piccolo, enraged to see the Doctor was still alive, levied a ki blast at him. Gero barely dodged in time, his body smashing against the ground hard. But, Gero quickly managed to push himself up and started to sprint away. Piccolo snarled. "You won't escape! Not again! I will not allow you to run off and create any more problems you old bastard!"

The Namekian took off in hot pursuit of his foe, ready to end things once and for all. Everyone else looked dumbfounded at this sudden development, but Future Trunks quickly spoke up. Shakily getting to his feet, clutching his cracked rib, Future Trunks turned to Future Daikon. "Hey...D-Daikon! Go help Piccolo!"

Future Daikon flinched. "What?!"

Future Trunks nodded. "Piccolo is right. If Gero gets away, we could have an entirely new series of problems to deal with! So please go and help make sure that that gets taken care of!"

He held out his fist. "I know you can do it, partner."

Future Daikon nodded, bumping his fist to Future Trunks'. "I'll do my best!"

And then, Future Daikon took off to chase down Piccolo and Dr. Gero. With both of them gone, Future Trunks held out his hand. "Krillin, can I please have a Senzu Bean?"

Krillin nodded. "Of course."

Future Trunks gratefully took the bean and chewed it up. After feeling his rib heal, he spoke with humility. "Now, I know I don't have the best track record at the moment, and most of you don't really know me, but-"

Tien stepped up and gripped Future Trunks' shoulder. Future Trunks turned and Tien smiled. "Let's go save that pain-in-the-ass from his own ego."

Future Trunks turned. "R-Really...?"

Bardock stepped forth with a smirk. As did Krillin and Chiaotzu. Raditz sighed and shook his head. "I guess we can't let Vegeta die..."

Finally, Future Ranch stood up. "I... I'll follow you into any fight, Trunks..."

Gohan spoke up. "I'll help too!"

Future Trunks looked down at the boy, the younger version of his late master, and he adopted a tired smile. "Actually, Gohan...would you mind staying behind and protecting my mother and my baby self? I don't want them getting hurt out here..."

Gohan turned back and gave a brief glance to Bulma. And then, he turned back to Future Trunks and confidently nodded. "Of course!"

Chiaotzu turned to Yajirobe. "Hey..."

Yajirobe shook his head. "Hell no! I'm not going! Not again!"

Chiaotzu narrowed his eyes, unimpressed. "I was going to ask you to stay here and help watch over Bulma too. Because I know you wouldn't be much help against those new Androids."

Yajirobe flinched and nervously smiled. "Oh, uh... _eheheh_...I was just about to suggest that..."

Chiaotzu was still quite unimpressed. " _Uh-huh..._ "

Bardock called out. "Okay everyone, let's get moving! Vegeta's been out of sight for over three minutes now, so the world is probably doomed!"

The older Saiyan gave Future Trunks and encouraging pat on the back and then motioned for him to lead the charge. Future Trunks did so gratefully, taking off with all of his allies at his back.

Finally, with all of the others gone, Yajirobe sighed and fell onto his massive ass. "Jeez...thought I'd never get away from all that insanity..."

He turned to Gohan. "So, what do we do now?"

Gohan shrugged. "I'm kind of worried about my Dad, so I guess we could just get in Bulma's hover car and fly to my house..."

The boy turned and looked over towards his older friend. "Would that be okay, Bulma?"

What met Gohan, however, was not a look he was expecting. Bulma did summon her Capsule Car, but she had a steely look in her eyes. Placing Baby Trunks into his seat for a nap, Bulma pulled out Android 19's severed head and Doctor Gero's severed hand. Gohan was confused. "Bulma?"

Bulma shook her head. "I'm sorry Gohan. You can go if you want, but I'm not ready to leave yet. This Gero creep caused my baby so much pain in the future...I'm not leaving here until I search the ruins of this lab for every last secret he has hidden away!"

Bulma tossed Gero's hand and 19's head to the ground and then produced her laptop. She walked over to the blasted ruins of Gero's computer and kicked the broken hunk of junk out of the way. Bulma sat down and connected her laptop to the port directly underneath the computer. "Now, let's see what secrets the Red Ribbon Army is still hiding..."

 _Miles away, on a mountainside highway..._

Android 16 flew forward, unabated. He had one goal clear in his mind. One target to terminate. One person that he had to kill with extreme prejudice. The hulking Android came to a stop in the air, looking to the road below, and then chose to land. "Calibrating sensors...loading relevant files for the task of locating Son Goku..."

Android 16 stood there, his mental faculties in flux. It had been years since he had been activated. As he stood there, his core memory trying to align itself, 16 looked around. And, as he did, his facial features softened. Stretched before him was magnificent landscape lined with various flora and fauna. The Android's jaw dropped in amazement. In addition to the programming to kill Goku...something else had awoken within 16's processors.

"Phew, man... you sure do fly fast!"

16 turned, glancing towards the two approaching him. Android 17 and Android 18 stepped forward, both with friendly smiles on their faces. Android 18 stood next to 16. "We saw you looking at the canyon from up in the air. Like what you see, big guy?"

Android 16 was silent at first, but then he nodded. "Yes. Something about these surrounding...it resonates with me."

Android 17 chuckled. "That ain't the only thing that does, huh? What were your first words again?"

Android 16 glanced down at the raven-haired boy. "Son Goku."

Android 18 sighed. "I guess Gero really did do that to every Android he made, huh?"

Android 16 looked confused. 18 pointed to her ears. "Non-stop, right? Kill Son Goku! Kill Son Goku! Kill Son Goku!"

She sighed. "It's enough to make someone go insane..."

She stared out at the natural vista. 17 stared out as well. "But...that sort of thing loops. We both lost it for a while since Gero...'employed' us. But insanity just became sanity again after a while, ya know? Like...what happens when you snap, when you've already snapped?"

16 spoke calmly. "Forgive me. I do not quite understand."

17 chuckled. "Well, ya see big guy, I have a plan. And the fact that you decided to land on this road is perfect. How about we-"

Before 17 could finish, however, a sudden force smashed into the ground behind him. The road cracked under the three Androids' feet, but none of them seemed to care. The three of them turned and faced down this new intruder onto their conversation. The dust cleared from the landing and Vegeta was standing there, his golden aura flaming around him. "Yes...I've finally caught up to you..."

Android 17 cocked his head. "And... you want what exactly?"

Vegeta chuckled, taking a fighting stance. "What else? I want to kill you three Androids! I'll tear you all into scrap metal and spare parts."

Android 16 looked utterly apathetic to Vegeta. Android 17 shrugged. "Fine. If you want an ass-kicking that badly, I guess-"

Android 18 stepped forward. "He's mine."

Android 17 scowled. "Oh, come on! Really?!"

Android 18 smirked. "You got to have Gero. I'd like to get a bit of exercise too, after being trapped in that coffin for so long..."

Android 17 rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever..."

18 stepped forward, her arms to her sides in a confident stance. Vegeta chuckled to himself and shook his head. "A shame. You just climbed out of a coffin only to go back into one..."

The blonde Android smiled a calm, confident smile. "Oh Vegeta, the only coffin in these parts is too short for me~"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	66. Chapter 66: Vegeta vs Android 18

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Heya! It's been a hot minute. But it's also been a hectic time. Kakarot came out, so I've been playing through that. I also have my job that I has been keeping me really busy. And I injured my right eye, so staring at a computer screen for too long is pretty painful. Not to mention, I think my editor has been busy with a few things in his life as well. So, I'm so sorry this one took a while. But I don't think the next chapter will take nearly as long. I hope you all enjoy and I look forward to posting more and more of this story!_

 _ **Chapter 66: Vegeta vs Android 18**_

 _In the northern forests..._

Piccolo and Future Daikon sped as quickly as they could, farther north as they chased down the fleeing Dr. Gero. The Namekian and the half-Saiyan were both prepared to end this nightmare once and for all, and that all began with the destruction of the demented doctor. Future Daikon called over. "Hey Piccolo!"

Piccolo glanced over. "What?"

Future Daikon looked at the Namekian. "What is this Android like? How does he fight? Does he have any special powers?"

Piccolo shook his head. "Not anymore. He used to have the ability to steal energy, but that new body of his doesn't seem to share that feature. Otherwise, he's got a lot of strength, but he's an utter amateur when it comes to technique."

The two of them flew forward, scanning the ground for any sight of Gero. After a few minutes passed, Piccolo's ear suddenly twitched. He scowled. "I hear people up ahead. Lots of people."

Future Daikon nodded. "Yeah. I think we're flying towards what used to be North City in my time. I've never known it as anything more than a blasted-out ruin. The Androids...this is where they killed Vegeta..."

Piccolo grunted. "Don't get mired in the past. We have to focus on what's in front of us."

Future Daikon chuckled. "T-Technically, it's the future..."

Piccolo rolled his eyes. "Just come on!"

Future Daikon nodded and the both of them sped up. Eventually, a flash of blue skin hit Piccolo's sight and he sneered. "I see him!"

On the ground below, Dr. Gero glared towards North City. Hearing Piccolo's shout, however, he turned and glared up into the air. "Damn you!"

Piccolo and Future Daikon sped to the ground below, towards the waiting Gero. It was time to finish this for good!

 _Back at the mountainside highway..._

Vegeta arrogantly smirked at the three Androids in front of him. He pointed to the three of them. "Please tell me that one of you will give me an actual challenge! Between that purple dwarf and the rotund scumbag, I have yet to see what exactly was so dangerous about you pathetic Androids!"

The Prince chuckled. "As a matter of fact, why don't all three of you just come at me all at once?! The punk, the woman, and the pretty boy! I'll crush you all into metal filings!"

Android 17 rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "So much baseless bravado. A guy dyes his hair and he suddenly thinks he's on top of the world..."

Android 18 flipped her hair to the side. "Like I said, he's mine. I've always wanted to put a rabid dog down. So, you butt out 17. I'm sure someone will come along for you to fight eventually."

17 chuckled. "Hey, I don't plan to get involved at all! I'm saving myself for someone who doesn't look like they're about to pass out."

Android 18 stepped forward and she and Vegeta stared at one another. The staredown went on for minutes, a harsh wind blowing across the deserted highway. Android 16 stared off to the side, watching as a mother bird fed her babies. Android 17 had his hands buried in his pockets.

As the wind blew, a rock from the ledge high above was jostled loose. It feel from its perch, freefalling to the ground below. And then, the moment it hit, the fight began!

Vegeta charged forth first, shouting at the top of his lungs. Threw several heavy-handed jabs towards Android 18, but the Android deftly dodged each strike with a simple feint backwards. She adopted a small smile and then threw a punch of her own, which Vegeta easily caught. Vegeta laughed. "You'll have to do better than that, woman!"

And then, with quite a show of force, Vegeta punched Android 18 square in the face and sent her skidding back. 17's eyes widened a bit. "Whoa! Old fella has some moves! You okay, 18~?"

Android 18 was hunched over, her face shadowed. "I'll give him this, he's a lot stronger than Dr. Gero's computer told us he'd be. He might actually make me have to try..."

She lifted her head, showing a small trickle of blood raining from her nostril. "But, then again...nah, probably not."

18 shot forward, slamming her fist into Vegeta's forearm. Before Vegeta could respond, 18 grabbed his other hand and yanked him forward, maneuvering behind him and forcing the Prince to the ground. 18 wrenched his arm back, pulling Vegeta into a harsh armbar, before slamming the bottom of her boot onto the back of his head. "Don't you know better than to hit a lady's face?!"

She stomped down on Vegeta's head, smashing his nose into the pavement and giving him a bloody nose as well. "Especially a lady that hits harder than you do!"

Vegeta snarled, charging and firing a blast which 18 quickly dodged away from. The Prince got up and threw three blasts of the same nature at the ground, making the road explode and kicking up dust. 18 stared into the dust cloud and, as she had expected, Vegeta rocketed right towards her. She caught the punch that he was going for and responded with a harsh punch to the gut. Vegeta coughed in pain from the blow, but quickly regained himself. "You certainly do hit harder than the other metal trash I've fought today. But this won't be enough to win!"

And then, moving quickly, Vegeta fell to the ground below and swept 18's legs before sending her crashing back with a kick to the chest. Vegeta stood with a wicked smirked, wiping the blood from beneath his nostrils. "So, you broke my nose. So what?! I've had worse done to me..."

18 stood, using her finger to press one nostril shut and blowing blood out of the other one. "You're right. I guess I'll just have to break something more important to get my point across."

And then, 18 shot towards Vegeta. She and the Prince met and began to trade blows back and forth. The sheer force of their blows sent shockwaves across the highway that kicked up clouds of dust. With a harsh elbow, Vegeta sent 18 flying backwards, but the feminine Android quickly recovered and delivered a kick that sent Vegeta skidding to his knees. She went for a second strike, but Vegeta met her with an energy wave to the face. The Prince smirked, only for 18 to emerge from the blast and stomped her foot down on the side of the Prince's face, driving his head into the ground. The battle moves from place-to-place across the entire area, leaving all manner of crater and scorch mark to dot the map.

With a blast from Vegeta, the remaining tatters of Android 18's denim jacket fluttered through the air, right past Android 17. 17 whistled. "Man, 16, how did Vegeta get so strong?"

16 responded bluntly. "Unknown."

17 turned to him. "Well, how do you _think_ he got so strong?"

No response. 17 cocked his head. He followed 16's distracted gaze across the ravine next to the highway and towards the birds in the distance. "Oh, come on man...are you really saying that dull, stupid nature is more interesting than talking to me...?"

Meanwhile, Vegeta laid trembling on the ground. 18 walked up, looking annoyed. "Come on, is that really it? After all that bravado, you-"

Suddenly, to 18's shock, the brown belt around Vegeta's waist unfurled and wrapped around 18's ankle. The Prince stood and whipped around, throwing Android 18 into the nearby guard rail. The Prince held out both of his hands and charged a pink energy ball. "Galick Blazer!"

18 rolled her eyes and smoothly dodged out of the way, skidding around in the confusion and smashing her knee into Vegeta's side with an audible crack. "How about now?! Get the point now?!"

Vegeta smirked and slapped 18 across the face. "A broken rib?! Please..."

That slap sent 18 from cold indifference to seething rage. She hammered her fist across Vegeta's face hard enough to make Vegeta spin, and then reached out and grabbed the Saiyan by his tail. "You think I'll just let you get away with slapping me?!"

With all of her strength, 18 heaved Vegeta off of the ground by his tail and charged towards the rocky wall next to the highway. She smashed the Prince as hard as she could before ripping him out of the stone and slamming him into it again. Vegeta grunted in pain, but powered through his agony and reached out for a counter of his own. As 18 drew him out to slam him again, Vegeta reached out and grabbed a massive, fistful of 18's hair. 18 cringed and let go of the tail to reached up and remove Vegeta's hand, which gave the Prince the opening he needed.

With two sharp motions, Vegeta kneed 18 in the center of her back, and then whipped her into the air. Android 18 shrieked in pain and Vegeta followed through, using all of his strength to slam 18, by her hair, into the unforgiving hardness of the ground. 18 bounced high into the air and then landed a second time before falling still.

It took a moment, but 18 eventually stood back up and felt the spot on the upper side of her head where Vegeta had grabbed her. Vegeta chuckled. "Missing something?"

The Prince held out his hand, revealing a giant handful of 18's hair, before dropping it to the ground. And then, Vegeta held out both hands and fired off a massive storm of ki blasts. The explosions erupting across the highway in a showing of Vegeta's strength. The Prince smirked, thinking his job was finished, and then turned to 17 and 16. "See?! This is why you fools do not ever underestimate a Saiyan! Not only can our noble race take a beating, but any beating we do take only serves to make us stronger!"

The Prince struck a fighting stance. "So, which of you is next?!"

17 chuckled and shook his head. "You seem a bit confused, dude."

Vegeta sneered. "What?!"

17 pointed behind the Prince. "You haven't beaten her. Honestly, I think you've just royally pissed her off."

Suddenly, to Vegeta's shock, a fist drove itself through the armor on his back and directly into the base of his spine. Numbing jolts rode their way up and down all of Vegeta's limbs and he briefly stumbled forward before regaining his composure. "Wh-What?!"

Behind him, Android 18 stood mostly unscathed. She ran her hand over the ruined, right side of her hair and her nose wrinkled. Vegeta was haughty. "Aw! Are we upset that our ratty hair was ripped out?!"

18 gripped her fist. "You know...I was thinking I'd break your jaw... _but I want to hear exactly what you scream as I hurt you..._ "

Vegeta snarled. "Oh real-"

Before he could even finish, Android 18 moved at lighting speed and palm thrusted Vegeta in the side of the head, smashing him into the rocky wall hard enough to create a small cave for him to get stuck in. Supremely pissed off, Android 18 charged a Power Blitz and prepared to fire it into the hole, only to be interrupted by a new voice calling out. " _Father!_ "

18 looked to the sky, as did 17 and 16, and they saw the rest of the Z-Fighters arriving onto the scene. Future Trunks was in front, following behind by Future Ranch, and with Raditz, Bardock, Tien, and Chiaotzu bringing up the rear. Future Trunks landed on the highway, across from Android 17, and called out. "Father! Are you okay?! We're here to help!"

Android 18 was taken aback by this. She turned to Future Trunks and the others with a scowl on her face. "Oh! Are you now?!"

Future Trunks reached for his sword. "We are! You Androids have already taken enough in my timeline, we won't allow you to-"

A sudden, angry shout from the hole on the wall. " _MIND YOUR OWN DAMNED BUSINESS, BOY!_ "

Future Trunks flinched. "Wha-"

Vegeta stepped out from the hole, looking rather worse for wear. "Did I ask you to interfere in my business? Well?! How dare you presume you may just interfere in wherever it is you please! This is my fight and you will maintain your distance!"

18 scowled, glaring at Vegeta. "You might wanna listen to your Dad, junior. No one wants to be in my range right now."

Future Trunks ignored 18, instead stepping forward and trying to reason with Vegeta. "But, Father!"

Vegeta sneered, glaring at his son from the future, and fired a ki wave at the boy's feet. "I've already had to discipline you for your pathetic attitude once today! Don't make me have to do it again!"

Suddenly, to everyone's shock, Android 17 stepped in. The young man got between Vegeta and Future Trunks and chuckled. "Okay...everybody calm down. No reason to have a proper domestic here. Let me just make things simple for everyone here..."

17 stared right at Future Trunks. "Vegeta and 18 started this fight before you go here. That means that this fight is none of your business, my man. If you want to step in, that's fine. You just wait until things are finished between those two."

All of the other Z-Fighters sneered at 17's attitude. 17 smirked. "It's only fair, after all. You don't let people join a game mid-match. So, if you try, I'm afraid you'll have to answer to me..."

 _At Gero's ruined lab..._

With Gohan and Yajirobe meandering about in the background, Bulma was hard at work on her travel laptop trying to comb through Dr. Gero's older files for information. After sorting through and deleting all of the useless files and junk, Bulma came upon what she was looking for: an encrypted file entitled "The Android Project".

Being the technical whizz and super genius that she was, it didn't take Bulma any time to break through the meager encryption that Gero had placed on the files and start to snoop into the history of this entire, sordid affair.

First, Bulma came upon the files relating to Android designations 1 through 6. She tapped her chin as she read, sighing in frustration. "Useless...nothing but notes about individual failures."

She scoffed and saved a back-up of the files to her system. "They might have just been mindless, attack drones...but that knowledge could be useless later..."

Bulma continued to dig and soon came upon the notes for Android 7. "Oh, I see...the first sentient creation. He was fully conscious and capable of complex, emotive thought..."

The scientist bit her lower lip as she read. "He named himself... _Major Metallitron_..."

She shook her head. "How lame."

Next, Bulma came upon the files for Android 8. She recalled from her conversations with Goku in the past that he had mentioned meeting a peaceful robot by the name of Android 8 while on the hunt for the Dragon Balls. She nodded. "Okay. So that explains that...Android 8, er, Eighter and all of the others before him were joint projects directly funded by the Red Ribbon Army..."

Bulma saved the information about Major Metallitron and Eighter to her computer. Then, as she went digging, she noticed something odd. "This is..."

She double-checked to make sure. "Why is there so much time between these two Androids?"

Looking at the files relating to Android 9, Bulma noticed that all files relating to Android 9 were produced in Age 753, three years after Goku had defeated the Red Ribbon Army. "What the heck is going here? I guess...this is when Gero started working specifically to make Androids that would kill Goku..."

Pulling up the files on the next four Androids, Bulma was surprised to see so many familiar faces amongst the group. According to the notes she was reading, Android 9 was a failed model built off of Commander Red's corpse, the first attempt by Dr. Gero to build Android's not purely from mechanical parts, but with the assistance of human flesh itself.

The next two models, she didn't recognize the faces attached. But, apparently, Android 10 and Android 11 were both based off of Red Ribbon officers: a Colonel Silver and a General White. Upon reviewing Android 12, Bulma cringed at a familiar face. "That's that General Blue guy..."

Bulma read a bit more on his profile, about how Gero had tried to reactivate Blue's psychic powers by implanting diodes into his brain...only for it to blow up in his face. Furthermore, Bulma read a note that had also come up in the previous three files. She read it out loud to herself. "Specimen did not take to the Infinite Energy Motor. _How did Gean get this to function correctly...?_ "

Bulma cocked her head. "Who the hell is Gean...?"

She shook her head and continued to work. The next three entries were entirely too morbid for Bulma to stomach. Android 13, Android 14, and Android 15 were all once human. They were random people that Dr. Gero had kidnapped from the wilderness surrounding his laboratory: a trucker whose rig had broken down on the highway, a native out on the hunt to feed his family, and a pimp from North City. The notes went into sickening detail as to how Gero painstakingly replaced each organic part of the three with machinery, eventually removing and replacing their brains and leaving nothing behind but three robots wearing reinforced human skin.

Bulma saved all of the new information onto her computer and then moved on to the next document, only to be surprised once again by what she observed. Instead of the notes going to the next logical designation, 16, they skipped straight to Android 19. Bulma glared. "What is that old geezer playing at?!"

She quickly read through the file on Android 19, the severed head that she had sitting next to her. He was a purely mechanical model, a lab assistant robot that was upgraded to combatant-level when 17 and 18 proved to be too uncontrollable to rely on. And...that was it. Nothing else in the files. Nothing on 17, or 18, or 16, or 20. Bulma snarled through clenched teeth. "Dammit! I know you're hiding something Gero! What are you-"

And then, Bulma's gaze fell on something in 19's files that put a smile on her face, under the heading of "Security Clearances". Bulma chuckled. "Oh, I see...Site Alpha _and_ Site Beta, eh?"

Bulma's gaze darted around the blasted ruins of the former lab. " _Hmm...if I were Gero...where would I hide a Site Beta...?_ "

 _Nearer to North City..._

Dr. Gero snarled as he faced down the two warriors directly in front of him. To the left was Piccolo, and to the right was Future Daikon. The two of them scowled at the demented doctor and silently took fighting stances. Dr. Gero glared down at the sparking stump of his missing arm and at the various gashes and breaches across his massive frame. He was in no state to face down both of these interlopers at the same time. Piccolo's energy was almost too much for Gero's sensors to bear. And this other mysterious brat unnerved Gero in a familiar way he could not quite put his finger on.

So, with his back against the wall, Gero took his only option. He charged several ki spheres into his hand and tossed them towards a nearby highway leading into North City. Piccolo snarled and charged off towards the highway. "You bastard!"

The Namekian was much faster than the blasts, he managed to reach them and catch them. Piccolo easily dispelled the blasts with a scowl. "That son of a bitch..."

In that instance, Gero took his advantage. He zipped behind Piccolo and reared back his fist, charging an attack to slam right into Piccolo's unprotected back. Piccolo was barely able to turn in time to notice Gero. He had no way to defend. Gero laughed out loud. "Burn in Hell, Demon King!"

But then, with a sharp whistling noise that pierced the air, something shot past Piccolo and into Gero's stomach. The force of whatever had stricken Gero was enough to double him over and smash him into the ground. The blast in Gero's hand dissipated and, just as quickly as it had struck him, the object zipped backwards. Piccolo quickly regrouped and hovered over the downed Gero. The Namekian smirked. "So, should I still prepare to burn?"

Gero was foaming at the mouth with rage. His remaining, bloodshot eye went from Piccolo and towards the one that had ruined his sneak attack. Future Daikon was floating there, a steely look in his eye. He re-tied his mysterious weapon onto his back and scowled at Gero. The doctor glared down towards his stomach and saw a perfectly round hole going straight through to the other side. "Damn you, boy! What sort of weapon did you just use?!"

Future Daikon quickly descended to the ground and shook his head. "It doesn't matter..."

He glanced up at Piccolo. "Hey, Piccolo, you mind if I take over for a bit? I didn't think I would be so angry...but this is the bastard that ruined my timeline. I think I need to work out some stress..."

Piccolo was intrigued. He stared down at Future Daikon, getting a feel of the power boiling beneath the boy's skin, and he smirked. "Fine. Go ahead. Just don't get distracted and lose focus. We need to finish this bastard here."

Gero shakily stood, his robotic form looking ragged. "You little brat. Do you seriously think that I, the great Dr. Gero, would lose to a teenager?! My drones have never given me information on you! You are nothing! Beneath my notice! You are nothing!"

Future Daikon closed his eyes. "Your drones didn't notice me? Tell me...have they noticed anything that you should have been privy to?"

Gero flinched at the sudden calm in the boy's voice. Future Daikon sighed. "Oh well...I suppose it doesn't matter in the least..."

And then, with a shout, Daikon brought Gero yet another unwelcome surprise. His yell was primal and furious, and a dust tornado built around him. And when that dust tornado settled, yet another mane of flaming, golden hair blinded Gero's vision. The doctor squinted his eyes and snarled. "Damn it! Damn that golden form! How dare you have that golden form as well?!"

Future Daikon sneered. "Why do I have this form? Well...it's certainly not to _beat_ you..."

Gero flinched back. Future Daikon's eyes opened and he glared at Gero. "No... this form is meant to _kill_ monsters like you!"

And then, with no hesitation, Future Daikon charged at Dr. Gero. He held his hands out wide and summoned two Destructo-Discs, tossing them both at Gero. Gero managed to leap out of the way of both attacks, but Future Daikon was already above him. The boy spun like a top in the air, building momentum before slamming his foot into Gero's neck and smashing him into the ground like a lead weight. Gero pulled himself from the ground, his body sparking. "You damned brat! How dare-"

Future Daikon landed in front of Gero and splayed his hands in front of his face. "Shield your eyes, Piccolo! SOLAR FLARE!"

Piccolo did, indeed, shield his eyes. Gero, however, was not quick enough to block his eyes and was blinded as a result. Gero growled in pain and Future Daikon landed eight consecutive thrusts, followed by sixteen consecutive kicks, followed by thirty-two blasts to the stomach, before landing another sixty-four mighty thrusts to the armored chest of the hulking Android, shattering what was left of the crusted armor and sending Gero flying back. Gero's vision returned and he snarled. "You little-"

Future Daikon didn't allow Gero to even finish a thought. He charged forward and hooked his fingers, smashing the Android in the jaw and sending shudders through his entire body. Gero grunted, glaring towards Future Daikon and immediately getting booted to the face and planted hard into the ground. Future Daikon back-flipped back, skidding across the ground and motioning to the Doctor. "Get up, you bastard! I know you aren't finished yet! Even you aren't that pathetic!"

Gero leapt up from the ground and lunged towards Future Daikon, blinded with rage. But, Future Daikon was ready. He feinted back, dodging Gero's punch, and slammed his fist into the flesh-toned side of the bastard's face. Gero went flying back, but Future Daikon caught up. He delivered several knife-hand chops to the Android's body, smashing him hard across the face and neck. Before speeding up and burying his knee into the Doctor's chin. Future Daikon rose into the air and charged a large balloon of energy into his hands. On the ground, Gero did the same and the two of them fired several batteries of ki bolts at one another. Eventually, the attacks stopped and Gero started to try and stand...but Future Daikon appeared from the smoke and slammed a brutal kick into Gero's head.

Up in the air, Piccolo watched on as the fight raged. The Namekian smiled with pride as he watched brutal strike after brutal strike be levied against the despicable Dr. Gero. "He's using Demon-Style Martial Arts... _my martial arts_..."

Piccolo closed his eyes and pictured a person in his mind: his idea of what Gohan might look like, all grown up. "It's nice to see you didn't forget your lessons in the future, kid..."

The Namekian glanced down at Future Daikon again. "Your students... _all three of them_... are fine young warriors..."

On the ground, the dust settled and Gero laid beaten on the ground. Future Daikon stood triumphant over him. "Are you done? Was that really it, Gero?!"

Gero sneered. "You...little...snot-nosed..."

The doctor sat up and opened his eye wide, firing a beam. " _BRAT!_ "

Future Daikon dodged out of the way, sprinting forward at high speed and grabbing a handful of Android 13's orange hair, heaving Gero forward and smashing him through a small forest's worth of trees. Rested on the ground, Gero growled in frustration. " _Damn! Damn damn damn! Damn this damned Super Saiyan foolishness! Damn it all!_ "

Future Daikon spat. "Pitiful geezer. You create an army of death machines to terrorize the innocent. And yet, even with such an advanced body you can't manage a decent fight. Nothing more than and arrogant, hateful fool in a shiny suit..."

Gero glared up at Future Daikon. "You bare to look down upon me as if I were some kind of worm."

Gero pushed himself up, lurching forward, only to fall flat on his stomach in the dirt. Future Daikon held out his hand, aiming it at the doctor. "My Mom always used to say...if it drags its belly like a worm, then it's probably a worm..."

This infuriated Gero. "You..."

Power erupted from his mechanical frame and all of his injuries began to spark with electricity. Future Daikon charged a massive blast in his hand. "Ya know, _'you'_ ain't that great of a last word. But, what else can I expect from a guy like you?"

Gero rose up, a massive blast charged in his hand. He levied it towards Future Daikon and fired. But, Future Daikon simply surged his power and dispelled the attack. And then, as Gero stared in horror, Future Daikon slammed his own attack right into the bastard's face. Gero crumpled back, clutching his hand over the human half of his face. Future Daikon's nose wrinkled. "What's that awful smell?!"

Gero stood back off, the skin seared from his face. All that was left was a human-esque eye and a metallic skeletal structure underneath. Future Daikon snorted. "Man, you're just as ugly inside as you are outside. Is there any part of you that doesn't give off the feel of pure evil?"

The Doctor clenched his fist. "You cocky little-"

But then, Future Daikon took a deep breath and fired a massive beam of energy from his mouth. The attack his Gero dead center and smashed him into a nearby rock formation. Once the beam was done, Future Daikon wiped his mouth. "Hey Piccolo! I think I've vented enough. Let's end this guy and then go and help the others."

From the rubble, Gero tried to crawl away. His frame was so damaged that another good attack might just put him down for good. As he tried to slink away, a familiar orange-brown shoe stepped into his view. The doctor looked up to see Piccolo looming over him. Future Daikon walked up behind him. They both pointed their hands at Gero and prepared to attack. Gero snarled. "N-No... this cannot be how it ends..."

Gero glared at Piccolo and then fired a beam from his remaining eye, shouting at the top of his lungs. " _GEBO!_ "

Piccolo sneered. "What kind of name for an attack is Geb-"

Future Daikon's eyes widened and he cried out, taking off at top speed. " _OH SHIT!_ "

Piccolo turned and stared in disbelief. Future Daikon was flying towards North City, where two skyscrapers had had their tops sliced off by Gero's desperate attack. Gero laughed at Piccolo stood there. "Go ahead, Piccolo. Take the time and the effort to kill me. That boy is strong, but he can't stop both of those inhabited skyscrapers from crashing down at once..."

Piccolo snarled at Gero. The doctor smirked at him. "Go ahead. _Let them die~_ "

The Namekian roared in frustration. " _ **GODDAMMIT!**_ "

And then, the moment Piccolo had taken off, Gero burrowed into the ground once more and disappeared.

After a few minutes, Piccolo and Future Daikon had managed to save and successfully set down the skyscrapers full of terrified people. Future Daikon growled in frustration, stomping his foot. "Damn it! If only I had killed him quicker! Trunks is stronger than me, he would have-"

Piccolo placed a hand on Future Daikon's shoulder. "Don't kick yourself. That one's on me. I should have realized what he was doing when he shot those beams."

Future Daikon looked pitifully up at Piccolo. Piccolo sighed. "Don't sweat it, kid. We should just cut our losses and go try and get rid of 17 and 18 for now."

Future Daikon nodded in agreement. "R-Right..."

And then, the two of them took off in the direction of Vegeta's power level.

 _Back at the mountainside highway..._

Vegeta charged at Android 18 in a blistering fury. He took a jab at her with his right fist and tried for a scooping kick with his left, but she managed to dodge both. Since losing so much of her hair to the Prince, 18's jovial attitude had been replaced with laser-focused precision. After yet another kick from Vegeta missed, 18 pulled her fist back and landed a sharp punch into the Saiyan's gut.

Vegeta gagged, but he didn't miss a beat. He raised his fist high into the air and rained down a mighty hammer strike as hard as he could. He clubbed 18 over the back of the head. But, completely unfazed, 18 simply yanked her fist from Vegeta's gut and then sank it in again even harder. This time, instead of gagging, Vegeta vomited up a clot of blood that splattered against the pure white cloth of 18's shirt. Vegeta shuddered in pain and 18 glared at him. "I don't think I broke anything there, but I know I ruptured something."

The Prince sneered. Android 18 scowled and used her free hand to strike Vegeta across the jaw before using her other hand to palm thrust him in the temple. Vegeta stumbled back, but didn't lose his footing. Instead, he regained his balance and then charged low at 18. He took out her legs, but 18 was expecting such and did a handspring off of Vegeta's back. They both landed on either side, facing away from one another. But, as quick as a flash, they both turned and began to throw punches once more.

 _On the sidelines..._

Everyone was shocked to see that Vegeta was still holding his own. Tien spoke with just a hint of respect in his voice. "Damn. Vegeta is a tank. It's like he doesn't feel pain."

Bardock stood next to the three-eyed warrior, his arms crossed. "He's a Saiyan. We do feel pain, we're just wired to be able to handle a lot more of it."

Chiaotzu sounded amazed. "He's still matching the Android blow-for-blow too! He might be a scumbag, but he's still a really great fighter!"

Krillin, meanwhile, stayed silent. He gripped the bag of Senzu Beans with a concerned look on his face. Joining him in his consternation were Raditz, Future Trunks, and Future Ranch. Raditz hissed under his breath, cringing at the sight of the Saiyan Prince taking another punishing blow to the head. "Vegeta..."

Future Ranch maintained a stoic, if a tad dour, expression. She was concerned as well. But, not with Vegeta. She tightly gripped Future Trunks' shaking hand, stroking her thumb across his in an attempt to calm him. Future Trunks, meanwhile, watched on intently.

 _Back with the fight..._

Up in the air, Vegeta maintained his fury as he fought with 18. However, within, the Prince was singing a much different tune. Within, Vegeta admitted things to himself that he would never speak aloud. Things that prayed on his insecurities and exacerbated his doubts. And right now, Vegeta was wrestling with a thought that he was desperately trying to ignore: he couldn't win this.

He didn't even have a chance.

His time in space, with Bardock and Kakarot and Raditz, had made Vegeta look at himself in ways he had never before. He had come to the realization that he was less a Prince among commoners and more an elite-born warrior among those who had risen to that rank. And, while he refused to ever concede to being second-best compared to them, they had taught him to be more aware of his limits and his weaknesses.

And now, Vegeta was taking stock in his head of his situation. His victories over Android 15 and Android 19, those weakling cretins, had made him greedy. The revelations involving his son from the Future and the inaccuracies of the warnings had made him angry. And having the loss of his life in an inaccurate future thrown in his face made him furious. And, in his greed and anger and fury, Vegeta had swam out from controlled waters and into a storm.

The Prince's battle acumen allowed him to read a situation. And, although he didn't know why this was happening, he could point out the problem from a mile away. He was tired and growing wearier by the second...and the Android wasn't.

Vegeta threw a punch, but it was easily slapped aside and he was punished with a heavy shot to his cheek. Hearing a crunch, Vegeta leapt back. Android 18 chuckled. "Now that was a break. Was that your cheek, or..."

Vegeta's vision in his left eye went blurry. He snarled at the Android. "My cheek?! Are you sure you didn't just break a nail, woman?!"

18 calmly walked forward, checking her nails. "I don't think so. But...let's check~"

And then 18 pulled her hand back and, with a sweeping motion, dragged her fingernails across Vegeta face. Vegeta roared in pain and stumbled back, and then Android 18 booted him in the crotch and followed that up with a punch to the throat. Vegeta fell to the ground like a ragdoll, coughing and sputtering, and Android 18 stood over him triumphant.

 _Back on the sidelines..._

The peanut galleries mood quickly changed from mixed to one that matched Future Trunks and Future Ranch, grave and stricken with horror. The all quickly realized that this situation Vegeta had flown into was much worse than any of them could have imagined. As they watched, they all came to the same conclusion that Vegeta mentally had.

Chiaotzu spoke up. "He's exhausted. And she's just...not. What the heck is going on...?"

Krillin snarled. "Damn him. I told him he needed a Senzu Bean..."

Bardock gripped his fist. "These Androids are nuts. They must have some sort of machine inside them that allows them to have...n-no, that would be crazy..."

"It's called the Infinite Energy Motor."

The Z-Fighters all looked over at Android 17. 17 had a smarmy smirk on his face. "It's a little device that Dr. Gero installed in our chests. I think it's attached to our hearts or something..."

Raditz's pupils shrank. "An Infinite Energy Motor...?"

17 nodded. "Yep. When I was fooling around with Little Miss Assault-Rifle there, I mentioned that I would never run out of bullets for my pistol. Well...I wasn't lying~"

Tien shuddered. "Vegeta's fighting someone who _can't_ tire out...while he's exhausted..."

As everyone else discussed the tragedy playing out in front of them, Future Ranch's attention was entirely elsewhere. Breaking her silence, she turned to Future Trunks and whispered. "Come on Trunks. Keep calm. We need to keep calm here so we can be ready to help..."

But Future Trunks didn't hear her. All he could hear at the moment was the sound a desperate weeping deep in the back of his mind.

 _Back with the fight..._

Vegeta was pouring with sweat as he pushed himself up. "Damn it..."

He glared up at 18 and gritted his teeth as the Android stood there, smirking and trying to fix her hair. "So... you've ruined this look. It's going to take forever to grow out because of the mods Gero did on me. So...I'm thinking... _side-hawk_. A side-hawk with really long hair on one side. That's probably my only option right now, after what you've done. Unless you have another suggestion...?"

Vegeta roared at the top of his lungs. " _DIE!_ "

He fired a blast. But, with a wave of her hand, Android 18 summoned an energy barrier to block it. She shook her head. "First, that's not a hairstyle. Second, has anyone ever told you how unpleasant you are as a person? I mean...how do you even have a kid?"

Vegeta sneered and charged at 18, but she simply kicked him to repel him back. And then, she walked forward and continued to lay a righteous beating into the Prince.

 _On the sidelines..._

Everything was muffled around Future Trunks. Everything from his allies discussing a plan to his girlfriend trying to talk to him. In his mind, Future Trunks only heard one voice.

Future Bulma sounded confident as she spoke. " _He was always such a great warrior..._ "

She sounded nostalgic as she spoke. " _He had his moments, but he was a noble man..._ "

Her voice was warm as she spoke. " _He didn't show it very well. But he did love me. And, between us, he was very happy the day you were born..._ "

And then, Future Trunks remembered that desperate sobbing again. In her private moments, away from life and people and news of the Androids, Future Bulma laid alone in her bed and sobbed. She sobbed one, single word that made Future Trunks' heart ache whenever he heard it. " _Vegeta..._ "

And now Future Trunks stood above it all watching this again, watching that name that his mother so desperately called for being beaten by one of the same monsters that had taken him. While Future Ranch held onto one of his hands, Future Trunks' free hand was gripped so tight his knuckles were whiter than Vegeta's gloves.

 _Back with the fight..._

Vegeta landed hard against a massive rock sitting in a shallow pond. He sat there, his back lounged against it, and briefly fell still. 18 cocked her head. "Are we all tuckered out already? Really?"

But then. to her surprise, Vegeta got back up again. He was doubled over in pain, but he stood. 18 smirked. "So, you still won't give up yet? What do I have to break for you to stop with this pointless fight?"

Vegeta gasped. "N-Nothing..."

18 looked down on him. "Huh?"

Vegeta sneered. "No matter what you break...I am a warrior...and a Prince! I won't stop standing...I won't stop fighting...my bloodline would never forgive me if I did...my woman would never forgive me if I did...my rivals and fellow warriors would never forgive me if I did... _I would never forgive me if I did_..."

The Prince wobbled as he marched forward, ready to keep going at it. 18 chuckled. "Very noble. A nice speech. But I think you need to stop. You look like you're struggling to support the weight of all that stupid hair on your head..."

Vegeta spat at 18. " _At least I still have all of my hair..._ "

18's smiled faded. She glared at Vegeta. "You know...I thought one more thing that might work..."

Vegeta sneered. "Wha-"

And then, at top speed, Android 18 shot forward and slammed her head into Vegeta's. Vegeta stumbled back and blood poured from his forehead. "What did you think-"

He paused at the sight of 18's leg whipping towards him. Vegeta had no time to respond, being forced to watch and endure as 18's leg slammed into his left arm, forcing his entire body to crumple inward. But, worst off, Vegeta heard a very clear snap immediately upon impact.

Vegeta gasped, stumbling forward as he did. His arm hung limp from his side like a piece of meat hanging from a hook. Vegeta took a few steps forward, kneeling at the nearby pond and staring at his reflection in the water. And then, he could no longer hold it in.

Vegeta raised his head to the sky and cried out in pain and agony for all to hear.

 _On the sidelines..._

Everyone flinched upon hearing a sound that none of them had ever heard before. This was not like the yelps that Bardock and Raditz had heard from Vegeta on Namek. This was worse, this was real pain. And from a Super Saiyan no less.

Future Trunks trembled in place, Future Ranch still trying to keep him calm. And then, he remembered Bulma's voice one more time. This time, it was the Present Bulma. " _Please don't let Vegeta die..._ "

And then, Future Trunks lost all sense of reason. Pulling away from Future Ranch, he shouted with fear and panic in his voice. " _FATHER! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ "

Future Trunks went Super Saiyan and charged into the fray, much to the annoyance of the onlooking Android 17. Future Trunks drew his sword and prepared to attack. " _FATHER!_ "

Future Ranch called after him. " _Dammit Trunks!_ "

She pulled her rifle into her hands and leapt down after him. Raditz growled and activated his Kaioken. " _Dammit Vegeta!_ "

Bardock shouted after all three of them. "All of you stop! You're rushing in without any strategy!"

Android 17 spoke up. "I'll agree there. They certainly didn't think this one through..."

Bardock turned to 17. 17 frowned at him and then turned to 16. "Hey, big guy, you want a piece of what's going on down there?"

16 didn't answer, instead staring at the birds off in the distance. 17 sighed. "You just enjoy your birds, buddy. I've got this."

17 took a leap off of the ledge and descended after the errant rulebreakers. Bardock sneered and leapt in after him. "Goddammit!"

Tien motioned. "Krillin! Chiaotzu! Come on!"

Chiaotzu followed without hesitation. Krillin called after him. "Everyone wait a minute! Stop!"

 _Back with the fight..._

Android 18 saw the flash of metal out of the corner of her eye and turned to see that Future Trunks, freshly Super Saiyan, was right above her with his sword raised. He swung the blade down, but 18 raised her bare arm into the air and blocked the blade. It shattered on impact, leaving Future Trunks stunned. Moving quickly, Android 18 reached down and seized Vegeta by his broken arm. She swung the Prince like a club and smashed Future Trunks out of the air.

Future Trunks landed on the ground hard and 18 stomped her foot down on his stomach. "Why don't you mind your own business?!"

She lifted her foot to stomp again, but a sudden hail of ki bullets forced Android 18 to retreat. The Android turned and saw that Future Ranch was standing across from her, her rifle at the ready. And she looked pissed.

18 glanced from Future Trunks to Future Ranch and then smiled. "Oh! Am I attacking someone special? Are you his _girlfriend_ or something?"

Future Ranch snarled. " _DAMN RIGHT, I AM!_ "

The female Saiyan dropped her rifle to her side and then charged two ki blasts in her hands. "DOUBLE SUNDAY!"

The two blasts shot towards 18 and she summoned and energy barrier to block them. They exploded and 18 laughed. "What do you think-"

Suddenly, 18 heard something sliding beneath her. She looked down to see Future Ranch, red hair ribbon wrapped around her forehead and bluish-black hair now glowing golden. Future Ranch aimed her rifle up at the Android and started to fire, forcing 18 to retreat into the air. 18 charged a blast and fired it down, blasting the rifle out of Future Ranch's hands. "What are you gonna do now?!"

Future Ranch responded by reach down and ripping off her cargo pants, throwing them up and into 18's face. 18 quickly burnt the pants away. "What the hell?"

The Android flinched. Future Ranch was in a crouching position and bearing herself for everyone to see. Both of the girls' thighs had 3 Ruger SR9C pistols each strapped to them. And each shin had five ammo clips and a case of Capsules each. Future Ranch ripped two of the pistols out of their holsters, not bothering to load them, and firing them at the airborne Android.

The ki bullets ricocheted off of 18's skin, leaving scuff marks and scratches as they did. 18 sneered. "Stop that!"

She slammed down onto the ground and Future Ranch just barely managed to roll out of the way. She quickly loaded a clip into each gun and then started to fire from only her left pistol. The bullets collided with 18's skin and she chuckled. "You think normal bullets can hurt me?"

Future Ranch looked grim. "Not even a little. But these aren't normal bullets!"

She raised her right gun and unloaded nine rounds into 18's chest and a tenth into her head. And that is when 18 noticed what was going on...the bullets weren't ricocheting off of her, they were sticking. Future Ranch smirked and dropped both empty clips, before aiming one of her pistols at the bullet in the center of 18's forehead and firing a ki bullet. As soon as the ki bullet hit that sticky bullet, the effect was activated. A supremely powerful surge of electricity surged through 18's body and left the female Android shrieking in pain.

And then, Future Ranch charged in. She reached down to the Capsule holster on her ankle and pulled out a dark gray Capsule. She clicked it and it poofed into a specialized Benelli M4 12-gauge shotgun. Future Ranch slammed her foot into 18's chest and then pointed the barrel directly into the Android's face. "Eat this! _SHOTGUN SATURDAY NIGHT!_ "

The bursts of ki came hot and fast as Future Ranch pulled the trigger eight times in Android 18's face. Future Ranch smiled. Android 18 was on the ground, vulnerable. She called out behind her. "She's down, guys! Come on! Let's get her!"

No response. Future Ranch turned. "Guys?"

The sight that met Future Ranch stunned her silent. Tien and Chiaotzu were both beaten and on the ground. Bardock was also lying on the ground, blood pooling under his head. And, up in the air, Android 17 had Raditz locked into a brutal chokehold. Future Ranch gasped and stumbled back. "N-No..."

She was then tapped on the shoulder. Future Ranch turned just in time to eat a sucker punch from Android 18. 18 then reached out and wrapped her hand around Future Ranch's throat. Over on the ground, Future Trunks shakily pushed himself up. "N-No..."

He lunged, his Super Saiyan power flaring. " _Get your hands off of her!_ "

Android 18 didn't look at him, reaching out and grabbing Future Trunks by his throat as well. She held the two Super Saiyans aloft in front of her and chuckled. "Such a cute couple~"

And then, she slammed their faces together hard. "Now kiss!"

18 chuckled and slammed Future Trunks and Future Ranch's head together three more times, until blood was raining down both of their faces. At the same time, Raditz finally fell unconscious and 17 dropped him like a stone. "Now then..."

Suddenly, two beams of yellow energy shot towards 17. He dodged them both and then looked down to see that Tien and Chiaotzu were back on their feet. 17 chuckled. "You guys got some moxie; I'll give you that."

Android 18 shook her head at Future Trunks and Future Ranch. "So, do you two give up?"

Neither answered. Instead, Future Ranch scooped up her boyfriend's sword with her foot and Future Trunks snatched one of the pistols from his girlfriend's leg. Future Trunks fired in 18's face and Future Ranch tried to stab her with the sword, but the blade shattered further and the bullets bounced off. 18 chuckled. "How cute. I hope I meet someone like you guys one day~"

And then, with all of her strength, 18 smashed Future Trunks and Future Ranch's head together one last time. Two fountains of blood poured from Future Ranch's nose and blood spurted from Future Trunks' ear, their eyes rolled back, and then both of them lost their Super Saiyan forms and went limp. 18 cocked her head. "Bizarre..."

As she looked her now unconscious opponents over, however, 18 was suddenly kicked in the back by an unseen foe. She fell forward, dropping Future Ranch and Future Trunks, and turned to face this new challenger. It was Bardock, his Super Saiyan power flaring. Bardock shouted. "You-"

But then, before he could finish, 18 jumped forward and planted her boot into Bardock stomach hard enough that the armor on his back spider-webbed. Bardock gurgled in pain, and then his Super Saiyan form dispersed and her slumped over onto the ground. 18 was confused. "His hair too...?"

17 chuckled and called over to his sister, holding an unconscious Tien aloft by his toga. "Man, 18, everyone sure is ditching the blonde look pretty quick, huh? Maybe it's a sign you should dye your hair?"

18 rolled her eyes. "Shut up. This is weird..."

 _On the sidelines..._

Krillin stared down at all of his beaten friends. "Oh no..."

From Tien, to Chiaotzu, to Bardock, to Raditz, to Future Trunks and Future Ranch, to Vegeta. Everyone but Krillin had been brought to their knees by the power of the Androids. The little monk watched, mortified, as the two of them walked over to Vegeta. "I... I have to do something..."

And then, it dawned on Krillin. They were facing Vegeta. Not him. If he was quick enough and sneaky enough, he could end this right now!

Krillin raised his hand into the air. "Destructo-"

But then, the sound of heavy footsteps caught Krillin off-guard. He turned and stared in horror at the source of the noise. That hulking robot, Android 16, was marching right towards him with a blank look on his face. Krillin stumbled and fell back. "N-No..."

 _Back with the fight..._

17 and 18 gathered around Vegeta, surrounded by a sea of unconscious warriors. 18 spoke with a bit of curiosity in her voice. "I'm just saying it's weird. When we kicked the crap out of the other blondies, they all reverted back to their normal hair color. And, when we saw this guy back at the lab, he sure as heck wasn't blonde..."

17 shrugged. "Who knows what's going on? But...about all those guys we kicked the crap out of."

18 sighed. "I already know what you're going to say. And no, I don't think they deserve to die either. They might have stepped in when they were asked not to...but they were just trying to help their friend. Just like you would do for me or vice-versa."

17 nodded. "Cool. But, what about Vegeta?"

18 sneered, holding her hand out. "This asshole can die in a _series_ of fires."

17 smirked. "Are you _that_ mad?"

18 snarled. "He ripped out a chunk of my hair with his bare hand! By the roots!"

But, suddenly, Vegeta sprang to life. He roared at the top of his lungs and lunged at 18 with his good arm. Both Androids leapt into the air to avoid his attack, and then 18 slammed down hard onto Vegeta's remaining arm, shattering it as well.

Vegeta screamed in pain, and then his eyes went completely white. The Prince slumped over and the gold left his hair, leaving him unconscious and powerless on the ground. Android 18 nodded. "Oh, I see, so the gold is just a powered-up stage. Like that Kaioken technique that Dr. Gero recorded..."

18 glared at Vegeta and extended her hand again, charging a Power Blitz. "Asshole."

Android 17 shrugged with a smirk. "Hey, he pissed you off. You should just kill him. That's the way things are."

Android 18 narrowed her eyes and prepared to fire. But then, a voice called out to her and her counterpart. "Attention Android 17 and Android 18! I have located Son Goku!"

17 and 18 both turned to the source of the voice up above. And then, giving each other a look, they both flew up to see what the commotion was.

 _Back on the sidelines..._

As Android 17 and Android 18 returned to the highway level, Krillin could only stare in disbelief. What had he just witnessed? Those two Androids, killers from what he had been told, chose to spare nearly everyone down below to be sporting? And that big guy...he just stared at Krillin for a moment, but then he turned and saved Vegeta's life with a single sentence? What was going on here?!

Android 17 spoke to his larger ally. "So, what's up 16?"

Android 16 nodded. "I have managed to upload, from my memory banks, information pertaining to the location of Son Goku."

17 nodded. "Oh, I get it. That's why you were staring into space earlier. You're just having trouble processing."

18, seemingly having forgotten about Vegeta, sighed. "Poor guy is just a bit slow..."

Android 16 spoke flatly. "Son Goku's house is located at 58N 018, 439 East District. We should make our way there at once to eliminate Son Goku."

17 and 18 glanced at one another, and then 18 indifferently shrugged. 17 smirked and nodded. "Fine, big man. Let's go do what you wanna do. Sounds like a blast~"

And then, just like that, the three Androids turned and started to walk away down the road. Krillin gasped. "W-Wait!"

The three of them stopped in their tracks and turned to glare at Krillin. 17 sighed. "What?"

Krillin, fear overriding common sense, blurted out a question. "Are you not going to kill us all?!"

17 glanced back at the other two and then towards Krillin. "Do you... _want us to?_ "

Krillin yelped. "N-No...it's just...uh..."

He swallowed a lump in his throat. "Why do you have to kill Goku?! I heard you both talking down there! You said you weren't going to kill anyone but Vegeta, because no one else was that bad. Goku isn't a bad guy at all, so why kill him?!"

Android 16 spoke up. "I was designed and programmed to kill Son Goku. That is my purpose for existence."

Android 17 motioned to 16. "There ya have it, chief. Our friend 16 wants to kill Goku, so Goku's gotta get killed. Sorry."

Krillin stood up, taking a few steps forward. "B-But you can't! I-"

Suddenly, Android 18 stepped forward. "You'll what? Will you try and stop us like you did a minute ago?"

Krillin shuddered, flinching back. 18 sighed. "I saw you, ya know? Preparing that Destructo-Disc of yours. You were gonna cut me and 17 in half, right?"

The little monk was stammering in fear. 18 sighed and rolled her eyes. "You would have failed, of course. And then I would've beaten you senseless."

She bent over, staring Krillin in the eye. "But still...you're like all of them down there. You were willing to put your neck on the line to save a life. Even if it was the life of a dick like Vegeta. I... respect that~"

And then, to Krillin's shock, the feminine Android pressed her lips to his cheek and gave him a quick peck. "You're a good guy. Try to never lose that good guy charm, okay?"

Krillin was in disbelief. "I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I..."

Android 18 waved. "Just for you, I'll forget about Vegeta this time. So, make sure you get him and all of your other little pals a Senzu Bean, okay? I'll see ya around~"

This time, however, the Androids attempt at an exit was cut off by two newly arrived obstacles. Piccolo and Future Daikon both descended from the sky and landed in front of 17 and 18. The two of them glared at the Androids and the Androids glared back. 17 sighed and started to roll up his sleeves. "I don't think these ones will be won over by a kiss on the cheek..."

Future Daikon snapped, turning Super Saiyan. "What have you done to my friends, you monsters?!"

Piccolo, meanwhile, remained calm. He observed the situation at hand and then thought long and hard about. Finally, he reached out and place his hand on Future Daikon's chest, pushing the boy to the side. "Don't let us stop you. Be on your way. Goku isn't going to kill himself."

17 and 18 both flinched. Future Daikon's jaw dropped. As the counterpart Androids looked to one another, trying to decide what Piccolo's game was, Android 16 spoke up. "Data shows that the Demon King Piccolo is Son Goku's mortal enemy. He would benefit from the death of Son Goku."

Android 18 frowned. "I dunno...Gero's data is super dated from what I've seen today..."

Android 17 rubbed his chin, but then he nodded. "Okay. We'll be on our way..."

He glared at Piccolo. "But I'm gonna kick your ass if I find out you pulled a sneaky on us, green man."

Piccolo glared right back. "Hmph."

Android 17 turned to his comrades and smiled. "Guys! I just thought of a really cool idea! But it's going to require us find a small town. So, let's fly for now!"

Android 16 nodded. "Satisfactory."

Android 18 rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I need a hair salon and a new outfit anyway..."

The Androids took to the air and quickly disappeared over the horizon. Once they were gone, Future Daikon snapped. "Piccolo! What the hell, man?!"

Piccolo spoke calmly. "I have my reasons..."

He glanced over at Krillin. "Hey Krillin! Get everyone back on their feet. We need to regroup and plan in a hurry!"

Krillin, snapped from his trance, nodded and leapt down towards all of the fallen Z-Fighters. "R-Right!"

 _Back at Gero's destroyed lab..._

Dust blew high into the sky as Gohan blasted more rubble. On the sidelines, Yajirobe coughed, covering his face with his shirt. "What the hell, kid?! Can't you give that a rest for just a minute?!"

Bulma snapped. "Shut up, Yajirobe!"

Gohan ignored the argument behind him, continuing to blast until his attacks collided with something that caused them to disperse. "H-Hey, Bulma! I hit something!"

Bulma blew Yajirobe off and walked over next to Gohan. Once the dust settled, she smiled at the sight of a metal door hidden beneath the rubble. "There we go..."

Bulma walked forward towards the door. She tapped her fingers on the rocky wall around it until she came upon a surface that felt less like rock and more like metal disguised as rock. She pulled a miniature screwdriver out of her pocket, stabbing it into the metal and then forcing it away, revealing a hidden eye-scanner and handprint scanner underneath. "Bingo!"

The scientist walked back to her laptop, grabbing 19's severed head and ripping out an eye. She also picked up 20's severed hand and walked back. She scanned both of the items and tossed them to Yajirobe as the hidden door shakily slid open. Yajirobe yelped in fear, dropping the eye and hand onto the ground.

Bulma didn't seem to notice or care. She had found something more interesting. "Well boys, while we wait for the cavalry to come back...why don't we have a nice, little tour of _Site Beta_...?"

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	67. Chapter 67: The Secret Labs of Dr Gero

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _ **Chapter 67: The Secret Labs of Dr. Gero**_

 _In a small settlement in the countryside..._

Android 18 sat in the hair salon with a sigh and a groan, watching as the stylist tried to fix the damage that had been done. The feminine Android grumbled under her breath as her hair was buzzed down on the side, until only a 1-inch layer remained. _"I really should have killed him for this..._ "

The hair stylist behind her spoke. "Pardon, darlin'?"

Android 18 shook her head. "Nothing..."

 _Outside of the salon..._

Android 17 whistled a jaunty tune as he laid in the floorboard on his newly acquired ride. In the back alley near the van, both of the former occupants laid beaten and unconscious. 17 touched two wires together and made a spark. He chuckled. "Heh heh! Still got it!"

"What are you doing?"

Android 17 sat up, looking at his sister. He chuckled and smirked at her. "New hair looks good!"

Android 18 glanced at 17's hotwire job, and then at the keys still dangling from the ignition. "Wh-Why...what is even the point of..."

17 held up his hands. "Now now, come on! I'm just trying to have some fun, that's all~"

18 facepalmed. "But the keys are right there..."

17 nodded. "Yeah, they were my back-up plan if the hotwire didn't work!"

18 rolled her eyes. "What good would that have done?! The hotwire would have busted the-"

Heavy footsteps interrupted the two Androids' bickering. The both turned to see their larger companion, Android 16, approaching. In his right hand, 16 held a garment bag. His face was stoic. "I have acquired the clothing as you requested, Android 18."

Android 18 smiled. "Thank you, 16. At least you get things done quickly!"

As 18 took the bag, 17 rolled his eyes. "Where's the fun in doing _anything_ quickly?!"

But then, to 17's shock, 18 opened the garment bag and her face turned green. She pulled from the bag a dark brown, leather vest and an accompanying get-up. In the bottom of the bag were a pair of cowboy boots. "I...I..."

Android 17 chuckled. "No, wait. I change my mind. Rushing through some things can be pretty fun."

18 was stunned. "16..."

Android 16 spoke. "I selected the outfit based on several factors: which colors would match your eye and hair coloration, you skin tone, and your demeanor most holistically. I also factored in previous fashion choices of yours recorded onto my sensors. But, most importantly..."

Android 18 grumbled to herself. " _Gero's sensors are pieces of hot sh-_ "

16 continued. "I also picked this outfit because you now have a hairstyle stylistically similar to my own. And this was the closest analogue to my own outfit that I could find."

18 blushed, glancing up at the larger Android who now had a friendly smile on his face. 17 laughed out loud. "Oh man! You look like such a picky bitch!"

She sneered and shoved 17 into the side of the van. "Shut up!"

She climbed into the back and slammed the door shut. Android 17 smirked. "Hey, seriously though, that was a nice sentiment, big guy. I-"

17 was surprised to see 16 walking away. He called after him. "Hey man! Where's the fire?"

16 didn't respond. 17 watched as 16 crossed the street, eventually arriving next to two children standing teary-eyed next to a tree. 16 knelt down to the children and they pointed up to their pet cat, scared atop the tallest branch. 17 frowned at the sight of the kids, a boy and a girl. Both of them alone and helpless to deal with their problem.

The backdoor to the van opened and 18 stepped out in her new clothes. "This just isn't my day..."

She looked to 17 and then looked in the direction he was looking towards 16. The giant Android hovered upwards, gently grabbing the frightened cat at the top and brought it down to the awaiting children. 17 and 18 both watched on as the children thanked 16 and then went on their way. 16 turned, noticing his counterparts staring at him, and then walked back over to them. "Are the articles of clothing I acquired satisfactory, Android 18?"

18 adopted a small smile. "Y-Yeah. Thanks, 16."

17 chuckled. "You know man, you're just full of surprises~"

Android 16's smiled faded. "We have acquired Android 18's cosmetic upgrades and the vehicle that Android 17 desired. We should commence with operations to eliminate Son Goku."

17 chuckled and jumped into the driver's seat. "Right-o."

18 walked to the passenger side. "You cool with the back, 16?"

16 nodded. "That is acceptable."

And so, the Android's climbed into their new ride and set off on their deadly assassination mission.

 _The ruins of Dr. Gero's Site Alpha..._

Piccolo, Tien, and Chiaotzu descended from the sky and landed in front of the ruined mountain that was once Dr. Gero's lab. Taking a cursory look around, Tien eventually spotted the secondary entrance on the lower side of the mountain. "It's a door!"

The three of them walked over to the new door and Piccolo peered in. "Stay sharp. I sense Gohan within this tunnel. But there could still be traps."

 _Within Site Beta..._

Arriving deep within the sub-lab, Piccolo, Tien, and Chiaotzu were shocked to find how spacious the cavern was. Standing in the center, next to two noticeable metal circles on the ground, were Gohan and Yajirobe. The rotund ronin was holding onto a slumbering Baby Trunks. Chiaotzu called over to them. "Gohan! Yajirobe!"

Gohan turned. "Oh! Hey guys!"

And then he flinched at how light the groups numbers had become. "Wh-Where is everybody?"

Piccolo waved him off. "I'll explain in a minute. Where is Bulma?"

Yajirobe pointed with his thumb at a safe on the wall. "She's in there."

Chiaotzu flinched. "In that small wall safe?! But...how?! Why?!"

Suddenly, Bulma's voice called out. "Through the power of science!"

The three newly arrived warriors flinched. They watched as a speck jumped from the keyhole in Dr. Gero's safe and then grew into a full-sized Bulma. She stood and, with a smirk, turned and entered the proper code onto Gero's safe. The safe's security disengaged and it flew open. Bulma laughed. "Nice try, old geezer! Maybe next time you'll try something harder than a triple-encrypted chamber lock!"

Tien was perplexed. "Bulma, how did you do that?"

Bulma reached to her wrist and pulled off what appeared to be a watch. "The Micro-Band! One of teenage Bulma's most handy inventions!"

And then, with a massive ear-to-ear smirk on her face, Bulma reached into the safe and pulled out three, tightly-bound blueprints. "Bingo! 16, 17, and 18!"

But then, upon scanning the returning party, Bulma's smile faded. "Oh no...wh-where is everybody? What happened?!"

Piccolo sighed. "I'll explain the situation."

 _Earlier, after the fight with 17 and 18..._

A furious scream echoed out across the canyon as Vegeta's power flared. The Prince's anger and fury surged across the former battlefield. He stomped his foot and sent fissures spreading across the ground. "Those damned brats! I'll kill them! I'll hunt them down and find them and kill them both!"

Krillin's hands were shaking as he tried to reason with the Saiyan. "Vegeta! Just calm down for a minute! Please!"

Tien shook his head, rubbing his sore arm as the Senzu Bean took effect. "We're a few thousand tics past calm..."

Krillin sighed and helped Future Ranch stand up. He glanced back at Future Daikon and Future Trunks, watching as the purple-haired youth examined his shattered blade. "You okay, Trunks...?"

Future Trunks remained silent. Future Ranch walked over and gently consoled him, stroking her hand across his back in a soothing motion. As Vegeta continued to rage and throw a fit, Future Ranch glared at him. Future Daikon sighed. Chiaotzu covered his ears. "He's being so loud..."

Raditz looked annoyed. "Hey! Vegeta! Cut...it..."

Bardock marched by Raditz, having been healed by the last of Krillin's Senzu Beans. Without hesitation, the older Saiyan walked up to Vegeta. He grabbed the Prince by the shoulder, spinning him around so their eyes met, and then he decked Vegeta to the ground as hard as he could. Vegeta tumbled across the rocks and everyone gasped at what Bardock had just done.

Vegeta snarled. "How dare-"

Bardock sneered. "Just paying Trunks' receipt for him. He certainly won't strike back at you. And you know you deserved that. Cuz, guess what Vegeta...you lost because you weren't strong enough! We all did! All of us, and especially you, were-"

Future Trunks cried out. "Wait!"

Bardock finished bluntly. "Weak."

His face glowing red, Vegeta turned and charged at Bardock. A blast formed in the Prince's hand, as if he were going to strike Bardock down right there. Bardock didn't flinch. He and Vegeta glared at one another, Vegeta practically frothing at the mouth. Bardock snorted. "Aw, that's cute. You really think you can kill me right now?"

Vegeta gripped his fist and dispersed the blast, pain streaking across his incensed face. And then, with a furious scream, he blasted off like an angry firework and disappeared over the horizon. Future Trunks stammered. "B-Bardock..."

Bardock turned and glared at the boy. "Hm?!"

Future Trunks flinched. "Th-Thank you...but that wasn't necessary..."

Bardock shrugged. "Didn't really do it for you, honestly. Vegeta needed a wake-up call. Him treating you like shit was just a good enough reason to administer it."

Future Ranch clicked her tongue. "Either way...thanks, Grandpa. I dunno about Trunks or Vegeta...but I certainly needed that."

Bardock turned and walked over. "Anytime, sugar beet."

He tussled Future Ranch's hair. And then he glanced over to Future Daikon. "And you!"

Future Daikon stood up rail-straight. "S-Sir?!"

Bardock shot him a thumbs up. "You aren't damaged in the slightest. I guess you were that massive power a felt just a while back. So, good job!"

Future Daikon scratched the back of his head. "W-We didn't really succeed though. Dr. Gero still got away..."

Bardock shrugged. "Doesn't matter. Old bastard'll show up again eventually. Besides..."

He glanced back at the cross-armed Piccolo. "Someone seems to have a plan of some kind."

And then, to everyone's surprise, Bardock took to the air. As he rose up, Krillin called after him. "B-Bardock! Where are you going?!"

Bardock was distant. He didn't even look at Krillin as he mumbled. " _...all that training failed...need a new approach..._ "

And then, as fast as he could fly, Bardock took off. As soon as he was gone, Future Daikon cocked his head. "I guess...Grandpa Bardock has something in mind for 17 and 18..."

Future Ranch instantly looked angry. Turning on her heel, she glared at the stalwart Piccolo. " _Hey Piccolo! What the hell?! You're just as strong as Vegeta is! Couldn't you have held those two in place long enough for Krillin to give us all Senzu Beans?!_ "

Future Trunks also looked quite angry. He gripped his fist. "We could have taken them together. We could have ended this, Piccolo! How could you...?!"

Piccolo sighed. "Could I have held them here? Perhaps..."

Future Daikon was confused. "Then why-"

Piccolo continued. "Could we have beaten them by ganging up on them? No. I don't think we could have."

The Future Trio all flinched. Piccolo shook his head. "Daikon and I landed here to find you all unconscious on the floor. And the Androids weren't so much as breathing heavy. I don't know whether that means they were extraordinarily strong, or if it implies something else...but I don't think we would have come out of that fight alive."

Future Ranch scowled. "How could you say that?! Gohan always told us that you were a bold fighter, and now-"

Future Trunks held up his hand. "Gohan also told us Piccolo was an expert tactician. And... he's right."

Future Ranch flinched. Future Trunks glanced up at Piccolo. "The Androids themselves told us. They have infinite energy reserves. We...we didn't know that before. But now that we do...what do we do now...?"

Piccolo sighed. "Going by what I was told by Krillin, it sounds as if myself, Vegeta, Goku, and MAYBE Bardock are the only ones that are even on par with 17 and 18's strength. Putting aside the massive question mark that is Android 16, we need to rise far above 17 and 18 if we are to survive in a fight against them."

He glared at Future Ranch. "Letting them go might have made some of you angry, but it also bought us some time to find a way to further ascend. Bardock and Vegeta are both going off to try and train their way towards victory, but I think I'd prefer a more tactical approach here."

The Namekian's eyes flashed and a cape and turban appeared on his head and shoulders. "We're playing a game of chess now. We need to get our pieces in place. Our king, their goal, is sick. But the Androids seem eager to play around in claiming him. So, our first move should be to secure him."

The Namekian pointed in the opposite direction of the way the Android flew off. "Trunks, Daikon, Ranch, Raditz, and Krillin: you all go to Goku's house. Gather him, gather Chi-Chi and everyone else, and get Goku to Kame House. That place is remote enough that, even if the Androids think of it, it should take them a while to locate it."

Future Daikon seemed a bit concerned. "Are you sure?"

Piccolo nodded. "Kame House has an address, but I'm pretty sure Roshi keeps the coordinates private. We should be fine so long as no one raises their power level while on the island."

Raditz nodded. "Okay. We can get that done, Piccolo. But, what about the rest of you?"

Piccolo turned towards the direction of Dr. Gero's former lab. "I'll be sending Gohan after all of you shortly. The rest of us are going to touch base with Bulma and see if we can come up with some idea of where Gero went. I'd like tie up that loose end for good..."

 _Back in the present..._

Piccolo crossed his arms as he finished his little recap. "So, now that I've filled you all in, you can leave Gohan."

Gohan flinched. "A-Are you sure, Mr. Piccolo?"

Piccolo nodded. "Yes. Your family needs you right now more than we do. So, hurry along. As much as those three from the future, Raditz, or Krillin would fight to protect him, there's no one your Dad believes in and relies on in these times more than you, kid."

Gohan gripped his fists and nodded. "R-Right! You and Dad both can count on me, Mr. Piccolo!"

And then, Gohan ran towards the exit. Once the sound of the boy's footsteps vanished, Piccolo turned to Bulma. "Now, Bulma, you took all the time to search this place out. Please tell me there was something here that we can use."

Bulma smirked. "Oh come on Piccolo, are you doubting me?"

Piccolo frowned, clearly not in a jovial mood. Bulma ignored his sour disposition though. "Well, Mr. Demon King, in addition to having found these valuable blueprints to our friends 16, 17, and 18...I have discovered the name of this lab in your absence~"

Tien was confused. "This lab has a name?"

Bulma nodded. "Yep. The ruins above were known as Site Alpha. This place is Site Beta. And, gentlemen, I'm sure you'd agree with me that Site Beta is a bit barren. Too barren considering how Site Alpha looks."

Chiaotzu looked around. "It is pretty empty in here..."

Bulma walked across the room, stomping her heel down on each of the two metal circles nearer to the back wall. "Right? There was definitely something here before. And, as a fellow scientist who wants people to stay out of her business, I'm willing to bet Gero relocated everything when he knew the heat was getting too close."

She held up her finger. "In other words...there are still more secrets of Dr. Gero to be found, boys!"

Piccolo's eyes narrowed. "How would be have moved anything down here on such short notice?"

Bulma shrugged. "A one-way, long-distance, single-planetary matter transporter wouldn't be too hard for a guy with Gero's brains to build."

She chuckled. "Too bad he didn't have one attached to his desk PC~"

Bulma pointed across the room to a dusty, little desk with her laptop sitting atop it. Next to the laptop was a computer monitor and the exposed hard-drive of the PC itself. Bulma walked over to her laptop and read the screen. "Let's see what I've dug up while I was trying to break open that safe..."

She smirked. "Oh~ Sloppy, sloppy Gero. Sloppy, sloppy."

Bulma snapped her fingers and pointed at Piccolo. "Piccolo, you can take Site Epsilon."

She motioned to Tien. "Tien, you can take Site Gamma."

And then, she motioned to Chiaotzu. "And you can take Site Delta, Chiaotzu."

Piccolo nodded. "And that's all of them?"

Bulma waved her hand. "So far, yeah...there's still a bit of data left to dig through."

Piccolo turned to the others. "Okay then. Chiaotzu, you make a private mental channel between the four of us. We'll all get our coordinates from Bulma and then we'll see if we can hunt that old bastard down once and for all!"

 _At Goku's house..._

The door opened behind them and Gine, Launch, and Yamcha turned to see Raditz and Krillin walking in. Gine nodded. "Hey son, hey Krillin! Welcome home!"

Launch walked over to Raditz, balancing the cooing Baby Ranch in her right arm. She wrapped her free arm around Raditz's neck and kissed him on the cheek. "Hey hubby~"

She frowned at Raditz's serious demeanor. "Is something wrong?"

Raditz sighed. "Lots of things. Where's Chi-Chi?"

Gine uncrossed her arms. "She's in her and Kakarot's room taking care of him. What's going...on...?"

Gine looked past Krillin and Raditz and saw the Future Trio standing in the doorway. While she recognized the original, purple-haired boy straightaway. But, the other two...there was something both unfamiliar and extremely familiar about them. Gine looked at Raditz. "I recognize future boy. But, who are those other two?"

Raditz stammered. "U-Uh...well...ya see..."

Launch separated from her husband. She gently pushed him to the side and walked up to the trio. Pushing past Future Trunks and Future Daikon, she looked the teenage girl before her in the eyes. "R-Ranch...?"

Everyone flinched. Launch looked the girl up and down, grabbing a small handful of her hair and looking closely at it. Launch spoke again. "Raditz told me about the boy from the future...you're with that boy...and you have that hair..."

She looked Future Ranch in the eyes. "You're a teenage girl from the future with that distinctive hair color...and you're wearing my hair ribbon in your hair..."

Finally, Future Ranch managed to produce a response. She sheepishly looked away from Launch and from her own, infant self and sighed. "H-Hi, Mom..."

Krillin finally spoke up. "Well then, I guess that cat's out of the bag. Gine, Launch, meet Trunks, Ranch, and Daikon. They're from the future."

Gine flinched. "Oh! I see...so you were Vegeta and Bulma's son from the future, huh?"

Future Trunks nodded. "Y-Yes, ma'am..."

Gine smiled over at Future Ranch. "And my beautiful granddaughter~"

Future Ranch blushed. "It's...it's nice to meet you, Grandma..."

Finally, Gine walked up to Future Daikon. She looked him in the eye, examining him up and down. She grabbed his tail and examined it and then reached up and tussled his shaggy hair. Future Daikon was nervous. "Is something...wrong...?"

Gine sighed, adopting a smile. "You have my hair. So... you're my grandson, yes? Your name is...Daikon?"

Future Daikon nodded. "Y-Yes ma'am. I'm Raditz and Launch's yet-to-be-conceived son..."

Gine crossed her arms. "Interesting..."

Future Daikon flinched. "Is something wrong...?"

Gine cocked her head. But, before she could speak, Raditz interrupted. "We don't really have time to talk right now. We have to focus up and get Kakarot out of here. There are Androids on the way and none of us are strong enough to beat them in a fight right now."

Launch flinched. "There were more Androids that the ones that you, Vegeta, and Bardock fought?!"

Gine looked around. "Wait, where is Bardock anyway?"

Raditz was growing frustrated. He scratched his head and snapped. "Everyone shush! Gather what we need and let's get on mine and Launch's capsule plan! We need to get moving as soon as possible!"

Krillin nodded. "I'll go tell Chi-Chi. You all start packing."

As the time quickly passed, the state of the Son Family Homestead became quite hectic. Everyone got to work packing as Gine and Launch consoled the desperate Chi-Chi. Not only was Goku deathly ill, but now she was being forced to leave her house. Yamcha and Krillin hefted bags out the front door as the Future Trio stood guard in case of attacks. Raditz sighed and rubbed his face. "I really hope there's a point to this other than delaying the inevitable, Piccolo..."

Yamcha and Krillin both ran back in, out of breath. Yamcha gave a thumbs up. "Okay! We...we got all of the bags into the plane. All that's left is getting Goku in there!"

Krillin turned to the woman. "Hey Chi-Chi...?"

Chi-Chi sniffled. "Y-Yeah. We got Goku onto a portable futon. We just have to lift it and get him into the plane...even though he'd probably prefer his own bed while he's so ill..."

Launch gave her a pat on the back. "We're sorry, Chi-Chi."

Chi-Chi rubbed her stomach. "My little one is due any time now...and I have to spend the last moments of my pregnancy at Roshi's perv shack?!"

Krillin rubbed the back of his head. "I mean, would you prefer the An-"

Gine clamped her hand over Krillin's mouth. "It'll be fine Chi-Chi. They just have to hold out a bit longer. Your little one will be fine if they can hold on just a couple of days~"

The Saiyan Mother looked to everyone else. "Okay! Let's all head into the bedroom and grab Kakarot! Everyone grabbed a corner of the futon and try not to shake him around too much!"

Everyone quickly filed into the plane, crab-walking as they hefted Goku into the aircraft. Everyone took their seats and Krillin started the plane engine. But, as they began to take off, another being landed in the nearby yard. Gohan had arrived just in the nick of time. The boy ran into the plane, out of breath from how fast he was moving to make it on time. "G-Glad I could make it. Is D-Dad okay...?"

Chi-Chi sprang up as fast as her pregnant body could lift itself. She ran over to her son and wrapped him in a tight hug. "Gohan! I was so worried!"

Gohan hugged her back. Chi-Chi motioned to the futon. "Your Father has taken the dose of medicine we had left. Everything else is up to him and his body to sort out..."

Gohan nodded. "That's fine. Dad is strong. He can power through it."

Krillin smiled back at the warm, family moment. "Okay! Everyone is here! Off to Kame House we go!"

And so, with everyone in tow, the Son Family took off in the direction of Kame House. All of them trying to remain positive, but all of them well aware that the Androids wouldn't be far behind once they found that Goku wasn't home.

As the plane flew off, each of the passengers tried to distract themselves with day-to-day life. Launch and Raditz sat on either side of Future Ranch and Future Daikon. Launch gushed over her beautiful, grown daughter while also paying attention to the younger one in her arms. She also took the time to try and get to know her as-of-yet unborn son. Raditz nodded along with a smile as his wife swooned over their teenage children.

Future Daikon was hunched over, looking pretty uncomfortable. Future Ranch blushed, but couldn't make herself look her mother in the eye. Deep in her head, Future Ranch thought of her mother back home and that only served to make her already low mood worse.

As Future Ranch sat there, her head hung, Future Trunks walked over. He asked Future Daikon to scoot over and he sat down next to Future Ranch, allowing her to grab onto his arm and rest her head. Launch gasped. "Oh my gosh! Are you two dating?!"

Future Trunks and Future Ranch's faces both glowed red. Launch laughed out loud. "That's so cute! Oh my gosh! Raditz! Our daughter is dating Vegeta's son!"

That realization hit Raditz like a freight train. He tilted his head back and slapped his hand onto his forehead. "Noooooo..."

He moaned. "Kill me. _Kill me now_..."

Up in the front, Krillin and Yamcha both shared a chuckle at Raditz's lament.

And finally, Chi-Chi, Gine, and Gohan both sat at Goku's bedside. Having gotten her son back from the conflict for a brief period, Chi-Chi did what she did best. She laid down the books for her son and encouraged him to study. Gohan did so with gusto, happy to have a moments peace from everything he had experienced so far today.

As Gohan studied, Chi-Chi and Gine shot each other a knowing look. Being not only close in-laws, but really good friends, the two of them were almost able to speak without talking to one another. They shared a knowing glance and then looked over at Future Trunks, Future Daikon, and Future Ranch.

Something was certainly _off_ here.

 _At Site Gamma, the former Red Ribbon Army HQ..._

The blasted-out ruins of the former Red Ribbon Army Headquarters howled with a hollow wind as Tien walked through it. Each empty, crumbling building crawled with rats and remained inked in shadows. Tien mumbled to himself as he walked. "Now...if I were a secret lab..."

He continued towards the center of the base, Commander Red's former fortress, and walked in. Most of the upper floors had collapsed down and a crater remained where the floor had caved down. In the center, a ball of rusted, purple metal laid. Tien shook his head. "Goku was certainly one vicious, little monster when he was little..."

Tien shrugged as he walked by. "But, it's not like these evil bastards didn't deserve it."

As Tien explored around, blowing away debris, he eventually found a staircase leading down to a basement chamber. Down there, the three-eyed warrior found a large, steel door similar to the one he had seen back in the northern wilderness. "This looks promising."

Tien struck the door as hard as he could, but it didn't budge. He sneered. "Damn it. What the hell is this thing made of?!"

He grumbled and looked down to the lower right, seeing a broken keypad and what appeared to be the hole meant for a key of some kind. Tien closed his eyes and shook his head. "Okay, Master Shen, let's see if I remember any of your _special tricks_..."

Tien charged a bit of ki onto his fingertip and stuck it into the keyhole. After just a few moments, he heard something in the door crumble and then kicked it as hard as he could. The door flew in, smashing into the wall hard enough to make the wall itself crack. Tien looked around and saw nothing more than robotic frames hanging on the walls and various debris on the floor and tables.

The three-eyed warrior walked in and look around, before connecting back to the mental channel Chiaotzu had made. "Hey Bulma...this place looks totally empty. Nothing more than a junk and robotic skeletons..."

Bulma communicated back. "Have a look around just to make sure, Tien. Gero is wily. He might be hiding something..."

 _At Site Epsilon, under the sea..._

Piccolo swam around underwater at high speed, his energy barrier giving him a pocket of air to breathe in as he zipped around. Deep down, in an underwater cave, the Namekian finally found what he was looking for: an old, mostly decayed, undersea fortress with a Red Ribbon Army logo faintly printed on the outer hull. Piccolo weaved around the base, eventually finding a hole on the outside of it and swimming inside.

After a few minutes of going through the various flooded hallways of the former base, Piccolo came upon a pocket of air to step into. The Namekian glanced around. "This place seems to have been constructed specifically to avoid damage in a flood. The hallways and floors seem designed to specifically quarantine it off..."

A few steps down the hallway and Piccolo came upon a very familiar looking door. "I see. Looks as if I've found it."

Piccolo looked to his left and two his right, eventually finding a crack in the wall, caused by age, that he could slip his hand into. Once that was done, the Namekian simply felt around on the other side until he found the lock. With a quick twist, Piccolo unlocked the door. And then, with a simple push, yet another one of Dr. Gero's former labs had been discovered.

As Piccolo stepped into the lab, what he found was a pristine, clinically clean room. He looked at the various, neatly organized tables and found several dozen lab dishes full of bacteria and organic matter. Piccolo cocked his head. "Hmm..."

He established the mental link. "Bulma, this lab is full of organic material."

The Namekian could hear Bulma's smirk in his mind. "Cool! Steal all of it! I want to see it for myself~"

 _In the barren wasteland..._

A large frown developed on Chiaotzu's face as the little dwarf opened his eyes. "Oh, come on! You've got to be kidding me!"

He closed his eyes again, using his psychokinetic power to do a sweep in a seven-mile, spherical radius around him. Into the sky, under the ground, and all around...Chiaotzu found no sign to the Site Delta that he had been sent to search out. He shook his head. "How is that possible? D-Did Dr. Gero make a mistake in his logs? Or, did he maybe change the coordinates so we couldn't find this particular lab..."

Chiaotzu sighed and connected to the mental link. "Guys, I can't find anything here. I've looked everywhere and I even used my mental powers to scan for it. But I can't find anything..."

Piccolo spoke in Chiaotzu's brain. "That's bizarre. The rest of us have found our locations with no issue..."

Tien spoke as well. "Maybe Dr. Gero just made a mistake when he put the coordinates in his log?"

Chiaotzu nodded. "That's what I was thinking."

Bulma quickly cut off that line of thought. "I doubt it. A guy like Gero doesn't seem like the type to misrecord something like that..."

She sounded contemplative. "It's more likely that it's there...he's just masking it from being found. I'm willing to bet that there's something juicy hidden in there that he doesn't want anyone to find until he's ready for them to find it."

Piccolo spoke up. "I don't like the sound of th-"

Bulma interrupted. "Hold that thought. My computer is beeping at me."

A moment of silence. And then, Bulma got back on the mental connection. "Okay then, guys! My computer is done digging through Gero's system. And it looks like there's still one more sight to explore~"

Chiaotzu nodded. "O-Okay. Well, maybe I can find that one if-"

Bulma interrupted again. "Nah. I'd like for you to stay there. I have a few ideas for how we might be able to find Site Delta that involve your telekinetic and psychokinetic abilities. For now...I think I have someone in mind who can go and seek out Site Omega for us..."

 _On the plane carrying Goku to Kame House..._

Gine silently looked over each of the Future Trio as they talked with everyone else aboard the plane. Future Trunks was a fine young man in her eyes, but his lack of a tail concerned her greatly. Future Ranch was a beautiful young woman with a strong personality, but she also radiated stress and anxiety from very pore with a constant subtle shake to her hands. And Future Daikon...he certainly did look like his father in Gine's humble opinion.

Suddenly, Gine was snapped from her deep thinking by the sound of ringing bells. "What is that?"

Yamcha quickly reached into his pocket, pulling out his cell phone. "Sorry, that's my ringtone for Bulma..."

Yamcha answered. "Sup?"

He nodded. "O-Okay...I can do that..."

He nodded again. "Right. Okay. I think I know where that is...it's even farther north than North City, right?"

Yamcha seemed nervous, but he was agreeable. Okay. Jingle Village. Cool. I'll head there right away and send a signal if I find anything..."

The former bandit stood from his seat and cracked his neck. "Okay guys, take care. I'm heading up north..."

Future Trunks spoke up. "Is something the matter?"

Yamcha sighed. "Your mother found another one of Gero's labs. She wants me to go and scout out where it might be."

Future Daikon seemed concerned. "A-Are you sure you don't want one of us to go in your place, Yamcha?"

Yamcha shook his head. "Nah. I need to redeem myself after what happened back on Amenbo. Besides, Goku needs the strongest people here to protect him."

Gine nodded. "Just be careful out there, Yamcha."

Yamcha sheepishly nodded. "S-Sure thing...I'll try my best~ Heh..."

 _In the far north, on the outskirts near Jingle Village..._

A howling, frigid wind blew over the wintery forest on the outskirts of Jingle Village. The people in the village happily lived their lives, blissfully unaware of the type of predators looming in the dark woods. His damaged form sparking, Dr. Gero stared hatefully at the village. "Pathetic fools. Little more than ants waiting to be stepped on..."

Gero turned and stalked down a dark, cleared path into the woods. "I will never understand why he chose to remain out here..."

The demented doctor continued to stalk down the path until he eventually came upon a small, lonesome house. He stepped up to the door, knocking and waiting. The door was quickly answered by a young woman in scrubs. "Now who would be here in this blizzard? You're going to catch your death of-"

Quickly and cruelly, Gero jabbed his massive thumb into the side of the woman's head. She gasped, her eyes widening, and then the light faded from her face. Gero callously tossed her corpse to the ground. "Catch my death, indeed..."

Suddenly, from the back room, Gero heard the familiar voice he had come to see. "Latte?! Do we have a guest?!"

Gero stepped forward, his massive form barely fitting through the doorway. He followed the source of the voice to a small room in the back. The room was dim, lit only by an evening lamp and the shining light of several medical monitors. And laying in the bed in the center of it was the eponymous Dr. Flappe.

Dr. Gero stared at the old man, taking in the sights. Flappe was clearly at death's door. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of black glasses and he had no reaction to Gero entering the room. It seemed that Flappe had gone blind in his old age. Gero raised his hand up, ready to fire a blast and execute this last loose end. Flappe spoke up again. "Latte! Is someone here?!"

Gero lowered his hand, gripping his fist. He stared at his former collaborator and sighed. "Hello, Flappe."

Dr. Flappe flinched. "G-Gero?! _Is...is that you, Gero?!_ "

Flappe broke out into a coughing fit. Gero nodded. "Indeed. I see that you appear close to expiring."

The dying old man chuckled. "Always so clinical..."

He wheezed. "W-Where is Latte? She is...my nurse..."

Gero spoke bluntly. "She seemed quite tired. I do believe she laid down for a rest."

Flappe nodded. "I see...well, she certainly deserves it..."

The old doctor chuckled. "So, how have you been? It's been years since...since we worked together on the Android Project."

Gero grumbled. "Hmph. Since you helped construct that failure, Android 8, you mean...?"

Flappe shook his head. "Oh Gero...always such a clinical person. How could you consider Android 8 a failure? He's a being that has learn to love the life he was given. He has adapted to the humanity provided for him. And... he even developed a sense of compassion. He forgave me for the bomb that we had installed into his chest..."

Flappe sniffled. "So...so kind..."

Gero rolled his remaining eye. "What good is compassion in what was meant to be a weapon? Android 8 was meant to kill humans. Not adapt and become one."

Flappe shook his head. "I suppose we shall never agree on this matter..."

The doctor chuckled. "But I suppose history is what will decide which of us was right! And history has already decided that the Red Ribbon Army failed~"

Gero growled. "Not due to a lack of military genius nor a lack of weapon versatility. Merely because Commander Red was a damned fool chasing a worthless goal."

The crazed scientist looked around Flappe's home. "Not that you are much better. What comfort do you find living in such a miserable little hovel?! Why would you not use your skills to extend your life, to live in a place more advanced than this, to put your genius out into the world and make sure that you are remember?!"

Flappe sighed. "What is the point, Gero? You ask me to live forever or to preserve my legacy for all eternity? To what end, my friend...?"

Gero flinched. Flappe had a coughing fit. "We are given one life, Gero. When it ends, for whatever reasons it ends, then it is over. Why try to push beyond that point? Why not just use the time you have for personal satisfaction? To live a life and be happy?"

Gero hung his head. "Perhaps...I decided that the amount of life allotted was too little for my tastes..."

Flappe wheezed, clenching his chest. "And what...what would... _Gean and Gebo_...have to say about that...? When is the...the last time...you...sp-spoke to either of them, G-Gero...?"

Gero remained deathly quiet. Dr. Flappe clenched his chest. "Th-This is...is it..."

He reached into his coat, gasping, and handed Gero an envelope. "M-My will...please give it...give it...it...to Latte. I leave everything to...to her..."

Gero took the envelope. "Of course."

Dr. Flappe gasped. " _Than...than...th..an..k...you..._ "

And then he fell limp. Gero stood, unplugging the sharply beeping monitor from the wall and pulled the blanket over Dr. Flappe's face. He stalked out of the room and towards the door, callously tossing Flappe's Will onto Latte's corpse. "This is for you."

Gero stepped back out into the cold and stared into the inky, black distance. "Now...to head towards Site Omega..."

 _At the ruins of Muscle Tower..._

Dr. Gero approached the frozen over ruins of Muscle Tower is a grim expression on his face. He used his enhanced strength to shift large chunks of rubble around, eventually finding a stairwell leading down. The doctor squeezed his hulking frame into the hallway, shredding apart bricks as he did, until he came upon a door. Gero leaned over and allowed the scanner to scan his eye. The door opened and he walked into it, allowing it to stay ajar behind him.

And completely unaware of the shadowy figure lurking behind him.

 _Within Site Omega..._

Dr. Gero arrived into his laboratory, Site Omega, and finally collapsed into a chair. The seat strained under the doctor's weight and he groaned. Android 13 was a type of Android that needed periodically charging in order to maintain activity. Much like his own, Android 20, body, but without the energy absorption lenses. Gero groaned. "This location should be perfect. Remote. Forgotten by time. Nothing of note was ever done here, minus the work on the original Android project.

Gero closed his eyes and thought back to those times. To himself, and Flappe, and Gean.

The doctor murmured to himself. " _Gean..._ "

But then, his injuries began to spark and his joints began to jolt. Gero scowled. "Perhaps I should just place myself in stasis rather than attempt to transfer to a new frame on my own. Just...remove myself from all of this for the next 15 years..."

Gero's attention turned to the back corner of the lab. To the massive, glowing tube full of green fluid. In the center of that fluid, was a single, miniscule creature. Gero hobbled across the room, towards the tube, and placed his hand on the glass. "My masterwork..."

He lurched over, barely able to support the weight of Android 13's hulking, blue body. "17 and 18 should be able to survive until you are born, my creation...just a little while longer..."

Gero just stood there, silently staring at the tube with his mouth slightly agape. And then, the doctor was shocked by the addition of a second, raspy voice to his one-man conversation. " _Hello, Doctor._ "

Dr. Gero turned, and his remaining eye widened. " _What the hell?!_ "

 _Back at Site Beta..._

Bulma looked over the pile of collected resources that Tien and Piccolo had brought back to her with a giant smile on her face. "Oh~ You boys are too kind to me~"

Tien and Piccolo both stood stalwart. Chiaotzu, meanwhile, looked quite unhappy with himself. He sighed. "I'm sorry, Bulma. I tried..."

Bulma waved him off. "It's fine. I copied Gero's entire system memory to my hard-drive. I'll scan over everything later and see if I can find out what's going on with Site Delta."

The scientist rubbed her chin. "Honestly, what I'm more concerned about right now is Yamcha. None of you found Gero. So, unless he's hiding in Site Delta...then he's probably at the exact spot I sent Yamcha to find..."

She seemed genuinely worried. "I hope he hasn't gotten himself killed or something..."

Piccolo nodded. "Well, I think we would have sensed something that drastic. But, regardless, we'll head towards those coordinates and see if we can find him. And then, once we do that, we'll all regroup at Kame House and discuss our next move."

Bulma smiled. "Right. Until that time, I think I'm going to take all of my new goodies here and head back to Capsule Corp. Maybe me and my Dad can work out some solutions to the 16, 17, and 18 problem."

Piccolo gave her a thumbs up. "Alright. Just take care of yourself."

Bulma gave a thumbs up back. "Same. You three watch each other's backs!"

And with that, Piccolo, Tien, and Chiaotzu took off. Exiting Site Beta, the three of them flew off to the far north, ready to corner and end the wicked Dr. Gero once and for all.

After they had left, Bulma turned to Yajirobe. "Hey."

Yajirobe looked up from Baby Trunks, whom he was gently cradling. "What?"

Bulma motioned for him to follow. "You've been a great babysitter. Come back to Capsule Corp with me and I'll hook you up with a new car."

Yajirobe flinched. "R-Really?!"

Bulma nodded. "Yeah. But I want that hat on your head. I wanna see if Gero put any sort of secrets in it for me to find."

Yajirobe eagerly nodded, following Bulma as she walked towards the exit. "D-Deal! But I want a custom package on that car!"

Bulma sighed and rolled her eyes. " _Whatever..._ "

 _In the far north, Jingle Village..._

Piccolo, Tien, and Chiaotzu all stood on the snowy embankment overlooking Jingle Village. The snowstorm that had once plagued the area had stopped, leaving nothing but stillness and soft moonlight in its wake. Everything around the village was quiet. Piccolo snarled. "Too quiet..."

Tien turned to him. "What do you mean?"

Piccolo pointed to his ears. "I have very sharp hearing. And that village down there, despite being lit up and having smoke curling from every chimney, is way too quiet. As in... there's not a single bit of human noise anywhere in that area..."

Chiaotzu flinched. "Wh-What...?"

A bead of sweat rolled down Tien's face. "So, what does that mean...?"

Piccolo stepped forward. "It means we need to watch our asses. Gero could be somewhere in there..."

Tien and Chiaotzu both nodded, Chiaotzu swallowing a lump in his throat, and followed Piccolo down.

Things were no better for the trio as they entered the village. Doors were left hanging open, meals sat steaming hot on tables within the homes, fireplaces crackled with a homey warmness that seemed straight off of a holiday greeting card... _and the streets of the town were littered with full outfits and various firearms_.

Tien was genuinely shaken. "What the hell happened here? All of these outfits are...shaped as if people were still wearing them..."

Chiaotzu bent down and stuck his finger in what appeared to be a stab wound on the back of a heavy coat. He cringed. "These tears are all warm and damp..."

Piccolo gritted his teeth as he looked around at the silent village. He stared at the unnerving sight on the ground in front of him: a single, three-toed footprint in the snow. He thought of the only being he knew with three-toes and shook his head as he heard Frieza's wicked laughter in the back of his mind. "No...it couldn't be..."

The Namekian clenched his fists. "Even if he were somehow still alive, why would he-"

The sound of a heavy footstep in the snow drew Piccolo's attention to an alleyway to his left. He turned just in time to see a fearful-looking young woman charge out from the shadows at him, brandishing a wood-chopping axe. "MONSTER!"

She swung and Piccolo dodged. The girl, wearing a bright yellow coat and with a head full of bright red hair, screeched in fear and distress and swung the axe again. "Hateful, green goblin! Just leave! You've already taken enough! I won't let you kill _them_ too!"

Dodging again, Piccolo shot a blast of energy from his eyes that blew the wood-chopping axe to pieces. Quickly, Tien and Chiaotzu stepped in to try to restrain and calm down the frantic young woman. Piccolo snarled at her. "Calm down, would you?! Do I look like some kind of-"

Piccolo quickly remembered his outward appearance, and then remembered his evil bastard of a father. He shook his head. "Nevermind. Just...look! I'm not any sort of threat to you! Okay? If I were, I would have simply killed you instead of just breaking that axe!"

The girl was frantic. "N-No! No! You horrid, green beast! I don't trust you! Not after what...what you've..."

She glanced to the ground and stared at a coat on the ground at her feet. " _P-Papa..._ "

Tien looked around at just how many sets of clothes were littered on the ground. He shook his head. "Th-This is crazy! What's going on around here..."

But then, from the ally that the girl had burst from, a weak, but familiar voice called out. " _S-Suno...it's okay. They aren't monsters..._ "

Piccolo, Tien, and Chiaotzu all instantly recognized the voice. Rushing into the alleyway, the three of them found a truly horrific sight. Laying on the ground in a broken, dismantled heap was Android 8. And laying in the snow next to him was Yamcha. The desert bandit weakly chuckled, his bruised and beaten form barely able to budge. "H-Hey guys..."

Tien, Piccolo, and Chiaotzu all stared in shock. None of them could muster a word. As Yamcha laid there, all three of them turned their attention to his right leg...or lack thereof. Yamcha's pant leg was still there, but his shoe was gone...as well as the majority of the leg nearly up to the hip.

Yamcha weakly turned his attention to Suno, who had made her way back into the alleyway. "Don't worry Suno...these guys are Goku's friends just like I am. They'll...they'll take care of you..."

And then, the desert bandit passed out. The three warriors stood there, with Suno silently sobbing in the background. None of them managed to utter a single word, but they all shared the exact same thought: _What the hell was going on?!_

 _At Kame House..._

Master Roshi was kneeled next to his window, the sunlight sparkling off of the ocean reflecting off of his sunglasses. The old man sipped from his cup of tea and sighed. All was peaceful at Kame House. And then, a surprise met Roshi's eyes. He watched as a form that had never been on his little island before landed in the sand in front of him. "Well well...wasn't expecting to see you here..."

Standing on the edge of the island, water lapping against his heels, Bardock glared at the Turtle Hermit. "I'm not here to shoot the shit, old man. Kakarot told me that, beneath all of that lust and perversion, there's a martial arts master that knows a ton of useful techniques..."

Roshi sipped his tea. "Maybe there is..."

Bardock sneered. "Don't be coy. You should know what's been going on if you have any sort of fighter's senses."

Roshi nodded. "Maybe I do..."

The two of them glared at one another. Finally, Roshi spoke. "You're such a serious, hardline person. I don't know if you could handle the Turtle-style. You look like you can move well and work well, and you definitely eat well...but you don't seem to be the type who plays well, learns well, or rests well..."

Bardock clenched his teeth. "I don't have time for this old man. Can you teach me a certain move or not?! I only need the one!"

Roshi sighed and stood, stretching his back. "Well, I suppose I could teach you one... _maybe even two moves_. But, if you wish to learn from me, you're doing it the proper way. The same way your son, Krillin, and Yamcha did..."

The old man disappeared deeper into his house for a moment, but then a pair of shoes, an orange gi, orange pants, and a pair of wristbands came flying out. And a heavy Turtle Shell followed it. Bardock stared down at the clothing at his feet. "No. Hell no. People already get me confused for my kid; I don't need to start dressing like him!"

Roshi chuckled, stepping out of the house with his staff in one hand and a tobacco pipe in the other. "You're a member of the Turtle School now, Bardock. You need to dress the part~"

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	68. Chapter 68: Monsters

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Bit of a short one this time around, but that's just because this is a "set-up" chapter. A lot of the rest of this arc is being established right here, so enjoy reading that everyone! Next chapter is going to be super dark, so I hope you all look forward to that~_

 _ **Chapter 68: Monsters**_

 _Within Site Omega..._

Piccolo grimaced as he walked around and took in the sights within Site Omega. What was meant to be a simple game of search and destroy had rapidly evolved into something far more complicated. Piccolo stopped short, in front of a busted tube surrounded by a puddle of liquid, and found his target's final resting place.

On the ground, Dr. Gero's head was left lying in the fluid. Separated from the rest of his destroyed body, the doctor's mouth was slightly agape and his eyes were rolled back. The cavity in his head, formerly containing his brain, was empty. The glass dome that once sealed it was half-broken off. A truly pathetic end for truly wretched man. Piccolo scowled. "I guess loyalty is in short supply amongst your creations..."

Piccolo glanced at the busted tube. "But what the hell have you unleashed now, you miserable geezer?"

 _Earlier, in Jingle Village..._

Suno was huddled down in the snow, hugging her legs close to her chest. Her eyes were dim with sadness and survivor's guilt as the quiet set in on the now-empty Jingle Village. Yamcha was somehow in even worse shape than the traumatized Suno. Tien and Chiaotzu had taken care of dressing the wound, removing the shriveled husk of a foot and leg that remained and tying the pant leg into a proper tourniquet. His other wound they decided could wait until they got him back to Kame House.

Yamcha chuckled. "S-Sorry guys. Looks like _Yamcha the Screw-Up_ screwed up again..."

Tien shook his head as he encouraged Suno to climb onto his back. "Dude. Shut up."

Android 8's head glanced over at Yamcha, speaking in a garbled, distorted voice. "P-Please do not be hard on yourself..."

He smiled. "You saved Suno and I from...whatever evil that was that attacked us..."

Chiaotzu picked up Eighter's head and carefully cradled it. "Don't worry, robot guy. We know someone who should be able to put you back together."

Android 8 chuckled. "I am grateful. Are you sure you will be to carry all of my parts, little friend...?"

Chiaotzu twitched his index finger and all of Android 8's pieces floated into the air. "I think I can manage."

Android 8 looked downcast. "F-Forgive me for not being able to remember more...my neural circuits..."

Piccolo waved him off. "It's fine. Bulma should be able to fix you. Then you might remember something more."

He turned to Tien. "And you're taking Yamcha to the old man's place, right?"

Tien nodded. "Him and this girl, yes."

Piccolo turned away. "Good."

Chiaotzu called after the Namekian. "What are you going to do Piccolo?"

Piccolo called back to him. "What else? I have another monster to hunt."

 _Outside of Site Omega..._

Piccolo snarled as he flew out of Dr. Gero's Site Omega. As he hovered in the air above the ruins of Muscle Tower, a frigid wind blew. The Namekian had a sunken look on his face. "When it rains, it pours..."

He gripped his fists. " _But I am getting sick of all of these Androids._ "

 _On a remote island in the middle of the sea..._

Baby Gamera landed with a tired growl, retreating into his shell as Master Roshi shakily got off. Bardock, who had been following close behind, landed with a bemused look on his face as Roshi vomited into the nearby bushes. "You know... _I could have carried you_..."

Roshi stood up, wiping his mouth. "Nah... it's fine. I needed Baby Gamera to bring me here so I could have a ride back anyway. You're going to be here for a little while."

Bardock rolled his eyes. "Sure. Just like it was going to _'take me a while'_ to learn that other, basic-ass attack."

He looked around. "Where the hell is _here_ anyway?"

Roshi chuckled. "So much like Goku...and yet the two of you couldn't be more different..."

The old man walked over to a massive rocked structure sticking out of the ground. "You learn things in a flash, but you have such a hard-boiled personality..."

Bardock grumbled. "Is this going to teach me what I came to learn or not?"

Roshi turned and shook his staff at Bardock. "You need to learn to control that temper! It will never lead you to anything good in life!"

The hermit sighed. "But, yes. The technique you wanted to learn was invented here, long ago, by an even greater martial artist than myself... but I warn you, Bardock, you must learn to control the restlessness in your soul, or learning this technique might destroy you..."

Bardock sneered. "Asking a lot, ain't ya?"

Roshi wreathed his hand in ki and pressed it against the rock. The stone structure crumbled into dust and revealed a tunnel leading deep down into the ground. Bardock peered in. "Long way down, eh?"

Roshi nodded. "Yes. This is but one of many paths that lead to the same location. A place near the center of the Earth, where great martial artists would banish the most hellish of demons in the past centuries. This tunnel leads to the Divine Crossing."

Bardock stared into the inky blackness. He moved his hand into the tunnel and the crystals on the wall around it lit up. Bardock flinched. Roshi nodded. "Those crystals light up in the presence of radiant ki. The stronger your spirit, the less deadly your journey."

He tapped his staff against the ground. "But the journey is only the beginning. Your spirit must resonate with the energy within the cave and to do that you must be at peace. As I said, for you...this might take a while..."

Bardock snorted. "Hmph. Tell ya what, old man. I'll see you in a day..."

And then, without another word, Bardock marched into the tunnel. Eventually, he disappeared from sight altogether. Roshi sighed and, using his ki, reformed the rock that sealed the tunnel entrance. The hermit sat down and lit his pipe. "I certainly hope so, Bardock...my intuition tells me we haven't even seen the worst of this storm yet..."

 _On the highway in the Northeastern Mountains..._

The engine of the Androids' stolen van roared like a mighty beast as they sped down a stretch of highway in the northeastern mountains. Android 17 casually whistled along to the song playing on the radio as he twisted the steering wheel back and forth. Android 18 chuckled in the passenger seat, laying back and half-asleep. The two youthful Androids seemed to be having a nice time as their ride was being chased by a small army of police cars.

In the back, Android 16 sat in a silent, meditative state. The big guy had been doing his best of zone out and not pay any mind to the rampant destruction his peers were delighting in causing.

Android 18 stretched. "Was in really necessary to ram the van through that police blockade? They were only trying to direct police around that hole in the middle of the road."

Android 17 shrugged. "About as necessary as you napping over there."

He smirked. "And besides, I wanted to see if I could jump the van over that hole. _Which I did and neither of you applauded me for!_ "

18 rolled her eyes. "You're such a child."

17 rolled down the window, reaching out and grabbing his sideview mirror to adjust it. "I wonder how many-"

A bullet whizzed through the air and crashed into the mirror, breaking it off of the side of the van. 17 frowned. "They're shooting at us. Why would they shoot at us?"

18 sat up. "We've been leading them on a high-speed chase for 30 minutes now."

17 chuckled. "Still, that's so rude..."

But then, a mischievous smirk spread across 17's face. "But I mean...if they're gonna start shooting..."

17 held up his hand and formed a Power Blitz. 18 glanced over at him. "Isn't that a bit excessive?"

Her counterpart chuckled. "Hey, it probably won't kill 'em. And it'll create one hell of a big boom!"

18 shrugged. "Whatever."

17 went to throw his attack. But, before he could, Android 16's eyes opened. "Please stop. I will handle this."

The raven-haired Android scowled. "Excuse me?! You wanna butt in now?!"

18 gave him a shove. "Give it a rest, 17! You've been having all of the fun causing chaos for such a long time now! Let 16 have his turn!"

Wordlessly, 16 turned and moved towards the back doors of the van. He flung the doors open and faced down the forty police cars in hot pursuit of their vehicle. 16 sighed and stuck his foot out, lifting his knee to his face. And then, with very little effort, he stomped that foot into the sheer rock wall next to the highway. The force of 16's kick made the entire rock structure crack and caused a massive avalanche, instantly separating the Androids from their pursuers.

On the other side, the police crashed their cars into the sudden blockade, wrecking their vehicles but sparing their lives from being blasted away.

16 pulled himself back into the van to the sound of Android 18's amused chuckling. "Well damn. Bet they weren't expecting that. Nice one, 16~"

Android 16 leaned against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest, closing his eyes. 18 smirked. "And he doesn't even brag about it. So cool. Right, 17~?"

Android 17 chuckled. "Yeah..."

But, with a harsh grip he destroyed his Power Blitz. " _Cool._ "

 _In the far northern skies..._

Piccolo grimaced as he came upon yet another forest village beset by the same tragedy. Flying southwest and following a trail of carnage the entire way, it should not have surprised the Namekian to see yet another village with all the lights on, but only empty clothes populating it. But, it still made Piccolo feel sick to his stomach. "What the hell could possibly be doing this...?"

He stared down at a set of child-sized pajamas, a lone stuffed animal next to them. "Why...?"

A lone dog collar set empty in the snow. "So many innocents just gone..."

And yet, other than a single, three-toed footprint, not a single track to or from the village could be seen. "And why is it being so subversive?! Why mass-murder like this in such a stealthy way?! And what is it doing with the bodies?!"

Piccolo stopped and gripped his fists in a rage, a harsh wind blowing his cape to the side. "This is a nightmare. That damned Dr. Gero..."

As the Namekian prepared to continue his journey, following a trail of sad non-corpses, he was suddenly contacted by a familiar voice speaking in his mind. "Piccolo..."

Piccolo paused, but then he growled. "What?! What could you possibly want at a time like this Kami?!"

Kami spoke deliberately. "We...need to speak, face-to-face."

Piccolo shook his head. "Piss off! I'm busy!"

Kami spoke again, more firmly. "We need to speak face-to-face, in regards to the very monster you are currently chasing."

Piccolo stopped. "What do you know about this thing...?"

Kami sighed. "I am the Guardian of Earth, Piccolo. I see all and know all."

Piccolo snapped at him. "Don't be sanctimonious."

Kami grumbled. "I need you to come to me at once, Piccolo. As fast as you can."

Piccolo really did not want to have to see Kami. He still held a deep-seated resentment of the old Namekian. But, any lead on this horrifying thing was too valuable to pass up. Piccolo sneered. "I'll be there in a few minutes. But this had better be good, Kami..."

 _At Capsule Corporation..._

Bulma walked into her laboratory with a ton of new things to use and abuse as she saw fit. With 19 and 20's parts under one arm, the various stolen blueprints and lab specimens under the other, and her laptop gripped tightly in her teeth, Bulma looked as happy as a kid in a candy store. Behind her, Yajirobe marched in with a happily cooing Baby Trunks.

Bulma chuckled as she looked around for free space. "Ah fink 'e lahks oo~"

Yajirobe rolled his eyes. "Nah, couldn't be. Kids just goofy as hell. Probably takes after his parents."

Bulma shoved random crap off of a desk and began to set things down carefully. "Ahm 'unna tehl Veheah oo sehd aht~"

Yajirobe flinched in fear. " _P-Please don't..._ "

Bulma took the laptop out of her mouth and glanced across the room at her father. "Hey Dad! Any breakthroughs on that other stuff?"

Dr. Briefs looked up from his own desk, a piece of Android 14's skeleton in his hands. "No breakthroughs, per se, but I have to say...just by these remains alone, Gero is a real, next-level genius. I almost regret not signing him onto Capsule Corp full time. Should've outbid Red Ribbon way back when..."

Bulma shrugged. "I say bullet dodged. The guy was kind of an irredeemable prick from what I saw of him. Besides, I stole all of his stuff from his lab, so we have his best work right here to look over and improve on~"

Dr. Briefs walked over. "Oh really?"

Bulma nodded with a smirk. "Mhm~"

The scientist laid out the three tightly bound blueprints with a satisfied smirk. "Boom! Boom! And boom! The blueprints for Android 16, Android 17, and Android 18, the three most dangerous creations that Dr. Gero produced~"

Dr. Briefs stroked his chin. "Me-oh-my...certain a lot to look at here."

Bulma nodded. "Yep. But, it shouldn't take us too long to, say, produce a controller that would be able to render these three offline, would it?"

Dr. Briefs shook his head. "No. Not at all."

Bulma chuckled. "Well then, let's-"

Yajirobe shouted. "'Scuse me!"

Bulma turned and glared at him. " _What?!_ "

Yajirobe sneered, Baby Trunks waving his arms around in the ronin's face. "You promised me a luxury car! Where's it at, Bulma?!"

Bulma sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll get you your car. You can have my old Cap-Sport. Not enough room for Trunks' baby seat in it anyway..."

Yajirobe sneered. "You promised me a luxury car!"

Bulma walked across the room to her desk. "My father _owns_ Capsule Corp! Do you think I'd drive a piece of junk?! Overgrown, greedy man-baby..."

As Bulma dug through her drawer to find Yajirobe's reward, her cell phone began to ring. She raggedly sighed. "It just never, friggin' ends..."

She looked on the phone and saw an unregistered number. She answered, very annoyed. "Okay. I dunno who you are, or how you got my private number, but I-"

The guy on the other end cut her off. "Whoa lady! Calm down! I'm not some phone stalker or anything like that, I just found a vehicle with this number on it and was calling to check if it was abandoned before I scrapped it!"

Bulma was skeptical. "You found a vehicle with my personal cell phone number on it?"

He spoke back. "It was on a card in a backpack in the storage compartment. I could send you a picture, I just wanted to be a good citizen and report it back to the rightful owner...and, seeing as that owner is Capsule Corp, maybe rake in a fat reward too..."

Bulma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, reward, sure. Send me a pic first."

Bulma's phone buzzed against the side of her head and she looked down at the picture that showed up on the screen. And what she saw was certainly a surprise. Bulma cocked her head in confusion as she scanned over the picture. "What... _the hell_...?"

 _On the air shuttle carrying the sick Goku..._

Chi-Chi and Launch both sat around the Future Trio, their attention fully captured by the three of them, Future Trunks and Future Daikon and Future Ranch. Chi-Chi smiled at the three of them. "You're all so polite and well-behaved. It's nice to see that the apocalypse didn't kill proper child-rearing techniques~"

Future Trunks looked to Future Daikon and Future Ranch, both of them glowing bright red, and then spoke for all three of them. "Well, I guess it's just a lot to do with how you all raised us. My mother, Miss Launch, and you, Miss Chi-Chi."

Chi-Chi blushed, taking her hands off of her distended stomach, and holding her cheeks. "Oh~ You're gonna make me blush~"

Launch sighed, cradling the sleeping Baby Ranch. "It must have been so hard...I hope we were good parents to you..."

Future Ranch silently gripped her boyfriend's hand. Future Trunks sighed. "It was... _harder than anyone could possibly imagine..._ "

A dreadful silence filled the ship. But then, a voice bluntly spoke up. "Then tell us."

All three members of the Future Trio flinched, staring across the room as Gine stared back at them. The Saiyan woman's eyes were large and full of fire. None of the three, confused teenagers seemed to know how to respond to this new challenge. Krillin, however, spoke up. "H-Hey Gine...don't you think that might be asking a bit much...?"

Gohan swallowed a lump in his throat. "Y-Yeah Grandma...I mean, they've already had to live through all of this once..."

Gine was undeterred. "Look. I'm not trying to force you all to live through bad memories all over again. But you have to look at this from my point of view: you guys told us two Androids, now we're up to six."

The three of them flinched at that statistic. Gine sighed. "And I'm not blaming any of you for that. But...perhaps if you told us the full story, we might be able to better anticipate any other unnecessary surprises going forward..."

Gine turned her head slightly. "You agree, right Raditz?"

Raditz looked uncomfortable. He clasped his hands in front and frowned. "I..."

He glanced over at Future Ranch and Future Daikon, seeing pain in their eyes. He sighed. "I would never force my kids into anything they didn't feel comfortable with... _but the full story would certainly be helpful..._ "

The Future Trio stayed silent. Future Trunks' icy-blue eyes hit the floor. Future Ranch's dark-blue eyes landed on Future Trunks. And Future Daikon simply shut his deep, black eyes as if he were in pain. Gine spoke again, more gently. "Listen, you three..."

She lowered her head. "Believe you me, if there is anybody who knows how much dread comes with dredging up their past...you're looking at her..."

The three of them glanced at Gine. She continued. "For the longest time, thinking about my formative years made me physically ill. And, even after everything with Garlic Junior, there are still subjects that I don't dare mention outside of my closest confidants...namely Bardock and Chi-Chi..."

Chi-Chi glanced away, silently mumbling to herself. " _...Turles, huh..._ "

Gine sighed. "But, perhaps sharing your story with us, in addition to giving us information we might be able to use...maybe getting that off of your chests would help you to feel a bit better...or at least make you more comfortable around us..."

Future Daikon sighed. "It's...it's a dark, bloody story..."

Gine responded. "Grandson, I was a soldier in King Vegeta's army. I've seen _oceans_ of blood..."

Raditz sighed. "Same."

The Saiyan woman pressed her hand to her heart, offering a gentle smile. "You three are among friends. Family. We care about you and we're here to support you. So, please...tell us what happened..."

Future Trunks, Future Ranch, and Future Daikon all glanced at one another. Future Daikon lurched over, burying his head in his knees. Future Trunks looked to his girlfriend and she nodded. "I guess I can start. You take care of D-Daikon, lovee."

Future Trunks nodded and placed a caring hand on his partner's back. Future Ranch took a deep breath. Around her, everyone's attention was fully wrapped up. And then, Future Ranch spoke. "It all started a few months after the group vacation to Miss Bulma's island resort...it was a few months after Uncle Goku died to the Heart Virus..."

She gripped her hands together tight. "We still, to this day, don't know how it happened..."

Future Ranch sadly glanced up at Gohan. "But, from what I've been told, it all started the day when Piccolo suddenly died."

 _Months after Goku's death, in the Past of the Future..._

Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan hiked across the sandy plains of the Diablo Desert in search of an old past-time: hunting the Dragon Balls! The specific purpose of this hunt was nothing in particular. There were no wishes that needed to be made. This hunt was more to benefit a certain member of this travel party.

Gohan followed behind, bringing up the rear of the group with a sullen look on his face. Ever since the heart virus had taken Goku away, for the final time, the boy had been near inconsolable. And Bulma and Krillin, Goku's two best friends, knew that they couldn't just leave the poor boy to suffer like that.

Bulma adjusted her bright, yellow vest and the baby carrier attached, briefly stirring Baby Trunks from his nap. In her hand, the Dragon Radar beeped and showed that all seven balls were still gathered in the same spot. Krillin called up to her. "Hey Bulma, what do you think is going on?! Who could be gathering the Dragon Balls?"

Bulma shrugged. "Well, it's certainly not any of our people. I have our only way to find the Dragon Balls and I doubt that Kami is using them for anything..."

She scratched her chin. "If I had to guess though, based on the area they're gathered in..."

Suddenly, the sky turned black. A telltale sign of Dragon Ball usage. Krillin flinched. "Oh no! Someone summoned Shenron!"

Bulma called back, suddenly in a rush. "Well hurry up then! Let's get the lead out, you three! _Come on!_ "

The three of them ran as fast as they could, eventually cresting a ridge and seeing the eternal dragon in all of his majesty. Shenron growled and his eyes glowed red. " _ **Your wish has been granted...**_ "

Krillin yelped. " _O-Oh no!_ "

Bulma slid down the ridge to the ground below. She sprinted up to Shenron and gasped at what she saw. Krillin and Gohan both caught up and stared in surprise as well. At Bulma's feet, three babies cried and screamed and whined. One of them was bright blue, one of them was a girl, and one of them appeared to be a dog. Krillin shook his head. "I...I uh..."

Gohan spoke up for the first time the entire trip. "B-Babies?"

Bulma, however, laughed out loud at the sight. " _Oh my gosh! Look at the Pilaf Gang!_ "

Gohan flinched. "Th-This is the Pilaf Gang that Dad told me stories about?!"

Krillin flinched as well. "Oh crap! I remember those guys now!"

Bulma was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down her cheek. " _O-Oh man! Look at you, dorks!_ "

On the ground, Baby Pilaf raged at Bulma. But the scientist got nose-to-nose with him. "I'm sorry, dear. I can't understand you. Did you poop your diaper?"

Baby Pilaf snarled, but then he let loose a massive fart and fell quiet. Bulma laughed even harder, Baby Trunks laughing as well. Soon enough, unable to help themselves, Gohan and Krillin both started to laugh as well. Krillin wheezed. "Oh man...I can't believe this...so much for hunting the Dragon Balls..."

Gohan, smiling for the first time in months, shook his head. "Man...Shenron must be so confused sometimes. Last time he was woken up, you guys wished me back to life. But now he got to turn people into babies..."

Gohan wiped humorous tears from his eyes. Krillin chuckled and shook his head. "Hey Shenron! Before you go, what's the most ridi-"

Krillin gasped, his eyes widening. Gohan looked up at well and his face turned blue. "N-No..."

Bulma could only stare in horror and disbelief. High above the three of them, Shenron's eyes were hollow and black. Without a word, the massive dragon destabilized. It fell forward towards the three of them, but didn't crash like one might think it would. Instead, Shenron hit the ground and burst into green smoke. The smoke billowed out around Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma, eventually disappearing into the wind.

And then, Gohan fell to his hands and his knees and tears began to flow from his eyes. " _N-No... not you too, M-Mr. Piccolo..._ "

 _Meanwhile, across the planet..._

Strewn across the battle-scarred ground were various mechanical parts. First, ripped to shreds and with only his chubby face recognizable was Android 19. Next, also little more than a severed head, was the purple-toned face of Android 15. His eyes sockets were empty, save for a few wires hanging out.

A few feet farther up the path was Android 14. His legs were still twitching beneath the shadow of his torso, hanging impaled on a tree branch high above. Smoke billowed from the dead Android's mouth.

Finally, Android 13 laid dead on a rock. There was a massive hole ripped through the Android's torso, his robotic entrails hanging limply over his stomach, all the way down to his knees.

As all of those Androids laid dead, two youthful voice spoke at the very top of the path, next to a massive ravine. The male voice sighed. "Man, I can't believe that they _all_ died. I was at least expecting 13 to last a bit longer..."

The female voice giggled. "I know. I mean, I was expecting 19 to die. _19 sucks_. But the others seemed like they'd at least be a _bit_ tougher."

At the top of the path, Android 17 brushed his hair out of his face. "Oh well. The only reason they died is because they were weak. So, screw 'em. It's not like any of them mattered in the long run anyway..."

17 smirked. "If only they were as perfect and powerful as me~"

Android 18 scoffed. "Don't get a big head. Our new friend only went down so quickly because he used so much energy to kill the other four. He'd have probably kicked your shit if he was at full power."

17 sighed. "Wouldn't have had to kick _his_ shit if he hadn't be so violent. I mean...we only asked him a simple question. If he'd have told us..."

The raven-haired Android glared down at Piccolo's corpse, hanging limply by his shirt in the Android's grip. "...maybe he'd still be alive."

Android 18 shrugged. "Eh. Too bad."

Android 17 let Piccolo go, watching as the Namekian's corpse fell into the ravine below, disappearing out of view. "Yeah. _Guess we'll just have to find Goku's family by ourselves~_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	69. Chapter 69: Past

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Nice!_

 _ **Chapter 69: Past**_

 _On the airship..._

Future Ranch gave a sullen sigh. "We...we never really got a full understanding of what really happened. It... it's like..."

She palmed her face. "It's like a sudden rainy season just overtook us. One day, clouds started to gather...and then it started to sprinkle...and then..."

Everyone was fully enraptured by the girl from the future. Her voice was shaky, but she spoke clearly. "But then..."

Future Ranch squeezed her brow. "No one knew what caused the loss of Piccolo. And his spirit had been allowed to move onto a higher plane than King Kai's...for even greater training with Goku..."

She clasped her hands. "Everything was tense and everyone was on edge. They went to speak with Mr. Popo, who contacted King Kai, and tried to locate Planet Namek. But, the Namekians had managed to hide themselves too well. King Kai said he would focus on finding them and all we had to do was focus on constructing a ship..."

A brief pause. " _...but then it started to pour._ "

 _In the past of the future, on Amenbo Island..._

Cars honked and sped around on the busy streets of Amenbo Island. Papaya Town was its usual hectic self as the summer season quickly made itself present. People were gathered for fun and fancy. For vacationing with family and friends. It was a busy, fun day for everyone on Amenbo.

Except for the four martial artists who had all agreed to gather there.

Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Yamcha, and Krillin had barely managed to get past the loss of Goku. But now the loss of Piccolo had shaken the four of them to their cores. Not only did they lose a valuable friend and powerful warrior, but they had also lost the crutch that the Z-Fighters had relied on for so long. The Dragon Balls had vanished from existence. And, with Piccolo's killers still lurking out there, none of them felt even slightly safe.

So now, with everyone else focusing on finding Planet Namek, the four human martial artists decided that the best contribution they could make to the situation at hand was to get stronger. They needed to get stronger, and fast. To pick up the slack that Goku had left in his passing, to support people their allies when new dangers approached, maybe even to deal with those dangers themselves.

With the supplies they had gathered packed, the four of them prepared to head off to the deserted islands for a long overdue group training session. As the four of them walked to the edge of town, where no one would see them take off, Tien growled under his breath. "Those bastards that killed Piccolo. We still haven't located them..."

Yamcha sighed. "Yeah. It would've been nice for Piccolo to tell us what went down before he scampered off to train with Goku."

Krillin shook his head. "He's probably just eager to get his hands on whoever did that to him. He just wants to get strong enough to deal with them himself..."

Chiaotzu chuckled. "Even with that green-skin, he really is just like the Saiyans. Just with antennae instead of a monkey tail~"

Everyone else chuckled too, except for Tien. The three-eyed warrior felt uneasy. Insecure. It was almost as if his combat sense, not his ki sense, was alerting him to a danger nearby. But he couldn't quite place his finger on it.

As the four of them walked, however, the four Earthlings came across the source of Tien's worry. Yamcha, Chiaotzu, and Krillin were too busy chatting to hear it, but Tien's focused mindset allowed him to filter out an utterance that set him off immediately. "Jeez...can you believe how easy it was to crush that green dipshit?"

Tien stopped in his tracks, turning and staring over to a nearby cafe. Seated at the cafe, eating ice cream, were a black-haired boy and a blonde-haired girl. The blonde sighed and rolled her eyes. "He was softened up and you know it. Big guy might have kicked your ass if he wasn't tired when you stepped in."

Breaking from the other three, Tien marched over to the unaware youths. Once he got closer, he observed that the cafe was abandoned and the ice cream vendor laid injured and unconscious behind his counter. Tien was enraged. Roughly reaching out, before any of his friends could stop him, Tien grabbed the young boy by his bright orange scarf and hastily ripped him from his seat. " _What did you just say?!_ "

Yamcha stepped up. "Whoa Tien! What are you doing, man?!"

Chiaotzu stepped up and tried to calm Tien. Krillin hastily apologized to the two mysterious youths. "We're so sorry... our friend is a bit uptight..."

The monk nervously chuckled. But, as he chuckled, the boy in Tien's grasp spoke smoothly and calmly. "You're Piccolo's pals, eh?"

The four of them flinched. The boy sighed. "You know, if your green buddy weren't such an unreasonable guy, he might still be alive. It's such a shame..."

But then, the boy's glare became ice. "As for you...hands off the merchandise, Tri-Clops!"

And then, with a lightning-quick, heavy kick, Tien was sent crashing back. All the way across the street, through a passing car, and into the side of an office duplex. Chiaotzu screamed in terror, hovering across the street to check on Tien. Yamcha and Krillin both stood in disbelief as the raven-haired guy straightened his shirt and the blonde girl stood up. The girl sighed. "I hate long-winded conversation, so let's get to the introductions. We are Android 17 and Android 18."

Yamcha was shaking. "A-Androids?!"

Krillin glared at the two, scanning over them until his eyes locked onto something unique. Emblazoned on the breast of Android 17's shirt was a symbol that Krillin recognized from long-ago. "That's...the symbol of the Red Ribbon Army!"

Yamcha gasped. "Those guys that Goku beat back when he was a kid?! What?!"

17 cocked his head and then looked down at his shirt. "Oh...yeah. That's right. I forgot that that gaudy little ribbon was on our clothes, 18..."

18 shrugged. "Yeah. We're wearing that symbol, but that doesn't mean we care about the Red Ribbon Army or anything. That defunct pack of idiots has been dead for years and we're no second coming..."

Tien and Chiaotzu both quickly rejoined their friends. And with their return, all four of them struck fighting stances. 17 chuckled. "Yeah, Piccolo did that too. But, he at least heard us out first..."

Tien sneered, blood streaming down from a gash on his head. "Hear you out about what?"

18 cocked her head. "I do hate that we have to give this spiel to everyone that 17 decides he wants to interact with. But..."

She took a deep breath. "Dr. Gero was this old asshole that used to work for the Red Ribbon Army. He hates Goku, don't know why. He made us to go and hunt down Goku and kill him. But, before he could unleash us to go and destroy the guy, Goku passes away."

17 smirked. "So, he says our purpose has been fulfilled. And he opens up those cramped coffins he's kept us locked in for so long to go back to sleep. And, well...we didn't like that very much..."

18 nodded. "So, we rallied our fellow Androids and murdered Gero right then and there. His grand plan or whatever won't ever be fulfilled, but who cares about him anyway...?"

17 continued. "Then, with our new friends...we came up with a new purpose. Goku was dead, no bringing him back. But his super strong family was still out there somewhere..."

The four humans flinched, gasping in shock. 18 smiled. "We all decided that we were made for a fight, so we would go and find a fight. We searched around using 19's sensors and found the closest source of power wandering around in the woods. But...once we found that source-"

17 cut in. "Piccolo."

18 looked annoyed, but continued. "-we asked him where we might find Goku's family. He got pissy. He killed the rest of our Android pals. And then-"

17 shouted. " _BOOM!_ Hand through the chest!"

18 glared at him. "You're so annoying. You know that?"

Tien, Krillin, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu all looked horrified. They were at a loss for words to say to the Android duo standing in front of them. Once 17 and 18 got done with their trivial bickering, they both calmed down and turned back to their audience. 17 chuckled. "So, million zeni question...will you four tell us where we can find Goku's family?"

As shocked as the four of them were, the human martial artists were all steadfast in their furious response. " _ **HELL NO!**_ "

18 sighed and shook her head. 17 chuckled. " _Everyone that Goku knows is so unreasonable..._ "

And with that, 17 and 18 immediately charged. The four humans charged right back and a massive clash took place in the streets of Amenbo. Tien and Chiaotzu teamed up to face down the ravishing Android 18 while Yamcha and Krillin took charge in dealing with Android 17!

Chiaotzu hovered in the background, firing ki blasts whenever he saw an opening. Not that that did any good. The warrior was giving it his best effort, but his blasts barely registered with Android 18. She was focused on the fight in front of her. Enraged at meeting Piccolo's killers, Tien had begun the fight by unleashing a Kaioken Times 10. His movements were accelerated and this blows stronger than he was normally capable of. Not that that bother 18 much either.

Tien performed a series of Crane-style strikes that struck against 18's awaiting forearms. She chuckled in amusement and then countered with a single, harsh punch. The sheer force of the strike nearly broke Tien's neck, sending him crashing back into Chiaotzu and smashing them both to the ground. 18 stepped forward and loomed over them. "Having fun yet, boys?"

The three-eyed warrior responded with a furious roar, launching from the ground and striking 18 across the jaw with a Times 15 Kaioken strike. As she stumbled back, he grabbed her by the wrist and smashed his elbow into her chest. And then, he reared back and smashed that same elbow into Android 18's gut. Finally, Tien twisted around and threw 18 over his shoulder before finishing the striking series with a heavy stomp to the chest.

Tien leapt into the air and Chiaotzu followed. And then the two warriors both shouted. "DODON RAY!"

The golden beams of energy shot from their fingers and smashed into 18 down on the ground. The continued until a massive cloud of dust rose from the ground. Tien was breathing hard, listening to the sounds of fighting nearby and citizens screaming in the distance. "These two have no energy signatures...so...how-"

18 shot from the dust like a bullet and caught Tien across the face with a wicked haymaker. Chiaotzu gasped in horror as blood and a tooth shot from Tien's mouth and he crashed to the ground below. In his distraction, Chiaotzu did not see the Android's kick coming and ate a harsh strike to the ribs for his trouble. He shot to the ground like a missile, crashing against the street hard enough to crack it before tumbling a few feet and coming to a rest. 18 fixed her hair and chuckled. "Are you two going to start trying to hurt me anytime soon?"

A bit down the street, on the opposite end, Yamcha and Krillin worked in perfect sync with one another as they tried to fight with Android 17. But, much like his counterpart was doing with Tien and Chiaotzu, it was clear that the Android was merely playing with his food. 17 jumped over and under and around the strikes that the two Turtle School boys were throwing at him, dodging each desperate attack with grace a precision. He backflipped away from an attempted kick by Krillin and smirked. "Come on, my dudes! Pick up the speed already!"

Yamcha clenched his teeth. "I'll show you speed! KAIOKEN!"

17 flinched. "Kaio-wha?"

And then, in a sudden burst, Yamcha rocketed forward and slammed his knee into 17's gut. The Android lurched forward and let loose a small cough. Yamcha looked furious, but 17 quickly recovered and chuckled. "Nice one! But maybe you should try something more than a love-tap~"

17 chuckled and reached up, grabbing Yamcha by his hair and smashing the former bandit's face against his knee over and over and over again. Krillin shouted out. "Yamcha!"

And then, he tackled 17 off of his friend and fired a round of Scatter Bullets at the raven-haired Android. 17 smirked and held his arms out wide, summoning an Energy Barrier that easily deflected Krillin's desperate attacks across the city. Each blast hit a building and exploded. From the sky, a massive cloud of black smoke erupted as buildings exploded and went up in flames all across the island.

The fighting continued on for a while after that, a hefty beating being dealt to the Z-Fighters as it quickly became apparent that Android 17 and Android 18 were leagues above them in strength, speed, and stamina. The four warriors, backing away from their indestructible foes, backed into one another and jumped in shock. They were a grizzly sight, the four of them. Each was battered, beaten, bleeding, and bruised. And they were all out of breath and low on energy.

And it was also clear that their skill, technique, and numbers meant nothing here.

17 and 18 both stepped up from opposite ends of the street, quaint smiles on their faces. They were undamaged, from their skin down to their outfits. 17 chuckled. "Give up yet? Wanna maybe tell us where the real fighters are, boys?"

18 scoffed. "We don't have all day, you know."

A vein bulged from Tien's head and he roared. "KAIOKEN TIMES 20!"

He and Chiaotzu both charged, Chiaotzu looking terrified. The three-eyed warrior slammed into Android 17 and crashed the both of them through a building. As they fought with 17, Yamcha and Krillin were left behind to face down 18.

18 beckoned with her finger. "Come along~"

Yamcha sneered. "Damn you!"

He charged forward to fight with 18, but Krillin froze. Much like Chiaotzu, the monk was terrified of these new and powerful foes. He couldn't make his feet move. And, as such, he was forced to watch as the Androids beat the hell out of Tien, Chiaotzu, and Yamcha. Chiaotzu went down in one strike, Yamcha went down after Android 18 stomped his knee joint, and Tien fell about 17 busted him in the gut. And then, with them all down, 17 and 18 both rushed and kicked Krillin hard, sending the warrior crashing into the side of an upside-down semi-truck. 17 and 18 were both now bored, with 17 giving a sarcastic yawn. "Well, that was lame."

18 shrugged. "So what do we do now?"

17 smirked. "I suppose, now that we've taken the fight out of them, we could press these four for some info. Maybe find a real-"

A bullet ricocheted off of 17's cheek. He and 18 both glared towards the source of the bullet, a rather terrified looking police officer. "O-On your knees!"

Several more police filed out onto the street, all of them pointing their guns at 17 and 18. The terrified cop spoke again. "B-By my authority as a P-Papaya Town police officer...y-you two are under arrest!"

The two Androids looked at one another, sharing a hearty laugh, and then turned back towards the police. 17 snorted and spat. " _Are we now?_ "

Tien, Yamcha, Krillin, and Chiaotzu all woke up to the sounds of yelping pain in the distance. As the four of them struggled up, their vision cleared enough to see the horrid display nearby. 17 and 18 were beating the police of Amenbo Island senseless. Not pulling their punches and just laying into the hapless humans, launching them across the road and through the air like toys.

17 held a cop by the throat and the officer begged. "P-Please...I have a family...a wife... _and kids._.."

This response took the smile from the Android's face. He scowled. "Then why the hell aren't you with them?! This island is under siege by killer Androids and you're here rather than helping them?! This is why I hate people, man! Everyone is all about morals over-"

As fast as his broken leg could carry him, Yamcha rushed over and smashed Android 17 in the face with his Wolf Fang Fist. 18 gasped at Yamcha's sudden intrusion, only to be tackled from behind by Tien. She scowled and effortlessly disabled Tien, wrenching his arm behind his back and heaving him through the air into the window of a nearby building.

17 grabbed Yamcha harshly by the face, squeezing tight and charging a blast in his palm. "You are so lame! What's with you humans and attacking people while they're unawa-"

Krillin leapt into view, hands splayed in front of his face. He shouted out. " _SOLAR FLARE!_ "

17 flinched in pain, covering his face. "Agh! What the hell?!"

Krillin quickly attack, using all of his strength to kick 17 away into a nearby warehouse cluster. Yamcha fell to the ground, battered. His face was scorched by 17's energy. 18 snapped. "How dare you?!"

She lunged towards Krillin, but then a bullet ricocheted off of her cheek. She glared over and saw an elderly officer shakily aiming his pistol. He was wheezing from the beating the Androids had given him. 18 was enraged. "Eat this! Power Blitz!"

18 shot the pink energy sphere towards the officer, who screamed in panic. But, before death could claim him, a heroic figure jumped in the way. The blast connected, but the smoke cleared to reveal Krillin standing between 18 and the officer. The monk was badly burnt, but he grunted to the older man. "R-Run! Go! Get away as fast as possible!"

Terrified, the officer didn't think twice. Abandoning his badge and gun, he ran off into the distance, eventually disappearing from sight. 18 was astounded and confused, shouting at Krillin. "Why in the hell would you take so much damage for a guy like that?! That was a really powerful attack and he didn't even stay behind to help you out! Why the hell-"

Krillin turned and glared at her, shouting. "WHY ARE YOU USING ALL OF THIS POWER TO JUST MINDLESSLY RAMPAGE?!"

18 gasped. Krillin could barely stand, but he continued. "Th-These people...Piccolo...even Goku..."

He looked like he was about to keel over. "None of them did anything to you. So... why are you so eager to kill them? Y-You could use the power you have for good...to be good...to be helpful and to assist people who need it..."

Krillin spat a glob of blood to the ground. "...you could be anything you want to be. S-So... why do something so unnecessary as hunt down people that haven't done anything to you? What do you get out of this...?"

18 flinched, a sneer on her face. "That's ridiculous! A hero?! You want me to be a hero?! Don't you know how this world works?! The strong dominate the weak, that's how it is! The only people 17 and I can rely on are each other! That's how it's always been! We-"

Krillin reached out to her. "...could change that. You know?"

18 blushed. "Wha..."

Krillin nodded. "E-Everyone Goku knew was an enemy or a rival at one point. Even Piccolo tried to kill him before. And...and yet...he was able to change. He went from thinking might makes right to being the type who would die...rather than sell-out the people he had grown to care for..."

18 was speechless. Krillin nodded. "Y-You could be better than all this senseless destruction too. So please...please...just...st-"

From ruins of the warehouses, 17 shot like a bullet. His foot collided with Krillin's chest so hard that it caved in. Krillin bounced and rolled across the ground before coming to a stop. He gasped and gurgled, unable to say another word. And then 17 blasted him into charred ash with a mighty Power Blitz.

From their spots on the ground, Tien and Chiaotzu and Yamcha all gasped in horror.

18 snarled, shouting at her raven-haired counterpart. "17! What the hell?! Didn't you see I was talking to him?! Huh?!"

17 rubbed his face. "No. Sorry. I couldn't see much of anything beyond the spots that are still filling my vision. _Cheap-shotting little asshole..._ "

18 was unimpressed. "He was saying something important, 17! You could have let him finish before you attacked him!"

17 sneered. "And what, give these dopes another chance to cheap shot me?! Get real 18! These losers don't have anything valuable to say, they just-"

Two furious screams echoed out. Tien smashed his fist into 17's cheek and Yamcha smashed his foot into the back of 18's head. Both Androids glared at their attacks and then knocked them away with a single strike each. 17 marched towards Tien as the three-eyed warrior stood. "See what I mean?"

18 sighed and marched towards Yamcha. "Yeah... _whatever_."

Tien and Yamcha both stood, both of them with a hateful, mournful glare in their eyes. Tien cried out. " _KAIOKEN TIMES 30!_ "

Yamcha did the same, although with a lot more noticeable strain. " _KAIOKEN TIMES 30!_ "

Tien made a diamond with his hands and Yamcha drew his hand to his sides. And then, the two humans both shouted in unison. " _ **THIS IS FOR KRILLIN!**_ "

" _NEO TRI-BEAM!_ "

" _KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

Both beams totally engulfed the Androids. The sheer power that Tien and Yamcha were both putting out was totally astounding. For just a brief moment, the two humans allowed themselves the luxury of thinking that they had succeeded. But then, the two Androids both emerged from the respective beams with a scratch. They reared back their fists and glared at the gobsmacked duo of Yamcha and Tien. And then, with a sickening crack, it was over.

Chiaotzu had finally managed to push himself off of the ground in time with two heavy thuds. He looked across the battlefield and gasped in horror at what he saw. And then 17 and 18 both stood right over him. The two Androids both looked coldly angry, glaring down at Chiaotzu. 17 held up his hand, covered in Tien's blood, and spoke in a steady tone. "Listen up, runt. I'm pissed. 18 is pissed. And you're the only punching bag around for miles. So... you can either tell us where Goku's family is so that we can go and have a real fight...or we can spend the rest of the day _making_ you."

Tears streamed down Chiaotzu's face as he sniffled and sobbed. "T-Tien..."

Neither of the Androids said a word, glaring without pity. Anger and annoyance radiated off of them both. Chiaotzu bowed his head to the ground. "Tien...I'm sorry. I let you and Yamcha and Krillin die..."

He gripped his fists. "But... _I won't let your deaths be in vain!_ "

And then, to the surprise of Android 17 and Android 18, Chiaotzu's entire body began to glow with a bright, white light. The little warrior screamed in fury and sorrow, and then he exploded in a truly magnificent display. Unlike with Nappa, this explosion spread for quite a way, even blowing a massive building over in the process. Nearly any foe would have been instantly defeated by such a massive attack.

But the Androids were not just any foe.

The smoke cleared and, in the burnt-out crater that was left behind, 17 and 18 stood with only minor damage to their clothes. 17 scoffed. "Even their final, desperate attack was a cheap shot. _What a bunch of losers_."

18 was furious, the lingering thoughts of Krillin's words having totally blanked out of her mind. "And we didn't learn anything about where Goku's family is hiding either!"

17 chuckled. "Hey now! Calm down, 18~ Just because we didn't learn anything doesn't mean the game is over. We still have a whole, wide world to search around in for our next playmates. Goku's family can't hide forever~"

18 sneered. "Fine. We'll continue looking around for now. But, before we do that, let's go find a tailor to force to fix our clothes. Little, pale bastard ruined my whole look!"

17 nodded with a chuckle. And then, their fight done, he and 18 took to the sky and flew into the distance, leaving the burning ruins of the Amenbo Islands in their wake.

 _A month later, at Bardock and Gine's house..._

Gine stood sullen next to her kitchen sink, offhandedly cleaning a glass with her rag. It was a depressing time in her life. Not only did she permanently lose her son, not only did the lose Piccolo and the Dragon Balls, but now they had lost Krillin and Yamcha and Tien and Chiaotzu as well.

And all Gine could do, at this moment, was stand around, damn fate, and wonder just where the hell these monsters that were killing her friends were hiding.

Gine wiped her rag across the glass. "They kill Piccolo, and then gone without a trace..."

She squeezed the glass. "They kill all four of the boys, and then gone without a trace..."

Gine clenched her fist hard enough to shatter the glass. She cringed as she felt the glass shards dig into her hand. With a sigh, Gine stared down at her bleeding palm and began to pull pieces of glass out. "They managed to destroy Amenbo Island and disappear before any of us could get there..."

She gritted her teeth as she pulled out a massive piece of glass. "No energy traces. No trail to follow. What...what kind of foe wouldn't have an energy signature...?"

She thought back to when she and Bardock first started being truckers. "That bear guy...he managed to apply a lot of extra power because he was wearing that metal skeleton. He increased his power...with technology...tech...nology..."

Gine blinked twice. "Wait a minute... _are these monsters robots?!_ "

As Gine came upon this revelation, she was suddenly shocked by a finger tapping on the window in front of her. Gine looked up and was surprised at the sight she saw, a blonde girl wearing a denim jacket. "Wh-What...?"

Gine stared at the girl, unknowing of the raven-haired boy quietly creeping up behind her. Gine stared. "Who are-"

And then, the blonde girl adopted a wicked smirk and the unknown intruder behind Gine charged a blast.

 _Over at Raditz's house..._

Launch, her blue hair billowing in the wind, made silly faces at the two babies bouncing in her lap. She cradled the bluish-haired infant girl and bounced the black-haired boy on her knee. "What a couple of cuties~ Our family is so lucky~!"

Chi-Chi stepped out from Raditz's house, a sullen look on her face. She gripped a tray in her hands with four glasses of sweet tea and two bottles. "Hey Raditz! Hey Bardock! Take a break and come up here for a drink! I don't want you two getting a heat stroke!"

As Chi-Chi sat down, Raditz and Bardock both came marching up to the house, covered in dirt. Bardock grumbled and took the sweet tea, draining half the glass in a single gulp. "Don't have time for breaks. Ship's nearly ready. Once Bulma has it built, we need to get into space and start searching for Namek. Gotta finish up this season's crops before I head out."

Raditz sipped his tea, a depressive look on his face. Ever since people had randomly started dropping, he had been like this. "I... I can't stop working. If I do, my nerves will get to me..."

Bardock growled, a furious glare in his eyes. "Those cowardly punks. When I find who they are, I'm going to tear them to pieces!"

Launch withered away at all of this violent talk, her blue personality not finding anything but misery in discussing it. Chi-Chi, on the other hand, was deep in thought. She fed the baby his bottle and thought out loud. "I still think these guys are assassins..."

Bardock sneered. "And I think that's farfetched. Where would assassins this strong even come from? The strongest bastard left alive that doesn't live on this planet isn't the assassin-sending sort. Cooler is a hands-on type..."

Chi-Chi sighed. "I get what you're saying, but I am a princess Bardock. I've dealt with assassins before. Quiet and sneaky, they pull a sudden surprise attack and then disappear like the wind, they only leave misery in their wake..."

She glanced at Bardock. "I get you're skeptical but if it crawls like a worm, then it's probably a worm, Bardock..."

Bardock nodded. "But, even if that were the case, it would take at least Cooler to kill Piccolo. And I doubt that Cooler is-"

A massive explosion rang out. All of the workers in the fields turned their heads and stared at the horizon past Raditz's house. Bardock's eyes widened. " _Gine._ "

He leapt over the railing of Raditz's porch and saw smoke curling up in the distance, right around where his and Kakarot's houses would have been. Everyone else joined Bardock, staring in horror. Raditz was fear-stricken. " _M-Mother..._ "

Bardock snarled, turning and shouting at the farmhands. "All of you! Go home! _Now!_ "

He turned to Chi-Chi and Launch. "You two stay close to the farm, but hide yourselves somewhere."

And then, he turned to Raditz. "And you come with me."

Raditz nodded. "R-Right..."

 _Back at Bardock and Gine's house..._

Bardock and Raditz flew over the smoldering remains of his and Gine's house and saw a horrific display on the ground below. In the doorway to Goku's house, a shattered wood-chopping axe next to him, was Ox-King's still-twitching body. Bardock sneered. "Goddammit..."

The sound of a fist colliding with something boomed from the burning ruins of Bardock's home and his attention was drawn. He called over. "Gine! Gine, are you okay?!"

Another heavy blow echoed out and Gine was launched from the burning ruins of her once proud home. She was beaten pretty badly, blood pouring from wounds. Her Super Saiyan form was raging. Bardock, in response, activated his Super Saiyan form as well. Raditz stood between his parents, activating his Kaioken. "What is this?! I... I don't sense anything..."

Gine nodded. "I... I don't think you can. R-Robots..."

Bardock flinched. "Robots?!"

A masculine voice called out. "Androids, actually."

Androids 17 and 18 emerged from the flames, looking no worse for wear. 17 smirked. "Nice to finally find the family of Goku. Hell, big man with the bandana here even looked like Goku before his hair went blonde. So, that's fun~"

Android 18 scoffed. "Would've started having fun a lot sooner if you would've stopped screwing around and just let me check a phonebook. See how easy it was to find this place?!"

Bardock snarled. "I see...so Cooler is sending Androids, eh? Pathetic bastard couldn't be bothered to at least modify himself to fight?"

18 cocked her head. "Who the hell is Cooler?"

17 smirked. "Me."

18 rolled her eyes. " _Shut up._ "

Raditz snarled, charging forward at the two Androids. "Bastards!"

He kicked at Android 18, but she effortlessly caught his foot, pulled him down into a harsh headbutt, and then threw him as hard as she could into Grandpa Gohan's house nearby, destroying the old building. 18 shook her head. "But, seriously, no one named Cooler is involved here. Dr. Gero made us to kill Goku. Simple as that. But, with Goku dead, we've decided to explore some different avenues to entertain ourselves."

17 pointed at Bardock and Gine. "Namely: you guys. Goku's family. Seemed like the next logical step, ya know?"

Gine wiped her bloody face. "So... Piccolo...and the others...?"

18 sneered. "They wouldn't tell us where you were. _Super rude_."

17 chuckled. "Thought they were big. But, 18 and I proved 'em wrong~"

Gine's heart ached. She began to tear up, thinking that their family friends were loyal right down to the last moment. Bardock didn't show much for outward emotion, except for the pissed off look in his eyes. He snarled and jerked his attention to the recovering Raditz. "Hey Raditz! I can already feel Vegeta and Gohan heading this way from Capsule Corp! You go and grab Chi-Chi, Launch, and the babies and give them to Gohan! Then you and Vegeta get back here as fast as possible!"

Raditz flinched. "Wh-What?!"

Bardock sneered, powering-up even more and taking an aggressive stance towards 17 and 18. "You heard me! Now go! Gine and I will hold these two at bay until back-up arrives. With you and Vegeta here, these two punks should go down real quick!"

Raditz swallowed a lump in his throat. "A-All right...just...just stay safe, okay?"

Gine summoned the full-force of her power. "You too, Raditz! Watch your back and make sure that the kids stay alive no matter what!"

Raditz nodded and then took off. With him gone, Gine and Bardock shot each other a quick look, and then they both charged at 17 and 18. 17 chuckled. "You two have been married for most of your lives, right?"

18 smirked. "Well, 17 and I have known each other for our entire lives. So... let's see who works together better~"

 _Minutes later, flying over the wilderness towards West City..._

Raditz struggled with all of the weight on his shoulders as he flew. Not the weight of Chi-Chi, or Launch, or the babies, but a different weight entirely. A much heavier weight. Deep down in his chest, Raditz knew that he shouldn't have just left his parents there alone. If it wasn't for the fact that he agreed with them, that he needed to get Launch, Chi-Chi, and the kids away from what was sure to become a hellish battlefield...he certainly would not have left.

As Raditz began to become lost in thought, a voice suddenly spoke from his back. "R-Raditz...will they be okay?"

Raditz looked back, seeing that Chi-Chi was flying with her eyes squeezed shut, desperately focusing on the fight back at the house. Launch, who couldn't sense energy, was totally in the dark. Raditz nervously smiled. "Everything should be fine, dear. It'll, uh, it'll be a long fight. And we might suffer a loss or two more, but that's why Bulma is building that spaceship. A spaceship big enough and advanced enough that it shouldn't take us more than a month or two to find Planet Namek, even without King Kai's help!"

Raditz's tone quickly shifted to make it sound as if he was trying to convince himself. "We'll kill those bastards and then bring everything back to normal!"

As Raditz let loose that last bit of bravado, two very familiar forms rocketed towards him at top speed. Raditz came to a stop and breathed a sigh of relief. "Gohan! Vegeta! Thank goodness..."

Vegeta sneered. "What the hell is going on, Raditz?!"

Gohan looked worried. "We can't sense any enemy ki. Are Grandpa Bardock and Grandma Gine fighting the killers...?"

Raditz nodded. "Y-Yeah. Two of them, a boy and a girl. No ki signatures. Said they were Androids."

He took a deep breath. "It's good that we've met up here. Gohan, you take your mother and Launch and the babies. Go to Capsule Corp and tell Bulma what's going on."

Gohan nodded. "R-Right! But the second I get done with that, I'm rushing to the battlefield."

Vegeta grunted. "Smart thinking."

Raditz turned. "Yeah. These guys are really strong. We're going to need all the help we can-"

Suddenly, Gohan and Raditz and Vegeta and Chi-Chi all went white. Chi-Chi and Gohan both gave an audible gasp while Raditz and Vegeta both fell deathly silent. Launch was confused. "What?! What's going-"

Suddenly, to her shock, both of the babies went from being peaceful and quiet to screaming and crying. Raditz clenched his fists and took off and a blisteringly angry Vegeta was not far behind. As they flew, Raditz activated the Kaioken and Vegeta went Super Saiyan.

Gohan was left floating there, speechless and in tears. Launch was still confused. "What's happening?!"

Chi-Chi sobbed, pressing her hands against her face. "No... _Gine_..."

 _Back at Bardock and Gine's ruined home..._

Bardock dragged himself through the burning wreckage of his home, leaving a trail of red dragging behind him from the massive hole that had been punched into his side. The older Saiyan was on death's door as he desperately searched for his last chance.

Bardock briefly collapsed, staring through his blurry vision at the sight of Gine's body in the distance, her face in the dirt and her dull eyes half-lidded. Bardock snarled and pushed himself up, dragging himself farther into the wreckage towards what used to be the mantle. "Kill them. I'll... _I'll kill them both_..."

The older Saiyan dragged himself further until he reached the special box that Gine had stored on the mantle ever since she and Bardock had gotten this house. A wooden box with a carving on the back, a carving of a lone tower surrounded by forests. Bardock opened the box and, within, found Gine's secret storage of Senzu Beans. Every few month, Gine would take a massive load of fish to Korin's Tower and come back with a massive sack of Senzu Beans. Better safe than sorry, she had always said.

Bardock picked up the box, opening the lid and seeing the beans within. But, before he could eat one, a familiar sneaking shot forward and kicked the box out of Bardock's hand, into the raging flame nearby. He looked up from his place on the ground and saw Android 17 looming over him, soon joined by Android 18.

The two Androids both smirked down at Bardock. 17 spoke. "Sorry. No cheating. You've lost this fair and square~"

18 smirked. "And losers have to pay the price that comes with losing..."

Both Androids pointed their fingers at Bardock and said in unison. " _ **Any last words?**_ "

Bardock's vision was black. His Super Saiyan form was gone. He felt light-headed and he couldn't even make a spark of ki in his hand. The older Saiyan, knowing that this was it, lowered his head and bitterly spat at the Androids above him. "You might kill me...but one day someone will get you two back for this..."

He gripped his fists. "So, I would scream a few times between now and then... _just so the sound doesn't jar you as you die..._ "

Android 17 laughed out loud. "Oh man~! Those are some pretty friggin' cool last words~!"

Android 18 sneered and rolled her eyes. "Please. I never plan to scream and I never plan to die."

And, with that, the two Androids both fired their finger beams and Bardock was dead, his headband falling into the raging flames and burning away into nothing. Android 18 sighed and tossed her hair back. "So, what now? We've killed Goku's family...where do we go from here?"

She cocked her head. "Maybe...Capsule Corp? That Bardock guy mentioned Capsule Corp, and I think that's in West City..."

17 shook his head. "No, not yet. We don't wanna kill off all of our fun right away. I suggest a detour."

18 was confused. "To where?"

17 reached into the flames, picking up Gine's Senzu Box and staring at the tower carving on it. "Didn't we see a tower like this when we were screwing around looking for this place?"

The blonde Android smirked. "You know what...yeah~ We sure did~"

17 smiled wide. "Well, why don't we go and see what might be at the top of that tower?"

And then 17 and 18 took off, on the trail of another sadistic adventure. Less than two minutes after they sped off, Vegeta and Raditz touched down and were left to stare in utter horror at what the Androids had done.

 _A few days later, at Korin Tower..._

It was a slow day, high up above the clouds on Korin Tower. The wise sage Korin stared down over the railing down at his domain, the Sacred Land of Korin. It was troubling times in the world below. All of Goku's friends were dropping like flies and it disturbed Korin to think about how unprepared they were for this threat. Who would those awful Androids go after next?

Unfortunately for Korin, that question was answered as he looked into the sky towards Kami's Lookout. The cat hermit hissed in fear and shock as Android 17 and 18 stared down at him. Both Androids had a cruel look in their eye...and then they each fired a ki blast and blew Korin's Tower to pieces.

Korin and Yajirobe both screamed as the entire tower crashed and crumbled towards the ground, the force of it all throwing them both over the side rails sending the two of them tumbling with a series of sickening crunches. As the tower crashed to the ground, the red staff that had connected it to Kami's Lookout for so long fell too, shrinking back to the size of a child's bo staff and clattering across the ground.

Android 18 snickered at what she and 17 had just done. "It was an ugly little tower anyway~"

17 smirked. "I wonder if those two lived through that..."

 _Down in the Sacred Land of Korin..._

Both Yajirobe and Korin laid on the ground, bloodied and battered. Both of the two occupants of the Tower had suffered serious injuries in their fall from that high above. And it was clear that if they did not receive help soon, the two of them would both die pretty quickly. Shakily, Korin stood and nudged his companion with his staff. "Y-Yajirobe...get up..."

Yajirobe groaned in pain. Korin was panting. "C-Come on Yajirobe...this is no time to lay on your fat, lazy butt like this..."

"Aw shucks, kitty-kat~ Let the poor, fat guy rest~"

Korin yelped and turned to see Android 17 and Android 18 behind him. Both of them had a playful hint of murder in their eyes. Korin stood frozen in fear. 17 and 18 both stepped forward. "Hey 18..."

18 smirked. "Yeah?"

17 smiled wide. "You think a cat's tail grows back if you pull it off?"

18 shrugged. "Only one way to find-"

Suddenly, a massive spear came sailing through the air and pierced the fabric of Android 18's jacket. She looked down at the offending item and then glared at the source of it. Standing behind her, tall as a might oak, was the protector of the Sacred Land of Korin: Bora. And flanking Bora was his son Upa and the rest of the Bora Tribe.

Bora had a grim look on his face as he was handed another spear. "You outsiders dare to step into this holy land and sow such havoc? Not while the Bora Tribe stands! Down to our last member, we will fight and drive out you devils!"

17 and 18 both glanced at one another, and then simultaneously they charged. Bora raised his spear into the air. "Brothers! Let us reject these foul creatures!"

The Bora Tribe all charged at 17 and 18, letting loose a yelping war cry as they did. 17 and 18 were unfettered as they army of natives charged at them. Thinking quick, Korin examined what was on the ground around his. Using all the strength he could muster, the cat hermit picked up the Power Pole and Yajirobe and began to limp away from the Androids.

As Korin fled, the wild war cry of the Bora Tribe quickly went from a valiant screech to an agonized scream. The sounds of noble warriors being slain and blood being spilled was accompanied by the red embers of flames engulfing the forest. Korin limped away, cursing as he did. "These Androids are like a plague. Who the hell would make beings this violent?"

The smoke from the flames rose into the air and mixed with the clouds above, eventually causing a rain shower which turned into a vicious lightning storm. Korin tripped over a stone and he and Yajirobe both plummeted down into a ravine. Korin groaned as he pushed himself up. "N-No...can't move...what do...what do I...?"

Suddenly, Korin saw salvation. Across the ravine was a sight for sore eyes if Korin had ever seen one: it was a Senzu Sproutling. One remaining plant among the dead ruins of the rest of the Senzu Sprouts. Korin sighed. "Thank you, Kami...from beyond the grave you're still looking after this old cat..."

Korin crawled, eventually reaching the sprout and picking it up. "Yajirobe, we're home..."

Removing the sprout from the soil, Korin found only the precious roots and a single bean attached. "...free."

Korin groaned. "D-Dammit..."

The cat walked across the ground, looking down at his longtime companion as the sounds of dying warriors grew quieter and quieter. Korin sighed. "Oh Yajirobe..."

A sharp, deep-voiced yell echoed through the woods and Korin flinched. Lightning briefly flashed in the background and the silhouette of Bora impaled on his spear covered the valley of the Sacred Land of Korin. A young man cried out. "F-Father!"

Android 17's voice spoke calmly. "Kill that brat, 18. We have a cat to go find~"

Korin snarled. "Dammit..."

And then, as he heard the sound of Upa being killed as well, Korin made a choice. He reached down and plucked the bean off of the Senzu Sprout, and then he shoved it into Yajirobe's mouth. As the bean took effect on the rotund ronin, Korin collapsed to the ground. His life was drawing to a close.

Yajirobe hopped to his feet, back to full strength. "Aw yeah, baby! Yajirobe is back in action! Thanks Korin~"

Silence. "K-Korin...?"

Yajirobe turned and gasped at the sight of the dying hermit. "K-Korin! Whoa man! What's going on?! Why didn't you eat a Senzu Bean yet?!"

Korin chuckled and softly bonked Yajirobe on the head with his staff. "Fresh out...you ate the last one, ya porker..."

Yajirobe looked confused and horrified. "N-No! You fed me the last one! Wh-Why the hell would you do that man?! You're worth more than I am here! You're an old master with a ton of experience! And I'm only-"

Korin sighed. "Yajirobe...you're a young man with a lot to offer and a whole lot more potential than anyone thinks..."

The cat hermit reached down next to him and grabbed the Senzu Sprout and the Power Pole. "Now, do me a favor and get the hell outta here. Okay...? I need you to make sure that...that the Senzu Beans continue to grow in my absence..."

Yajirobe looked genuinely remorseful, his hands shaking as he took the plant and pole from Korin. "But...but Kor-"

Korin cut him off. "But nothing. Go. Go as fast as ya legs can carry ya..."

Yajirobe was trembling. Korin shouted one more time. " _Go!_ "

A few minutes passed and Android 17 and Android 18 finally found Korin. With the shivering rain pouring down, the two of them loomed over the dying cat. 17 sneered. "So, where's the other coward?"

Korin spat. "C-Coward...the only cowards I see are standing over me..."

Korin coughed. "Y-You young punks are gonna get yours...one day..."

18 chuckled, raising her hand up and charging a small blast. " _Bad kitty~_ "

The blast was fired and, in a flash, Master Korin was gone. Another in the growing number that was 17 and 18's death count. With him dead and the Bora Tribe slaughtered, the two Androids stood in the rain with a new conundrum. "17?"

Android 17 turned. "Yeah, 18?"

18 sighed. "What now? Now do we go to West City and kill the rest of Goku's family...?"

17 rubbed his chin. "Hmm...nah. Not yet."

18 scoffed. "Then how do we pass the time?"

17 chuckled. "Well...I gotta say...killing those native dudes was fun. So... why don't we got and try that in _a bigger city_?"

With her hands already stained with so much blood, 18 didn't even think twice. She nodded with a smile. "Sounds fun~ Where do we go first?"

17 chuckled. "I'm thinking...North, South, East, and then..."

 _West City, two weeks later..._

It had been two weeks since the Androids had begun to wage war on what seemed to be the entire world. Making their presence known to the entire human populace, 17 and 18 had gone from major city to major city, fighting King Furry's armies, butchering civilians, and always slipping away just before Vegeta, Raditz, and Gohan could arrive and fight them.

This whole roundabout slaughter had put both Raditz and Vegeta on edge. Neither man had slept in days, both had barely eaten. But now, they knew that they weren't on the chase anymore, soon enough...the wolves would be at their door.

Gohan, Vegeta, and Raditz were stood in Capsule Corp, preparing for it. Bulma, Launch, and Chi-Chi had taken the three babies and begun leading an evacuation effort out of the city. Vegeta stood in his and his wife's shared bedroom and stared at the photo that was taken the day his son was born. " _Trunks..._ "

Raditz knocked on the door. "Vegeta, we just got word from the royal armies scouts..."

Suddenly, a high-pitched siren began to shriek and Vegeta sighed. " _They're here._ "

 _On the northern outskirts of West City..._

Android 17 and 18 abandoned their car underneath a rocky arch and continued their trip on foot. 17 looked back at the ride, the front grill stained red, and chuckled. "She was a good little car..."

18 rolled her eyes. "Too bad you kept running it into shit..."

17 shrugged. "What's the harm, 18? With our strength, no one can tell us what to do~"

He threw his arms out wide and cheered. "We're _GODS,_ baby! And who the hell is gonna stop Gods from doing what they want?!"

18 pointed her finger ahead, at the line of tanks and other military vehicles. "Maybe them?"

17 blew a raspberry. "Them?! You think they can stop us?!"

18 smirked. "Yeah...maybe not~"

And then she fired a beam from her finger and three tanks exploded into flames. Soldiers screamed and commanding officers began to bark orders as the merciless Androids charged forward, totally unfettered.

 _From the center of West City..._

Vegeta, Raditz, and Gohan all flew forward at top speed, Vegeta powering-up to his Super Saiyan form and making his power surge. "You two support me from a distance! I don't need you clowns becoming a liability while I'm trying to fight!"

Gohan nodded. "Right!"

Raditz nodded as well. "R-Right..."

The three Saiyans flew in, seeing their opponents backs. 17 and 18 were both laughing their heads off as they tortured a royal soldier to death, firing beams of energy into his stomach and watching him writhe in pain. Whatever humanity had once filled the Androids had shriveled up and died, replaced by sadistic mania. Just as that soldier died, Vegeta kicked Android 18 into a nearby building.

Android 17 laughed as Gohan and Raditz both landed. "Oh man~ Look at you, 18! You ate shit~"

Android 18 was less amused, stepping out of the storefront with a scowl. She glared at these new foes. "So, we have the cowardly Raditz...Goku's brat, if those pictures we tagged at Goku's house were accurate...and... I think this guy is an angry artichoke...?"

Vegeta snarled. "I am Vegeta! The Prince of Saiyans! And I am going to destroy you worthless Androids!"

18 rolled her eyes. 17 snorted. "Hey shorty! Just some quick advice, she called you an angry artichoke because your name isn't important! So, like, we weren't listening to what you just said!"

Vegeta scowled and his power flared. " _As if I need a dead man to know my name!_ "

And, with that, the final battle for West City began. Gohan, Raditz, and Vegeta charged from one side, 17 and 18 from the other. And then began the final desperate clash for humanity's fate.

17 was taken aback as Vegeta's sheer power actually managed to throw him for a loop. The Saiyan Prince was certainly on a different level than anyone 17 had fought with before. He was even stronger than Bardock!

Vegeta snarled and landed a flurry of punches against the raven-haired Android, smacking him around before hammer-fisting Android 17 into a nearby building. Vegeta stood and sneered. "Hurry the hell up! I know that didn't defeat you!"

Android 17 stood, wiping a trickle of blood from his lip. "Heh. Not bad, bud. You been training? Hm?"

Vegeta was seething. 17 rolled up his sleeves. "Maybe I can actually hit you hard and you won't break~"

17 charged and he and Vegeta locked up. Fists gripped tight, the two warriors pushed against one another as hard as they could, making the ground shred beneath their feet. After a few moments, 17 broke the stalemate by headbutting Vegeta on the forehead and then launching him back with a boot to the chest.

Vegeta slammed against the side of a bus hard enough to dent it, but he didn't fall. Blood trickled from the gash on his head and he spat. "That was your full strength?! _Pathetic!_ "

Meanwhile, Gohan and Raditz were working in tandem against Android 18. The female Android was forced onto the defensive as the two Saiyans descended upon her. The directions that they were coming from varied like crazy and 18 was careful to block each of their attacks. She might be powerful, but she wasn't acting childish like 17 in matters like these.

Seeing an opportunity, 18 took immediate advantage of the fight. She stomped Raditz's knee, tripping the Saiyan, kneed Gohan in the gut, and then smoothly transitioned into a smashing elbow to the center of Raditz's face. Both Saiyans went crashing back and 18 charged two blasts, but she was interrupted when Android 17 came sailing into her on the end of a Galick Gun.

Vegeta glared at the two Androids as they both recovered. 17 and 18 glanced to one another and wordlessly nodded. And then, without missing a step, they both charged and landed simultaneous punches on Vegeta. Both Androids charged with a laugh. 17 shouted. "You're exactly like that fight with Bardock, ya know that?!"

18 smirked. "You might actually be able to win if we just let you...but what incentive do we have not to cheat?!"

17 kicked Vegeta in the side of the head. "It's a shame you don't have a wife nearby for us to use as a shield~"

18 chuckled. "You should have seen the look on Scar-Goku's face when he realized that it was his punch that snapped his wife's neck~"

17 smiled wide. "He might have even powered-up beyond us if I hadn't run my hand through his ribs~"

18 shrugged. "But, ifs and buts are like candy and nuts~ And speaking of nuts...~"

Android 18 reared her foot back and slammed it right between Vegeta's legs. The Prince slumped over on her leg and began to shake. 18 laughed. "Aw~ Did it hurt that badly?"

Vegeta was quivering, but not with pain. In his mind, the Prince had a clear picture of Bardock and Gine, and how much the two of them cared for each other. And then, that picture immediately switched to the cowardly tactic that the Androids had just admitted to using. Practically foaming at the mouth, Vegeta grabbed 17 and 18 both by the face and shouted at the top of his lungs. " _Double Galick Gun!_ "

He shoved 17 and 18 to the ground and fired the blasts at them, forcing the two wicked Android down into the street and causing a massive explosion.

Once the smoke cleared, Vegeta stood there in agony. His arms still worked, but he had singed the skin on them all the way up to his shoulders. He clenched his fists tight, blood leaking out of them, and shouted. " _GET UP! GET THE FUCK UP! I KNOW YOU SMARMY LITTLE BRATS AREN'T DEAD YET! SO, QUIT PLAYING THESE CHILDISH GAMES AND FIGHT LIKE REAL WARRIORS!_ "

17 and 18 both emerged from the rubble with cold expressions on their faces. The new "Gods" had just had their almighty reign challenged. And boy, did that piss them off. As they both marched forward ready to flay Vegeta alive, a bright light suddenly shone above them. 17 turned. " _What now?!_ "

17 and 18 turned and saw a massive battery of energy blasts raining down from the sky above on top of them. And the source of these blasts was Raditz!

Raditz snarled and shouted at the top of his lungs. " _Summer Sundays Jubilation!_ "

Vegeta thrust his middle and index fingers forward, forming a ring of energy around 17 and 18. " _Dirty Fireworks!_ "

And finally, Gohan backflipped over Vegeta and fired a blast of his own. " _MASENKO!_ "

All three blasts crashed into the Androids at once and created a massive boom. A mushroom cloud rose from where the two stood and Vegeta, Raditz, and Gohan took a moment to breathe. This would prove to be a costly mistake. As, in that moment of pause, 17 and 18 had leapt into the air and formed a massive, dual Energy Barrier. The two of them levied it downward, crushing Gohan, Vegeta, Raditz, and quite a bit of the surrounded are flat into the ground.

Both Androids landed, dispersing their barriers, but Vegeta actually managed to catch them by surprised. Pulling himself from the ground and powering through the pain of being crushed, Vegeta wrapped his hand around 17's throat and heaved the male Android into the ground. 18 rushed him from behind, but Vegeta managed to kick her in the face before spinning atop 17 and delivering a second kick to 18, smashing her in the side and sending her flying across the battlefield.

Vegeta landed, double foot stomping on 17's chest and then unloaded a volley of ki blasts onto the Android.

Taking a moment, Vegeta retreated and called upon his allies. "Raditz! Gohan! Pull yourselves together!"

Shakily, Raditz and Gohan both pulled themselves from the ground. It was clear though that, unlike Vegeta, being crushed like that had done a number on the both of them. And, what was worse, 17 and 18 both stood from the vicious assault Vegeta had dealt them and they weren't even breathing heavy. Superficial damage had been done, but it was clear that a long, uphill battle remained.

Vegeta growled. " _You must be kidding me..._ "

Raditz groaned. " _This is insane..._ "

Gohan sounded resigned, but furious. " _They aren't even tired..._ "

17 and 18 both smirked at their foes. 18 chuckled. "Where's the smarm, Vegeta? You were so wordy a minute ago~"

17 cocked his head. "Has Mr. Artichoke run out of one-liners already?"

Raditz and Gohan both noticed it as well. Vegeta had become uncharacteristically quiet. The normal spitfire and vitriol the Prince display was now replaced by a grim terseness that made both Gohan and Raditz very uncomfortable. The pressure was getting to Vegeta, and now his allies were worried he was close to cracking.

This distraction proved enough for the Androids to make a move. To the shock of Vegeta, the two mechanical menaces charged and blitzed the warriors standing on either side of him. Raditz went flying back and cracked his head against the ground. Gohan slid across the ground, a piece of sharp metal slicing through his left eye and leaving the young boy screaming in pain on the ground.

Vegeta turned and barely managed a guard as the Androids began to lay into him. Punches and kicks rocked Vegeta's body as he desperately tried to defend himself. The Androids were moving at incredible speed, brutalizing the Prince with hideous strikes that would have sent any man to the ground.

But Vegeta wasn't just any man. He waited for his opportunity. The pain hurt, but he knew that the Androids would eventually get ahead of themselves. And, when that moment came, Vegeta had one last surprise that he hadn't tried yet.

17 and 18 both reared back and charged a blast and Vegeta saw his moment. As they prepared to fire, Vegeta held out his hand and charged a massive amount of energy. " _BIG BANG ATTACK!_ "

The two Androids both gasped as a huge ball of energy shot from Vegeta's hand, enveloping both and launching them across the city, where they were eventually caught in a massive explosion. Vegeta raggedly sighed and, moving without any real thought, he ran over to check on Raditz and Gohan.

Both were critically injured. Raditz's skull was leaking blood and Gohan's eyes was pouring with just as much of the red stuff. Vegeta growled. "Dammit. _Dammit dammit dammit..._ "

The Prince snarled to himself. "Dammit, Kakarot...Bardock, what would you do he-"

He caught himself. Was...Vegeta really asking himself what someone else would do? Let alone Kakarot and Bardock?! As Raditz and Gohan began to stir, Vegeta had a small, sad chuckle. The Prince let his guard down as he thought to himself. "I've...really fallen into such desperation that I'm asking what you fools would do..."

Vegeta closed his eyes. "Well Kakarot? Well Bardock? What would you do?"

" _VEGETA! LOOK OUT!_ "

Vegeta's eyes snapped open and he glared at Raditz. Everything else seemed to move in slow motion after that. To his right, Vegeta saw a thin blade of energy slicing through the ground. As he looked to his left, Vegeta saw another blade of energy that was too close for him to dodge.

The sound of a knife going through meat echoed out, followed by the sound of blood splattering, and then a solid thud.

Gohan cried out in shock, clenching his hand over his eye. " _VEGETA!_ "

Vegeta's eyes hit the ground. He couldn't react to anything around him. He stared for a moment at it on the floor, leaking and puddling blood. Vegeta's left arm just laid there, as lifeless as his chances of winning this fight. It happened so quickly, and Vegeta was so numb and in so much pain in so many other places, that he almost didn't feel it.

Or maybe the shock had just overwhelmed his system.

Either way, Vegeta merely closed his eyes, veined bulging from his forehead, and stood up. Gohan called over to him. "Vegeta-"

Vegeta snapped. "Quiet!"

Raditz tried to speak. "Vegeta..."

Vegeta snapped again. "Quiet!"

Everything fell silent. And then, in the distance, Gohan and Raditz heard two faint sets of footsteps. And they were drawing closer. And then, they both heard something else that made them double-take. "Leave."

Raditz and Gohan both flinched, Raditz suddenly shouting. "Excuse me?!"

Vegeta spoke in his steady tone, holding his bleeding arm stump. "You are excused. Now go."

Gohan spoke up. "B-But Vegeta!"

Vegeta shook his head, refusing to look at either of them. "No buts. This is useless. A waste. You both are too weak and too injured to fight. And neither of you are Super Saiyans, so you might as well challenge those cretins to a pillow fight..."

The Prince took a deep breath. "But, if all three of us try to leave, they'll never stop chasing us. And that would put Bulma, Trunks, and the others in harm's way..."

He shook his head again. "So, would it make more sense for us to sacrifice two hands to keep those Androids at bay...or just one?"

Gohan shouted. "So you would have us just abandon you to die?!"

Vegeta retorted. "I would have you leave to go and keep those who can't protect themselves safe."

The Prince fell quiet. "Would you really deny me that simple pleasure, Gohan...? Raditz...?"

Raditz deflated a bit. Gohan was having none of this, however. "We can still win this! We can-"

"Go, Gohan!"

Gohan turned, staring in disbelief at his uncle. Raditz snapped at him. "Get going! We have to get out of here or the Androids will catch us!"

Gohan's brow furrowed. "Y-You...You..."

Raditz shouted at Gohan again. "GO!"

Gohan clenched his fists tight, and then he flew away with his teeth clenched and clear fury in his eyes. Raditz turned and had one final look at the resigned Vegeta, and then he joined his nephew in fleeing.

 _On the outskirts of West City..._

Bulma, Chi-Chi, Blonde Launch, and the babies all waited on the side of the road, on the countryside outside of West City, watching the fireworks in the distance with hushed breaths. As Bulma watched the skies, however, she suddenly gasped. "S-Someone's coming! T-Two people!"

All three of the mother's readied themselves, arming themselves in case these two were the Androids. Chi-Chi and Launch both breathed a sigh of relief as they quickly noticed that it was Gohan and Raditz approaching. Bulma, meanwhile, looked forelorn. "V-Vegeta..."

When Raditz and Gohan landed, however, Chi-Chi's joy instantly became horror. "Gohan! Oh no! My baby! Your eye!"

As Chi-Chi doted on Gohan's eye and Launch ran up to wrap her arms around Raditz, Bulma approached with a worried look on her face. "Raditz... _where's Vegeta_...?"

Raditz didn't answer, looking ashamed. Bulma cried out. " _Raditz?!_ "

The elder Saiyan brother answered. "He sent us away..."

Raditz shook his head. "He...he sent us away to watch over you...and to protect you from the Androids..."

Bulma teared up, pressing her hands over her eyes. "No...Vegeta...h-how could you just-"

" _Don't lie to her._ "

Everyone flinched. Chi-Chi looked concerned. "G-Gohan...?"

Gohan moved past his mother and glared up at Raditz with utter disdain. "How dare you lie to her? Huh?!"

Raditz stared down at his nephew. "Gohan? What are you-"

Gohan snapped. "Vegeta didn't send us away to protect people! That's what he said afterwards! After his real reason! You remember his real reason, right _Raditz?!_ "

Chi-Chi tried to reason with her son. "Gohan! That is your uncle, young man! You speak to your elders with-"

Gohan blatantly ignored Chi-Chi. "Why didn't you get any stronger?! Huh?!"

Raditz flinched back. Gohan stepped forward. " _All of this time! All of those people you watched die! Your so-called 'friend' Krillin! Your so-called 'beloved mother' Gine! Me when you learned that Aka killed me! My Dad! Mr. Piccolo! Yamcha! Tien! Chiaotzu! Krillin a second time! My grandpa Ox! You own father! Your own mother a second time! And now Vegeta!_ "

Gohan gritted his teeth. "So many people you care about dying around you and yet you don't become stronger! You don't gain any real power!"

The boy took a deep breath, and then tears began to stream from his eyes. " _YOU CALL YOURSELF A SAIYAN WARRIOR! THEN WHY DON'T YOU BECOME A SUPER SAIYAN?! HUH?! WHY?!_ "

Gohan clenched his fists so hard that they began to bleed. "IS IT BECAUSE YOU DON'T CARE?! ARE YOU THAT SELFISH?! OR IS IT BECAUSE YOU'RE A COWARD?! YOU'RE JUST A COWARD! FOR HOW MUCH EVERYONE SAYS YOU'VE DEVELOPED AND IMPROVED AND CHANGED..."

Blonde Launch snapped. "Listen here brat! You should learn to look in a mirror every once in a while, cuz from how I see it-"

Raditz cut Launch off. " _Stop..._ "

Gohan fell to his knees, sobbing. " _For how much everyone says you've improved and changed, everyone around you is dying and you can't do anything about it...cuz you're weak..._ "

Raditz gripped his fists. "Listen, Gohan...I know that you're hurt. I know that you're despairing, and angry, and upset..."

He lowered his head and knelt down to the boy. "I've been there. And I'm so sorry. I'm sorry that I'm not stronger. You're right...after everything, I should have ascended to a better level by now...if I had, maybe everyone would still be alive..."

Raditz gripped Gohan's shoulder, picturing himself at the boy's age. " _I train and train every day to become stronger, to be able to stay at the level of all of my fellow Saiyans, but-_ "

Gohan screamed at it. " _IT'S NOT ENOUGH! YOU'RE PATHETIC! YOU MAKE YOUR FATHER LOOK STUPID FOR EVERY TIME HE SAID YOU'D BECOME A GREAT WARRIOR!_ "

Chi-Chi yelled at her son. "Gohan! That's enough! Can't you see that Raditz is hurting too?!"

Raditz was resigned. "You're right. And that's something that I might always have to live with. Maybe...given the way things have shaken out...I'll never end up being what my Dad saw in me..."

The uncle gripped his nephew's shoulder tight and spoke firmly. "But listen, Gohan..."

Gohan looked up at him, tears streaming. Raditz pointed to that car. "Over there in that car is something you and I have in common. You're the older brother to those little ones..."

Raditz closed his eyes. "The way I've always looked at things ever since I was granted my second chance is that, well, I might not be anything special in fate's eyes...but I can at least do the job of a big brother and make sure that I support my little sibling in becoming something truly great..."

Gohan sobbed again. Raditz sighed. "The future has hope so long as those three are alive...and so long as they have you..."

Raditz nodded. "And on that note, Gohan, one more thing..."

Gohan looked up at Raditz. Raditz smiled. "You might not think much of me, but I think you're pretty great."

And then, before Gohan could say a word, Raditz smashed his fist into the boy's stomach and gently laid his unconscious form down. And then, the elder brother stood up, unfurled his tail from his waist, and turned back towards West City. "You guys all need to get out of here."

Bulma called out. "W-Wait! Where are you going?!"

Raditz didn't look back. He couldn't make himself. "I can't just leave Vegeta to die. Gohan's right...it would be cowardly for me to leave him to die like that..."

Chi-Chi sounded angry. "And that required you hitting Gohan?!"

Raditz shrugged. "He's not ready yet. And, unlike me, he has potential. So, I can't have him following me into this mess. Something might happen to him..."

Bulma and Chi-Chi were both at a loss for words. Launch however, had plenty. "Hell no! You can't go into that by yourself! I'm coming with you!"

She stepped in front of her husband and looked him in the eye. Raditz smiled. "Come on, dear...I was hoping at least you would have faith in me..."

Launch flinched. " _I do_...but...I..."

Raditz leaned down, kissing her on the lips. And then, Raditz reached over and pulled the band off of his arm. "Take this. Ranch loves teething on it. You might need it in case she starts crying on the drive."

Raditz took a deep breath and smiled. "You will see me again. So, until then, I need you to take care of the babies and make sure that all three of them stay safe. Can you do that for me?"

Launch nodded. " _O-Of course I can!_ "

Raditz took to the air. "Okay then. I love you Launch. _Forever._ "

And then Raditz took off. Launch called after his, fighting back the urge to cry or throw up. "I love you too! If you come back with a single, new scratch on you I'll give you hell! _You hear me, Raditz?!_ "

 _Days later, in a cave in the Blake Bog..._

A Capsule House sat nestled in a cave, a temporary hideaway for Bulma, Launch, Chi-Chi and the kids to all hide in while they tried to plan their next move. Bulma checked on the babies, making sure that all three of them had full bottles and clean diapers.

Chi-Chi was in the kitchen, attempting to cook something from the rations that Bulma had managed to secure. Gohan was on a cot next to the fridge, eye bandaged and still unconscious.

And finally, Blonde Launch was stuck to the satellite TV in the den. She was sitting there with bated breath, watching the round-the-clock ZTV coverage of the Androids and their path of destruction. Today was the day that they would be going into West City.

As all three women did their thing, a knock at their door made them all jump. Quickly, Launch grabbed her uzi, Bulma grabbed her pistol, and Chi-Chi grabbed her sword, and they all answered the door ready for a fight. What they found on the other side was a near-starved, piss-scared Yajirobe. "P-Please! I just smelled food! I don't wanna fight!"

Launch scowled. "I got pulled away from the TV for this?!"

Chi-Chi was blunt. "This food is for my children, not the homeless. _Starve._ "

Bulma, meanwhile, was a lot more coolheaded. "I can't believe... _out of everybody_...you're the one who managed to live."

The two of them stared at one another for a moment, Bulma looking indifferent and Yajirobe's eyes pleading. She sighed. "Welcome home, Yajirobe. If you try to laze around, I'm going to shoot you. Got it?"

Yajirobe nodded. "S-Sure thing! Thank you! I... uh...I have my first month's rent!"

Bulma raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

Yajirobe nodded again. "Uh-huh! Look!"

The ronin produced the Power Pole and the Sprout that Korin had given him. Bulma flinched. "The Power Pole... _and is that a Senzu Bean Plant?!_ "

Yajirobe smiled. "Uh-huh! K-Korin gave it to me for safe keeping, and-"

Launch shouted from her place next to the television. " _WOULD YOU ALL SHUT THE HELL UP?! I'M WATCHING THE NEWS!_ "

Everyone else fell silent. They knew that this was it. Bulma and Yajirobe both gathered around the TV. As did a rather forlorn Chi-Chi. Finally, waking up, Gohan limped his way into the den as well. "What's...what's going on...?"

Chi-Chi gasped and shrieked in joy. "Gohan! You're awake!"

Gohan was dazed, staring at the TV screen. "What happened?"

Chi-Chi kissed her son on the face. "Oh baby, you-"

Launch shouted at the top of her lungs. " _BE QUIET!_ "

On the television, a sullen reporter spoke of scenes of carnage and destruction. West City had been trashed and all but burned to the ground. The reporter was grim. "The effort to collect the remains of victims during this attack are going slowly. The royal army is taking care to make sure that no remains are mixed and is attempting to identify each victim for their family, but the sheer destruction done to each person is... _sickening and inhuman, to say the least_..."

The ZTV helicopters scanned over the skyline of West City. Eventually, the camera fell on a body impaled on a radio tower and the cameraman noticeably flinched. The reporter covering the story faltered. "Dear Lord, I... _I can't report on this anymore_..."

As everything fell silent, the camera zoomed in on the poor fellow impaled on the radio tower. Fire had rendered the man unrecognizable. No hair, nor facial features to be made out. Bulma covered her mouth. "This is...wrong..."

Chi-Chi tried to cover Gohan's eyes, but the boy slapped her hand away. She called over to him. "Gohan...?"

Both Gohan and Launch got closer to the TV, staring at the screen with horror in their eyes. Gohan silently cried out. "N-No..."

He fell to his knees. As he knelt there, shell-shocked, Launch traced her finger over the screen. It was barely apparent, invisible to anyone not looking for it. But, across the bare leg of this scorched individual was one distinctive feature: a single, temperature-proof tension band across the person's left thigh.

Blonde Launch's pupils shrank. " _Raditz..._ "

Bulma reached out to her. "Launch...I-"

Blonde Launch repeated herself. " _Raditz..._ "

Everyone else was in silent shock. Chi-Chi had already felt this pain all-too-well. Bulma had resigned herself that this was what was going to happen. But, to Blonde Launch...this was the end of the world. Something within Launch's mind, within her psyche, broke down. Shattered like glass. And then, with a sneeze, the blonde hair was gone and replaced with blue.

And then Launch's heart shattered and she began to cry and sob and scream at the top of her lungs. Bulma reached out to try and calm her, only to flinch when Launch's snot caused her to sneeze. But, to everyone's shock, the sneeze did nothing. Launch's hair stayed blue and she continued to express her grief out loud. Bulma grabbed her friend and held her tight, finally letting her tears flow herself as she buried her face in Launch's shoulder.

And finally, as everyone around Gohan began to loudly and openly grieve, the boy just sat there in silence. Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Launch were all sobbing at their losses. The babies were screaming and crying in their cribs. Even Yajirobe was shedding a few tears, in spite of himself.

But, in Gohan's mind, it was all silent. All empty.

He knelled there on the ground, staring at the burnt remains of the last of the Z-Fighters impaled. Everyone was gone. Except for the people in this Capsule House with him, everyone was gone. His father's entire bloodline was wiped out. He was the only warrior left standing.

As Gohan kneeled there, his eyes turned to the ceiling, his mouth opened wide and he let loose the most primal, raging scream he had ever let loose. All of his frustration and anger and sadness bubbled up all at once as he remembered everything that had happened to his life.

His father died without last words, his friends all died afraid, his grandmother died at the accidental hands of his grandfather and his grandfather died in despair, Mr. Piccolo had died all alone, Vegeta had died sullen and resigned, and his Uncle Raditz...

The last things he said to his Uncle Raditz...

 _The last things he would ever get to say to his Uncle Raditz in this life..._

 _Outside of the Capsule House, in the Blake Bog..._

And that is how the future was doomed. How the Androids took over and how everything seemed lost. Humanity was a dead race, fearing for one's life was a common tradition from that day forward as Android 17 and 18 could show up at any moment to have their "fun".

But, in one hidden sanctuary in the Blake Bog, a golden flash followed by beaming golden light shone out of every window.

The future might not have known it at large, but Hope was not quite dead yet...

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	70. Chapter 70: Present, Part 1

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: This one was becoming way too large for my tastes. I know that some people prefer larger chapters, but I'm not a fan. I feel like bringing too much to the table at once distracts from certain, important details being noticed. And, as I've stressed to a few people a few times before, these flashbacks are essential to the rest of this arc going forward._

 _So, here's Chapter 70 and Chapter 71 shouldn't take any time at all to show up. I do hope you enjoy reading it~ :)_

 _ **Chapter 70: Present, Part 1**_

 _In the present day, on the airship..._

Blue Launch looked utterly perturbed. "Raditz... _and Blonde me_...?"

Raditz quietly glanced over at his wife, giving her a consoling pat on the back. Launch shook her head and sighed. "I just...losing her like that. My Blonde self and I don't always get along...but she's a part of me. I... I love her..."

Launch glanced over and gently caressed her infant daughter's face. "I love her just as much as I love any other member of my family. She's like a sister to me..."

Watching Launch show such tender affection to Baby Ranch made Future Ranch's face twist into a mask of discomfort, sadness, and rage. She hung her head. "Just like any other member of the family, huh...?"

Future Daikon flinched. He glanced over at Future Trunks and, after receiving a nod, he took a deep breath. "This is a lot to have to remember. I think..."

Future Daikon watched as Future Trunks gently gripped Future Ranch's hand. He sighed and gave a small shudder. "I think I'll take over from here with the story, if that's alright..."

Everyone nodded and Future Daikon gripped his fists. "Gohan..."

Gohan glanced over at him. "Y-Yes?"

Future Daikon perked up, adopting a nervous smile. "O-Oh! Sorry. I wasn't talking to you. Not...directly."

He cleared his throat. "Gohan was everything to us after everyone else died. He was our mentor, our friend, our...big brother..."

Future Daikon sighed. "He made us the warriors we are today. If only he were still with us...to come back to this time and to be able to see everyone again...he would have been so happy..."

 _In the past of the future, the Blake Bog (5 years after the initial attacks)…_

A larger shadow jumped from the brush and was followed by three, smaller shadows. Rapid-fire attacks were traded back and forth at speeds that were too quick to follow. From a distance, the sounds the four figures were making would almost sound like desperate battle cries echoing through the wilderness. But, up close, it was clear that these battle cries were both furious... _and jovial_.

With a shout and a burst of energy, fifteen-year-old Gohan sent his three attackers flying back. The young man's voice had become slightly deeper than it was when he was ten. He chuckled and charged two light ki blasts. "Come on, guys! You three can do better than that~!"

A purple-haired young man leapt above Gohan, his wooden sword held aloft. "We're gonna get you this time, Gohan!"

A black-haired young man went for Gohan's legs with his wooden staff. "And then we get to split your dinner between the three of us!"

Finally, a blue-haired young woman leapt up with a slingshot pulled back taut. She had a jovial blush and a small stream of drool leaking from the corner of her mouth. "And the Mom Squad is making pot roast tonight~"

Gohan smirked at the three kids, all of them dressed in worn-down orange training gi demarked by the Demon-School symbol. "I think you three are overestimating yourselves."

The teen chuckled, and then he shouted and his hair went golden. Gohan charged forward, his Super Saiyan power rushing out, and dodged the sword and staff strikes that were coming at him. He shot towards Ranch with a smirk. "We don't you shoot?! Huh, Ranch?!"

Ranch squeaked in shock and fired her slingshot pellets. The ten rocks all launched towards Gohan, but he easily dispelled them into dust with his golden power. He grabbed Ranch by the face and tossed her across the field into a nearby swamp.

Gohan smirked, and then was immediately set upon by Trunks. Trunks shouted. "Don't bully her!"

A few swings of the sword came slashing towards Gohan, but he dodged each. He chuckled and winked. "What's the matter Trunks? Upset about your girlfriend getting muddy?"

Trunks hesitated, his face turning bright red. " _G-Girlfriend?!_ "

Gohan laughed, using that opportunity to fire a weak blast at Trunks that sent him bouncing back. "See? That's what happens when you get distracted~"

He glanced around. "Now, where is-"

"STAFF JAB!"

Gohan gasped at the sound behind him, he turned...just in time to have said staff jab him right in the crotch. Gohan's eyes bugged out and Trunks and Ranch recovered, leaping over him. Trunks shouted. "Get his legs! Me and Ranch will attack from above!"

The black-haired boy nodded at his partners, tackling into Gohan's legs and leaving his back exposed for the other two to crash down on him. Gohan landed in a heap and was immediately set upon by the frantic kids punching and kicking and stomping him into submission. Realizing he had lost, Gohan chuckled. "Okay! Okay! You guys win!"

The three of them stopped, all of them out of breath. Gohan stood and brushed himself off. "Guess I don't get dinner tonight...but, a promise is a promise~"

 _Later that evening..._

It was a hectic affair making dinner in the Z-Survivor's household. Bulma, Chi-Chi, Launch, Gohan, Roshi, Yajirobe, and the three kids were all gathered around the table enjoying the simple things that life had to offer. During the day, they spent all of their time focused on the problems that Earth was facing: Gohan and Yajirobe and Roshi, who had moved from his house to help, all focused on training, the 3 kids focused on learning all that they could, Chi-Chi focused on housework, and Bulma and Launch focused on trying their best to try and develop a way to weaken the Androids.

It had been a challenging five years in the Blake Bog, but they had all come through it relatively together.

Not that there weren't issues bubbling under the surface. As Gohan sat there, his plate empty from his portion being given to the kids, he glanced around. Eventually, his and Launch's eyes met. Gohan's gaze shied away as Launch shot him a look of pure scorn.

Gohan took a deep breath and sighed, and then he turned in his chair to face the three six-year-olds. "H-Hey guys..."

The three of them turned to him, their faces slathered in gravy. Gohan chuckled. "Um...I wanted to wait until dinner was over. But...I think I can give you these surprises now~"

Reaching under the table, Gohan pulled out a bag. "You've all done so well with your training weapons that, well...I think it's time to move up to the next step..."

The teen warrior reached into the bag and pulled out three things: a broad sword with a red case, a miniature uzi with a modified trigger, and a very familiar-looking red staff. "Okay...for each of you..."

He handed them off and spoke on each one. " _This sword is like the one that Mr. Piccolo gave me back during my own training in this bog..._ "

" _...this gun has been especially modified to allow for ki to be focused into it through the trigger..._ "

" _...and this staff...well...I'm sure you've all heard the stories about the man that once wielded this staff..._ "

Gohan sat back and smiled, watching as the three kids stood up and started messing with their next-level weapons. As he chuckled at the sight of the kids testing out their new gear, Chi-Chi squawked behind him. "You three be careful! Those are dangerous! And furthermore-"

Chi-Chi yelped in shock as the Power Pole extended right past her head, smashing through the window in the kitchen. Chi-Chi growled and stood up. "Young man! You are in so much trouble!"

As Chi-Chi chased around the other two in the background, much to the amusement of everyone else, Trunks stepped forward with a sheepish look on his face. "Th-Thank you...G-Gohan..."

Gohan smiled. "You're more than welcome! You've earned it, after all~"

He glanced down at Trunks for a moment and his smile slightly faded. "What's...wrong?"

Trunks looked up at him. "You took the time to get us these new weapons to train with. We should be more grateful than we're acting. A-Aren't you hungry?"

Gohan chuckled. "Hungry?! Me?! No, Trunks! I'm not hungry! You won that food fair and square! I'm not-"

Gohan's stomach gurgled and his face turned bright red. He and Trunks stared at one another for a moment and then, wordlessly, Trunks slid his extra-large helping of food across the table to his mentor. "P-Please eat. I'm not worried about some dumb promise and neither are either of them..."

The Saiyan teen glanced over at the other two, boy cowering behind girl before the wrath of Chi-Chi's broom, and chuckled. "Fine, I guess I'll-"

Suddenly, a dreadful racket filled the room. It was a noise that all of the occupants of the home had all become too familiar with by this point. The raucous, droning dubstep beat that the Earth's new rulers had made the signature tone of their address videos.

" _ **PAY ATTENTION LOWLY SCUM! FROM THEIR LUXURIOUS PALACE ON THE BURNING RUINS OF CENTRAL CITY: THE GLORIOUS GOD-KING 17 AND THE GORGEOUS GOD-QUEEN 18!**_ "

" _I said I wanted to be called 'glamorous' this time, you hack._ "

The sound of an energy beam being fired followed by the sullen thump of a body hitting the ground. And then another voice took over. " _The Glorious God-King and the_ _ **Glamorous**_ _God-Queen have decided to personally address you losers across the world face-to-face! So, pay attention!_ "

Everyone had gathered around the television in the den. And, after a moment, the two Androids showed their sinister smirks to the world. Having totally ignored his gifted dinner, Gohan snarled at the sight of those two on the TV. " _Bastards! What could they possibly want now?!_ "

 _In 17 and 18's palace, the ruins of Central City..._

17 and 18 both stood there, dressed in robes and jewels and crowns with crowds of followers bowed on the ground around them. The two of them had been living the high-life ever since they had conquered West City and moved on to Central City. After they had personally murdered King Furry, they declared themselves the rulers of the Earth and their wanton violence had become significantly more targeted. Now, when they killed, it wasn't just random slaughter. They killed anyone that even dared to oppose them. Soon, the two had gained a stranglehold over the entire planet and people seemed to settle under their rule just fine. The Androids had fully seized control of the planet.

17 took a deep breath, a smile on his face, and then he spoke. "Okay. Show's over."

18 rolled her eyes. " _Finally._ "

The Androids' followers all murmured in confusion as the two of them stripped of all of their finery, going back to their base outfits. One of the followers dared to speak. "Y-Your Majesties...?"

17 shot him dead. "Cut that 'Majesty' crap. We aren't doing that anymore..."

18 shrugged and chuckled, seeing the rising fear in her servant's eyes. "Let me explain really quick. 17 and I saw that humanity was already on the brink after we offed that stupid dog king. So, we talked and came to the conclusion that we didn't want the fun to end there. So, instead of snuffing out the last of humanity...we decided to let you losers thrive and repopulate~"

17 cocked his head. "But it's been five years. Y'all have had enough time to bring some new meat to the table. So, now it's back to real hunting hours~"

18 grinned from ear-to-ear. "Just...slower this time. Instead of doing the job in a couple of weeks, 17 and I have decided that we're going to spend the next couple years satisfying that killing urge~"

The new presenter spoke. "W-Wait! We've all served you so faithfully! We've done nothing but serve you for the past 5 years!"

18 chuckled. "I know~ Funny, right?"

And then the Android shot the presenter dead. 17 smirked. "So, here's what's happening today. First, me and 18 are going to kill all of our followers here, just cuz they're close. And then..."

18 glared into the camera. "We heard that some punk called Mr. Satan has been saying that our power is nothing but a cheap trick. So... you'd better prepare yourself, _Orange Star City~_ "

And then, with no hesitation, 17 and 18 began to savagely murder their loyal followers and the feed cut off.

 _Back in the Blake Bog..._

Bulma's irises were pinpricks. "They...they can't be serious..."

Chi-Chi's hand was clamped over her mouth. "All of those innocent people...they don't stand a chance..."

Launch grimaced. "Just...just like in West City... _Raditz_..."

The kids and Yajirobe were speechless, none of them knowing how to respond to what they just saw. Even Master Roshi's voice had gone unsteady. "This...this is horrible. But we can't allow it to distract us from what we need to do. We need to train and become stronger! Right Gohan?"

Silence.

Master Roshi turned, seeing that Gohan was no longer standing behind everyone else. " _Gohan?!_ "

Everyone looked around for the teen warrior. Eventually, all of their gazes landed on the same place: the front door of the house, hanging wide open. Chi-Chi called out in shock, running out the front door with a frantic pace. "Gohan! No! Come back!"

Master Roshi groaned, gripping his staff tight. "That boy...just like his father..."

 _In Orange Star City..._

Smoke rose from the burning center of Orange Star City as Android 17 and Android 18 made their assault against the city. In the biggest house in the center of town, the two killer machines marched forward in search of the first target of their terrible campaign: The World's Martial Arts Champion, Mr. Satan.

A yelp echoed from within the destroyed ruins of Satan's home, followed by a deep voice shouting as loud as he could. "Videl! Miguel! Where are you?! Are you both okay?!"

The World's Champion emerged from beneath the burning ruins of his house. His head was bleeding and he cried out. "Vide! Miguel!"

He crawled across the ground, eventually coming across a horrible sight. A hand was stuck out from beneath the rubble. A hand wearing a fingerless, leather glove. "N-No! Videl! No!"

He reached out to move the wreckage, but a beam shot from the smoke and nearly hit the champion. He yelped and glared over towards the smoke, watching as Android 17 stepped out and glared at him. "Man... for all the shit that you talked, this is all you could do?!"

Mr. Satan stood up, striking an aggressive fighting stance. "Y-You...you killed my b-baby girl..."

Android 17 coldly smirked. "Aw, did that bother you?"

Tears built up in Satan's eyes. He prepared to charge, but then a sharp scream cried out behind him. " _MARK!_ "

Satan cried out. " _M-Miguel!_ "

A heavy thump echoed out, and then Android 18 stepped out from the smoke behind Mr. Satan. He glared, tears streaming down his face. "Y-You..."

And then, he gasped. The champion glanced towards Android 18's ring finger and saw, to his horror, the ring that his wife wore every day. Satan was shaking. "H-How could you...? She was sick...she couldn't even get out of bed...and you just..."

18 chuckled. "Killed her. I killed her. And I took her ring, cuz I like the way it looks~"

Mr. Satan snarled. "Y-You bastards...I'll...I'll kill you both! I swear I'll kill you both for this! Y-You hear me?! _I'll kill you both!_ "

17 chuckled. "You hear that? He's gonna kill us both."

The raven-haired Android pointed his finger towards Mr. Satan. 18 rolled her eyes and pointed her finger as well. They both charged energy beam attacks and 18 scoffed. "Yeah, sure he will."

The two of them fired their beams and Mr. Satan yelped in fear. He knew he was staring death in the face. But then, to his shock, a golden form landed in front of him and knocked both energy beams aside. The golden form, a young man with a scar over one of his eyes, turned and shouted at Mr. Satan. " _Get out of here!_ "

Satan stammered. "B-But, I..."

Gohan screamed at the top of his lungs. " _GO!_ "

Mr. Satan seemed reluctant, but he relented. He turned and ran as fast as he could, not daring to look back. Once he was gone, Gohan turned and glared towards the Androids. He saw the hand sticking out from under the rubble 17 was perched on top of and he saw the blood staining 18's hands and the boy's Super Saiyan power flared.

17 cocked his head. "Another one, huh? Who is this guy?"

18 narrowed her eyes, studying his face closely. 17 flopped his head the other way. "He's wearing the same kind of outfit that Goku wore when he was alive, but this can't be Goku...can it?"

Soon enough, it dawned on Android 18 who she was looking at. She stared at the scar and her memory soon drummed up the memory of an injured brat a few years back. She laughed and turned to her counterpart. "17! I can't believe this! That's Goku's brat~!"

17 gasped. "You're kidding!"

She shook her head. "No! I'm serious! We injured his eye five years ago when we were fighting with Vegeta and Raditz! He's dyed his hair blonde since then, but this is definitely that same snot-nosed little punk~"

17 smirked. "I see, so...we didn't kill all of the super-powered fighters five years ago..."

18 chuckled. "Looks like we didn't..."

Gohan snarled at them both. "No! You didn't! I'm here now, and I'm going to destroy you bastards once and for all! This is where it ends, Androids!"

17 and 18 both seemed to ignore Gohan, the two of them both seeming rather happy. 17's eyes narrowed. "It's nice to see you're still alive, kid..."

18 took on a fighting stance. "We were both afraid that we'd killed anyone who could challenge us on this stupid planet. But, with you here, looks like we get one more fun fight~!"

And then, the two Androids charged at the lone Super Saiyan. They both attacked, 17 with a punch and 18 with a kick, but Gohan was able to deftly dodge. The young warrior skidded to the side, and then he launched forward and tried to deal a heavy punch to Android 18. The female Android ducked under Gohan's arm and then returned the favor by landing a hard knee into the boy's gut. Gohan coughed and 18 followed up by slapping him across the face. As he stumbled back, 18 smirked. "What, are we done already?"

Gohan responded by bouncing back into place with a massive blast charged in his hand. "Not by a longshot!"

He levied the blast into Android 18's face, catching the feminine Android off-guard, and then shot forward and sent her sprawling with a heavy headbutt to the bridge of her nose. As 18 stumbled, Gohan hit her with a spamming of lefts and rights, his fists smashing against 18 and unleashing years of pent of hatred and aggression towards his metallic foe.

As he went for a finishing strike, a heavy kick to the side of 18's head, the Android recovered and caught Gohan by the ankle. "Naughty~"

Android 18 heaved Gohan off of the ground, swinging him around in the air before tossing him sky high. Up in the air, Gohan took a brief glance around. He saw that droves of people were managing to make it out of the city, saving themselves from the Androids' slaughter. He breathed a small sigh of relief...and then the rest of the air was forced from his body as Android 18 shot up and planted both of her feet into Gohan's stomach. Gohan wheezed and Android 18 shook her head. "You humans and your need for air...~"

She grabbed Gohan by the throat and swung him back down towards the ground. "Your turn 17!"

Gohan smashed into the ground hard, crying out in pain. And then, he was immediately set upon by Android 17. Gohan managed to spring up in time to block a strike from the male Android, being forced to skid back across the rubble he had landed on. 17 chuckled. "Look at that dumb scar~"

The raven-haired Android smashed Gohan in the face with his free hand and sent the boy flying back. Gohan landed on his arm, sliding through a small puddle of blood that had gathered. He stared, wide-eyed and in shock at the hand that had once belonged to Mr. Satan's daughter, shuddering in horror as he realized that the puddle he was laying in belonged to her. Android 17 was indifferent, strolling forward with a chuckle. "That dumb scar of yours reminds me of Goku's dad...I guess he would be your grandfather?"

17 scoffed. "You're going to turn out just like that old man, ya know? The only difference is that, unlike him, you don't even have a wife we could make you kill first~"

Gohan snarled in frustration, pushing himself back to his feet and making his power flare. The force of his Super Saiyan energy erupting forth actually made 17 and 18 slide back just a bit. Both Androids were somewhat astonished. 17 even called out. "Wow! Feel that pressure! This guy is actually pretty-"

Gohan sped towards 17 and slugged the Android right across his face. 17 stumbled back and 18 tired to pick up the slack. She raised her hands into the air, charging a blast, but Gohan's quick reflexes allowed him to turn on his heel and kick Android 18 right in the gut. Both Androids went bouncing back and Gohan finished his counterattack with an old favorite. "DOUBLE MASENKO!"

Both Androids were engulfed by the attacks and caught in the ensuing explosions. Gohan stood there, gasping for breath but looking satisfied. "Th-That had to do something...right?"

The smoke clear and, to Gohan's shock, both Androids stood mostly undamaged. His assault had done little more than wrinkle clothing and cause minor burns. Gohan gasped, his hands subtly trembling as they fell to his sides. All at once, he remembered the sheer desperation and helplessness of five years ago. 17 sighed and glanced to 18. "He's pretty strong. He got us all dusty..."

18 nodded. "He did. He even seems to have thought he did more than that. Poor guy..."

17 shook his head. "Wanna beat the hell out of him to remind him of his place?"

18 smiled wide. "Absolutely~!"

The two Androids then descended on Gohan, deciding to try just a bit harder than they had been prior to that point. At first, Gohan was able to fend off their attacks, managing to even tackle Android 17 to the ground. As he laid into 17 however, 18 hit him from behind and sent him sprawling across the rubble. Gohan shakily tried to stand, but 17 launched forward with a kick to the chest and 18 looped in from behind with a punch to the back of the head.

Gohan was staggered and 17 and 18 finished their assault by each firing a ki bolt directly into the boy's chest. Gohan fell back with a sputtering cough and landed hard on the ground.

As Gohan laid there, barely conscious, Android 18 loomed over him. In her hand, she charged a bright pink Power Blitz and aimed it right at Gohan's face. "Shame that didn't last longer. But, you're just too weak. So, I think this is where you die."

Android 18 was prepared to fire. But, before she could, a hand reached out and grabbed her by the wrist. She turned and glared at the hand's owner, Android 17, and scowled. "Pardon me?"

Android 17 shook his head. "Look, you're gonna say I'm getting soft...but I don't think we should kill the poor, dumb bastard. Not yet, at least."

Android 18 lowered her hand, glaring at 17. "Why?"

17 sighed. "I mean...think about it. This guy is probably the last bit of fun that we have at our disposal on this entire planet. Once we kill him, all we have left after that is hunting for sport. And that would get monotonous after a while if that's all we had. Don't you agree?"

18 cocked her head. "So... you're saying we should let this little punk live just so we can continue to have fun with him?"

17 nodded. "At least for a few years, ya know? He's the only real challenge we have left..."

18 didn't seem convinced. "And what if he just runs off? Huh? What if he cuts his losses and just disappears after this...?"

17 shook his head. "He won't do that. He's one of Goku's people. Those schmucks refused to back down even when it was clear we had the ability to kill them. And he has the same look in his eye that most of them did..."

18 sighed. "Fine. I guess you have a point. We'll let him live so that we can continue to play with him...but, he needs to have rules to follow too! If we're not going to kill him, I mean."

17 nodded. "Of course. I was just about to get to that."

The raven-haired Android turned and delivered a hard kick to Gohan's ribs, stirring Gohan back into full-consciousness. 17 chuckled and spoke down to him. "Listen up, guy. Here's the game the three of us are going to play. We're going to tone down our slaughter of all of these pathetic idiots just to extend our own fun a bit. But, that comes with a cost to you. If you want us to continue killing less...then you have to meet us at every single one of the places we attack. No matter the time of day, no matter how hurt or tired you are. If we show up, you show up~"

17 knelt down and got right next to Gohan's ear. " _And if you ever miss a single play date...then we'll go full throttle and empty this planet in less than a month, understand?_ "

Gohan visibly shuddered, and Android 17 and 18 both took that as a sign that he understood them. The two Androids, satisfied with this new arrangement, both took to the air with sinister, if playful, smiles on their faces. 18 cheerily called down. "Get well soon, Gohan~"

17 smirked. "Can't wait to play again, bud~"

And then, they flew off, leaving Gohan injured and lying in a pile of burning rubble.

 _Over the course of two years..._

The next two years were, perhaps, the hardest two years of Son Gohan's life. The noble warrior acted so selflessly, maintaining an appearance as if nothing in the world was wrong. He continued along, leading his three pupils into becoming stronger and more skilled, smiling all the while. It was a time in their lives that all three could look back on and smile at. Just the three of them and their big brother.

What they didn't know was what was on the other side of that coin for poor Gohan. While he still trained them, keeping his mild manner and his cheery demeanor, everyone else present knew just the sort of struggle that Gohan was facing. For two years, since 17 and 18 had resumed their rampage, Gohan leapt at every opportunity to stop them. Whether he was injured, whether he was tired, whether he was hungry or thirsty or sick, Gohan answered every attack that the Androids carried out with heroic resolve.

He threw himself in their path at every junction, fighting tooth-and-nail against the cyborg menaces and allowing the desperate innocents to flee away towards another day of safety. And every time he came back to his hidden away home, he was beaten and bruised and broken in some horrific way. Never enough to mortally injure him, as the Androids did not want to break their toy. But the scars that afflicted Gohan were rapidly becoming too much to simply hide under a longer-sleeved undershirt or bigger wristbands...

 _The Blake Bog..._

It had been three days since Gohan's last encounter with the Androids. Watching from a stump he was sat upon; the warrior observed the weapons training that the three kids were undertaking. Yajirobe was teaching Trunks more advance swordplay, Launch was teaching her daughter how to wield more complicated firearms, and Roshi was teaching the finer aspects of the Power Pole to his young charge.

Gohan cringed as he felt the fiery burn of iodine slide down the gash on his right shoulder. "C-Come on, Bulma...I'm a tough guy, but that's a bit much. Don't ya think?"

Gohan let loose a nervous chuckle, but Bulma showed not a speck of joviality. She hated to see what new scars Gohan had adopted. She pulled out a roll of bandages and tightly wrapped them around Gohan's shoulder. "We're all worried about you, you know..."

Gohan nodded. "I-I know...but..."

He sighed. "But I have to keep it up. If I don't...they'll kill everyone. And, I... I can't let-"

Bulma sighed. "I'm almost to the point I want to say screw 'em."

Gohan flinched. "Bulma..."

Bulma hands shook as she tied a knot in the bandages. "It's not worth losing you, Gohan. It's...it's just not...none of this is worth losing you too..."

Gohan shook his head. "I-I know how you feel, Bulma. But-"

Bulma stood, closing her first aid kit. "Not just me. We all feel that way, Gohan. Even the kids are starting to notice how worn out you are. Your mom is such a nervous wreck about it she won't even leave the kitchen..."

Gohan closed his eyes. "Are you and Yajirobe having any luck with the Senzu Plant?"

Bulma shook her head. "The plant died. We're trying to culture some Senzu Beans from the oil we extracted from it, but that's a much slower process than we'd hoped it would be. If only I had my lab in West City..."

Gohan sighed. "At least all of these beatings are giving me small power boosts. I'm nearly as strong as Dad was..."

Bulma sadly glanced down at him. "Are you really happy with that though? Taking beatings and getting small strength boosts..."

Her lower lip trembled. "What about becoming a scholar...? You want to become a scholar, didn't you...?"

Gohan sadly nodded. "Y-Yeah. It's just-"

Suddenly, the handheld radio burst to life and started to shout. "This just in! Androids 17 and 18 have been spotted traveling towards Iguana City! All citizens of Iguana City should evacuate straightaway! Repeat: All citizens of Iguana City should evacuate straightway!"

Gohan stood from his stump, putting on her undershirt and then his shirt. Once he pulled his head through, he was met by the saddened and worried looks from everyone around him. Even the cold and distance Launch gave him a concerned look over her sunglasses. Gohan sighed and turned his gaze towards the sky. "Sometimes you just have to let your dreams go to do the right thing..."

 _In Iguana City, the Toy Land store on Iguana Street..._

Android 18 stalked through the Iguana Street Toy Land looking through the various plushies and dolls. "Hmm..."

She picked up a bear, looked it over, and then callously tore its head off. As she walked down the line of stuffed animals, tearing them to shreds when she found them displeasing, 18 didn't seem to notice that she was not alone in Toy Land. Hidden under the same table she was stalking near, behind a large, stuffed gorilla, a little girl was desperately trying not to attract attention to herself. Across the store, her mother laid beaten and unconscious on the ground: a victim of 18's volatile temper. The little girl whimpered, realizing that 18 was looking over the shelf she was on. Soon, she would be found and then the scary, Android lady would hurt her too.

Stuffed animal after stuffed animal was picked up and examined until, finally, 18 reached the gorilla the girl was hidden behind and lifted it. She looked it over and then callously ripped its head off. And then, 18 noticed the little girl herself. "Oh, look...they doubled stocked this shelf~"

18 lifted the girl by the collar of her shirt and looked her over with a sinister glint in her eye. "Oh...just as ugly as the rest~ Too bad..."

He reached her other hand up and clamped it over the girl's mouth. "Guess I'll have to rip off your head too~"

The little girl shrieked in fear. But then, a heroic voice calmly spoke. "Not today, Android."

18 turned and was immediately met by the bottom of a boot crashing into her face. She was forced to drop the little girl and was sent flying across the store.

 _Outside of Toy Land, on Iguana Street..._

Android 17 was growing impatient. He sat on the hood of a police car, a freshly killed officer behind the wheel, and scoffed. "Spending this long in a friggin' toy store. And she calls _me_ childish..."

Suddenly, to 17's shock, Android 18 came crashing through the front window of Toy Land. She crashed into the street and tumbled, eventually coming to a rest in the gutter near 17's foot. 17 smirked. "What happened? Did once of the plushies have kung-fu grip~?"

Android 18 got to her feet, snarling in a rage. "No! It's him! He's here for his beating again!"

Android 17 stood as well, he and his sister both watching as Gohan stepped out the front door of Toy Land with an intense look on his face. 17 sighed and shrugged. "Still coming for your lumps, eh? At least you're consistent, bud~"

18 sneered. "This is starting to get boring. I feel like I might actually want to kill you, this time!"

Gohan sighed, moving slowly and deliberately to gather his focus, and then striking a fighting stance. "Well, you aren't going to kill me just standing there. Right?"

18 narrowed her eyes. "Cocky little prick."

17 laughed. "He won't be cocky for long!"

And then, once again, the two Androids charged at Gohan. Gohan watched them intently, waiting for as long as he could, and then feinted out of the way. The two Androids were both surprised, turning just in time for Gohan to punch 18 right between the eyes. And then, as 18 started recoil back, Gohan fired a blast that collided into the Android's eyes. 18 cried out in pain and frustration and Gohan immediately focused all of his attention onto 17.

17 reacted with little more than a chuckle as 18 cursed on the ground and held her injured eyes. "I think you made her mad~"

Gohan sneered and went for a kick, which 17 blocked. Gohan spat at him. "A step in the right direction. Now I just have to make her _dead_!"

The warrior used his foot as a hook, pulling himself into the air using 17's arm as leverage, and then threw a heavy blast down onto the Android, driving him into the ground. Gohan flipped back and braced himself, watching as 17 and 18 both stood up. He roared. "These last two years have been Hell! But they've made me stronger than I had ever hoped I could be! This little game with you two ends here and now!"

17 smirked, cocking his head. "He's pretty cool, huh 18?"

18 snapped. "Shut the hell up, 17!"

The feminine Android shot forward and she and Gohan clashed. Strikes were exchanged back and forth at supersonic speeds, with both fighters desperately and passionately trying to end one another's lives. The back-and-forth display ultimately put to and end when finally, to 18's surprise, Gohan locked his grip around her wrist and yanked her forward into a heavy elbow smash to the face. 18 was stunned and Gohan took advantage, laying into her with his combination of Turtle-Style and Ox-Style Martial Arts. 18 was beaten and bashed all the way down Iguana Street before Gohan finally finished the combination of moves with a charged Kamehameha to the face.

It seemed as if the blast was going to send 18 flying, but she dug in her heels. The beam ended and 18 stood there looking singed and furious. "17! Are you going to help me with this piece of trash or not?!"

17 gingerly responded. "Coming~"

Gohan groaned in frustration and turned just in time to catch a knee strike from Android 17. 17 bounced back and then he launched forward with his fist drawn. 18 sped forward with her fist drawn as well and they both attempted to punch Gohan. However, to their shock, Gohan managed to catch both of their fists. And then, deftly as he could, Gohan flipped into the air and gave a solid kick to each Android's face. 17 and 18 went stumbling back and then Gohan roared as loud as he could. " _DODON RAY!_ "

He extended each of his fingers and fired a beam of energy, hitting Android 17 in the chest and Android 18 in the knee. Both Androids fell to the ground and landed in a heap. Android 17 pushed himself up, wincing in pain. "Wh-What the hell was that?!"

Gohan landed and his Super Saiyan power flared. "You might not remember them, but that was a gift from Tien and Chiaotzu. Two of the men that you bastards killed so long ago!"

Each of the Androids responded by throwing a blast at Gohan, but he smacked each of the attacks away. "For years now, this planet that they all loved has been under the tyranny of you two hellions! But, today, I represent all of them! I have their techniques learned! I have their powers memorized! I am Son Gohan, and I will avenge all of them today!"

Android 18 snapped and lunged forward with a heavy kick. "Cut the sanctimonious crap!"

Android 17 was even starting to lose his cool, somewhat, vengefully launching himself towards Gohan. "You haven't won a damned thing!"

And then, the battle began again in earnest. Android 17 and Android 18 both hit Gohan as hard as they could, sending shocks of pain throughout the warrior's entire body. But, Gohan was able to provide just as much back at them. The three brawled all across Iguana City, smashing down buildings and leaving destruction in their wake. His reflexes at their sharpest, Gohan was able to counter a great deal more strikes from 17 and 18 than he had in the past, laying into them with his own strikes and seemingly doing damage to the two out-of-control cyborgs.

Gohan cried out as he found and opening, shooting his knee forward and catching Android 17 on the chin. 17 was sent launching back and Gohan followed that with a spinning axe kick that launched 17 to the ground below like a missile. Android 18 tried to attack him from behind, but Gohan was able to catch both of her hands and flip her over onto his knee, making her back pop. Gohan palm thrust 18 down onto her brother and then charged up another familiar attack. "S _HINING FRIDAY!_ "

17 and 18 both gasped in shock and then jumped out of the way, watching as the attack exploded and left a mighty crater in its wake. 17 shook his head. "He's gotten stronger! How did he get stronger so quickly?! Has he been holding back?!"

18 sneered. "He has to have been."

Gohan interjected. "No. I haven't been holding back..."

The warrior smashed his fist into the back of 17's head. "I've been building myself up!"

He kicked 18 in the gut. "Little by little!"

17 snarled and launched a Power Blitz, but Gohan cleaved it in half with a Destructo-Disc. He shouted. "I knew that if I kept training, I would eventually start reaching your level! And I knew that you scumbags would continue to allow me to grow stronger until I finally surpassed you! Your own overconfidence will be your undoing!"

18 hissed in frustration. "That's it! No more games! I'm going full-throttle and he's going to die, 17!"

18 shot forward and kicked Gohan across his left arm. The warrior's bones creaked and cracked under the weight of 18's kick, but they did not break. Gohan glared at 18 and then his power flared again. He punched her, but she managed to punch back. Gohan collided with the street below, but was able to bounce back to his feet from sheer adrenaline. He shot a blast, which 18 dodged, and then flinched at the sight of the female Android smirking at him.

From behind, Android 17 came at Gohan with another Power Blitz. Gohan leapt over the attack, allowing it to sail under him, and then slammed his feet down onto 17's head. And then, Gohan reached into Goku's old bag of tricks and fired a Kamehameha from his feet, driving 17 into the ground and launching himself up at 18 for a devastating headbutt to the Android's stomach. 18 snarled and summoned a massive blast, slamming it into Gohan's back. The power of the blast seared off Gohan's shirt, but the boy did not shy away. Instead, he reached up and grabbed 18 by her hair. And then he hurled her directly to her counterpart down below.

Gohan focused again, and then summoned two Spirit Balls. He threw the two attacks down at the Androids, but both were able to dodge. Gohan steeled his focus and then frantically gestured to get the two attacks to follow the fleeing Androids. 17 and 18 were able to dodge at first, but the attacks eventually started colliding into the Androids more and more. Finally, Gohan raised the two attacks into the air and combined them into one ball, and then slammed them back down on top of the two killer menaces. 17 and 18 both cried out, reaching up and stopping the massive Spirit Ball with their bare hands, but Gohan was prepared for this. He abandoned the Spirit Ball and formed a diamond with his hands. "TRI-BEAM!"

The life-force using attack zipped through the air and collided with the Spirit Ball, creating a massive explosion that threatened to topple all of the buildings surrounding the explosion. Smoke curled up from the crater, masking everything in the surrounding area from view. Soon enough, a strong wind blew through and cleared the smoke, revealing Gohan still floating high above the city.

Gohan landed on the ground, out of breath. His energy had been depleted quite a bit by the series of attacks. As he landed, however, the warrior was disheartened to see that Android 17 and Android 18 were both able to quickly recover. The two Androids rose from the rubble, their clothes tattered and their bodies visibly injured, but with no signs of tiring out. Gohan, in spite of his fatigue, did manage a chuckle. "I can't believe...that you monster's bleed red blood..."

Android 17 chuckled back, clapping as he walked forward. "Yeah. Gero wanted to make sure that everything he created was as human as possible. The guy certainly had an aesthetic~"

Android 18 sneered. "I have no idea why he wouldn't at least dull our ability to feel pain, though. You've made me just as sore as Vegeta did..."

The two Androids loomed over the kneeling Gohan and Gohan merely lowered his head. 17 sighed. "Really? You're done already? That sucks, man...this was just starting to become fun..."

18 was far less casual. "If you were an Android, you'd be a problem for us. But, luckily, you're just a mere human..."

Gohan chuckled and shook his head. "So... this is where I die, huh?"

17 nodded and raised his arm back for a chop. " _Uh-huh!_ "

18 did the same. " _Die!_ "

Both Androids struck down at Gohan and both of them landed a solid, critical hit on the warrior. Their hands sailed through Gohan's neck and chest, completely severing it and leaving the half-Saiyan with a look of shock and horror on his face.

But...that look quickly turned into a satisfied smile. 17 and 18 were both confused as Gohan started to laugh. " _I told you two that your overconfidence was gonna get you..._ "

And then, rising from the rubble and forming a circle around 17 and 18, a grand total of eleven Gohans appeared, all of them charging a separate attack. The eleven of them all spoke in unison at the shocked and confused Androids. "I told you, I'm here as a representative for every warrior you killed! This battle doesn't end today without you Androids meeting your end! You're both finished with the combined might of all of the Z-Fighters!"

" _SPIRIT BALL!_ "

" _TRI-BEAM!_ "

" _DODON RAY!_ "

" _DOUBLE SUNDAY!_ "

" _GALICK GUN!_ "

" _MAIDEN BURST!_ "

" _SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

" _SCATTER BULLET!_ "

" _RIOT JAVELIN!_ "

" _KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

" _ **MASENKO!**_ "

All eleven of the attacks shot towards the Androids like vengeful bolts of lightning, crashing into the stunned cybernetic menaces and creating a massive explosion. Underneath the sheer, rolling force of the attacks, the sounds of 17 and 18 screaming could barely be heard, eventually falling silent all together.

As smoke rumbled up from the center of the crater once more, Gohan fell to his knees. One-by-one, the Multi-Form Gohans all vanished, eventually only leaving the one that had fired off the Masenko. Sweat poured down Gohan's brow, but he knew this wasn't over. He shakily got to his feet and his Super Saiyan Power flared. "Come on!"

No response. Once again, he furiously shouted. " _ **COME ON!**_ "

Nothing.

After the smoke completely cleared, Gohan was left bewildered. The space that the Androids had once occupied was empty, only burnt tatters of clothing remaining in place. Gohan stared at the empty space, it slowly registering in his mind that the Androids were not there.

 _He had...won?_

No... that couldn't be, could it? After all of that effort, after all the Androids had done before...was this really it? Gohan fell onto his butt, his Super Saiyan power fading away. The feeling of victory slowly washed over the young warrior...but with that feeling of victory came a feeling a pure unease. Gohan knew that something was wrong here.

 _Over the course of two more years..._

Things in the world took a significant upturn after the Androids "vanished". And, without the Androids constantly hunting them and killing them for sport, humanity was able to bounce back from their second near-extinction and rebuild society and the majority of cities. The rise of the new cities came about and, soon enough, the Z-Survivors were able to leave the Blake Bog and move back to New West City.

The first surprise that came about upon their grand return to society was one that caught everyone, especially Bulma, off-guard. The Briefs daughter walked onto the Capsule Corp lawn and was flabbergasted to find that not only were her parents still alive, but that the Pilaf Gang were alive with them. The 8-year-old Pilaf, Shu, and Mai all spat at Bulma, but they were otherwise quite well-behaved. Panchy had done an excellent job of educating the three former troublemakers on how to be a proper young man, woman, and dog.

The three of them quickly joined up with Gohan's trio of students and all became fast friends.

And so, as quickly as ruin had set upon the Earth, peace set back in the for the remaining populace. And, as that peace continued to set in place, the Androids became less of a real threat that had once affected all and more a rumor that was only whispered in private. The more skeptical people across the planet began to wonder whether their tormentors had even existed in the first place. Conspiracy theorists and talking heads quickly took to the airwaves to declare the two killer droids to be little more than a cheap trick or an illusion. Some even went as far as to call them a plot by the deceased King Furry to stymie the growing population that had blown up in his face.

As time passed, among the Z-Family, the narrative shifted on poor Gohan as well. Even as he returned from the battle where 17 and 18 apparently perished, the young warrior was in a state of disbelief. And that disbelief never went away. No matter how much Chi-Chi, Master Roshi, or Bulma tried to convince him that he had overcome the challenge, grown stronger, and done what Goku had always managed to do, the feeling of unease never left Gohan's mind. Even when faced with the argument that it had been nearly two years without so much as a peep, Gohan still couldn't shake the feeling off.

He was no stronger than Mr. Piccolo, Vegeta, or Grandpa Bardock were when 17 and 18 killed them. So, if they couldn't kill those two by themselves back then...then how in the hell did he manage such a feat himself?

Going into the future, while everyone else chose to look towards the light, Gohan could make himself stop staring back in the darkness.

 _In the Gizard Wastes..._

Gohan sat in a staunch meditation. In his mind, he fought against various shadows of fights that he had experienced in his past. He fought with shadows of Piccolo and his father, Krillin and Bardock, Frieza and Recoome, and Androids 17 and 18. He needed to be ready because he knew that, eventually, the other shoe on this would drop. Even if everyone called him crazy, Gohan knew that he had to be ready.

What Gohan was not ready for, however, where three heavy lumps landing on him with all of their weight. So focused on his training, Gohan was unprepared for this sudden assault and he, alongside his three attackers, all tumbled down the hill and into the sand below. Gohan stood quickly, taking a fighting stance. "I don't know how you think you are, but-"

Trunks stood up, quickly trying to get Gohan to calm. "Wait! Wait! We're sorry! We thought you'd sense us coming!"

The other two stood, Ranch nervously chuckling. "How have you been, Gohan...?"

Gohan chuckled, watching as his three pupils stood up. The three of them were still wearing their West City primary school uniforms, as if they had all just left the school and rocketed straight to him. Gohan cocked his head. "What are you three doing out here like this? You're going to make the Mom Squad angry if you shirk responsibilities with a paranoid weirdo like me..."

The purple-haired boy shook his head. "You aren't a paranoid weirdo!"

The girl sighed. "Well...he is a bit paranoid. And I guess he's weird from a normal person's perspective..."

The black-haired boy interjected. "That's beside the point! We miss you! And it's summer break Gohan! So we decided that we wanted to sneak out here and train with you like we used to! We miss being able to train with you!"

The 19-year-old looked to his three students. His three young siblings. And, after knocking the idea around in his head a bit, he sighed. "Fine. You guys can stay. But if any of your mothers come out here and start yelling, this was your idea! Got it?"

The three kids' eyes all lit up and they all nodded in agreement. " _YES SIR!_ "

And so, began another training session between the Hero of the Future and his three young charges. Much in the vein of his father, his grandfather, and his green guardian, Gohan was tough but fair in the months of training that followed. He pushed the three of them to their limits, but he also blended in his own personal touch of targeted improvement and self-confidence boosting one-on-one chats.

With his purple-haired young charge, Gohan taught the finer points of swordsmanship. He let Trunks grow and expand in technique and even make up a few new techniques of his own. He also learned of the problems that Trunks was facing as he grew. The boy had never met his father, only hearing legend of the man through secondary sources. And this was having a negative effect on Trunks' self-confidence. As they trained, Gohan spoke gently to Trunks. "I'm sure that Vegeta would be proud of you Trunks! I know he would be! You're shaping up to be one fine warrior, and that's all Vegeta ever really wanted out of anybody..."

Trunks sighed. "I-If you say so..."

With his black-haired young charge, Gohan helped to educate him on how to better wield the Power Pole. Even if he, himself, had never used such a tool before, Gohan was able to impart some useful technical tips onto the younger Saiyan and help him to learn to focus his creative, easily distracted mind. The young man gasped as he swung his staff, in genuine disbelief at what Gohan said to him in private. "Y-You mean it...? _Just like Dad...and Uncle...?_ "

Gohan smirked and nodded. "Yeah. You remind me so much of both of them. With your technique, with your skills, with your looks...I know they'd be proud of you if they were here to talk. And... I know they'd be so happy to be able to meet someone like you..."

And finally, with his young, female charge, Gohan taught her how to better focus on control her ki in order to make sharper and more focused ki attacks. Ranch could scrap. She could fight with the best of them, but it was clear to Gohan that her real talents were with her ki and her control of her ki. In that regard, she was certainly Raditz's daughter. But something that Ranch admitted to Gohan in private was enough to shake the warrior to his core. "What do you mean you think she hates you? Launch could never hate you, Ranch..."

Ranch sighed as she cleaned her ki rifle. "M-Maybe hate isn't the right word...it's just...I..."

The young lady sighed. "She just seems to grow more and more distant by the day. It's like she's just letting less and less important things slip away from her everyday...and it feels like my turn to be cast off is getting closer and closer..."

As days went by, so did months. The four young warriors stayed in the Gizard Wastes together, with only themselves and the stars above to keep them company. Chi-Chi and Bulma both stopped by every so often, to deliver food and rations or to stay a couple of nights themselves. But, for the most part, the Mom Squad gave the kids their space and allowed them to bond. And, as they bonded, their strength grew higher and higher every day.

And this bonding and training experience continued until, one fateful day, Gohan's worst fears were proven right.

It was the end of the summer. The child trio were all expected to report back to West City for classes. As they said their goodbyes, however, and loaded themselves into Bulma's plane, the radio in the plane suddenly shrieked a chilling message. "BREAKING NEWS! IN A HORRIFIC TURN OF EVENTS, IT WOULD SEEM THAT THE ANDROIDS HAVE BEEN SPOTTED IN OCEAN CITY!"

The kids all cried out in shock. Gohan snarled and gripped his fists. "I knew it. I knew they couldn't have died so easily... _those bastards!_ "

Bulma was stunned silent. But then, the radio spoke its desperate message again and Bulma's eyes widened. "Wait...Ocean City? But that's..."

Gohan turned to her. "What?! What is it, Bulma?!"

Bulma turned towards Gohan. "Master Roshi just took a trip to Ocean City. He said he was going to go ogle girls on the beach. So, if he's there and the Androids are there, then-"

Before Bulma could even finish, Gohan had already taken off. The warrior had a chilled expression on his face. He raced forward with all of his might, his Super Saiyan form flaring up in the process. He had to get to Ocean City as soon as possible. Not just to stop the Androids, but to save Master Roshi's life!

 _In Ocean City..._

The two Androids stood on a dock facing the ocean, their faces hidden under two large hats. 17 chuckled as he stared out at the sparkling ocean, the flames of their latest path of destruction reflect in the otherwise calm water. "Ooh-hoo-hoo boy~! It's great to be back after so long~!"

18 giggled, her foot pressed firmly down on a dead beachgoer's neck. "Do you think our old friend will be here to see us soon?"

17 shrugged. "Knowing him, probably. Unless something else got to him first. Heart disease, hunting accident, that stick he constantly had jammed up his ass..."

18 rolled her eyes. 17 shook his head. "But, nah. Seriously...it think it'll be any second now..."

And then, right on cue, Gohan landed. His power flared out around him, expelling flames for miles around, and he shouted at the top of his lungs. " _I KNEW YOU MONSTERS WERE STILL ALIVE!_ "

17 snorted as he laughed, slowly turning. "See 18? Like clockwork~"

18 sighed. "So, you knew huh? Well what gave it away, if I may ask..."

Gohan snarled, gripping his fists tight. "I'm not in the business of overestimating myself. I intended to kill you two just as much two years ago as I do right now, but I'm not fool enough to think that the attack I pulled on you before was even close to enough..."

17 chuckled, revealing his cruel, cold eyes to Gohan and tossing his hat aside. "Well, gotta give you this much dude...you're certainly smarter than all of the other dumbasses who convinced themselves we never existed."

18 cocked her head, tossing aside her hat and revealing that she was wearing a very familiar pair of sunglasses. "But, then again, how smart could you be to just run in and face us down like this? Do you really think that you're strong enough to fight us? Huh, Gohan?"

Gohan's eyes widened. "Those...those glasses..."

18 smirked. "Oh, these? Yeah...I got these from some old pervert..."

She pointed down to the dead beachgoer under her foot. "He was trying to touch this girl's ass. But, when I threatened to kill her, he jumped right in to protect her from being attacked. What a dumbass~"

Gohan gripped his fists tight, lowering his head and growling in frustration. " _No..._ "

17 curiously cocked his head. "Was that pervert...a friend of yours?"

Gohan snapped, blowing off that question and shouting one of his own. "Why?! Why go out of the way to disappear like that?! Huh?! What is wrong with the two of you?!"

18 shrugged. "The shit we were doing was becoming too predictable. The first time around, we killed too quickly and nearly lost out all of our fun. The most recent time, we went way too slowly and people just kinda started accepting their fate..."

17 rolled his eyes. "It's just not fun without the fear of death, ya know? If they aren't crying their eyes out and begging to live, then what the hell are we even doing?"

Gohan glared at them, tears building in his eyes. "Sick bastards. I hate you. _I hate you both so much..._ "

18 smirked. "And see, that's the other thing right there. You were starting to just go through the motions too. You were getting too comfortable~"

17 narrowed his eyes and nodded. "Yeah. And nothing is as fun as seeing _you_ in pain~"

Gohan roared at the top of his lungs, his power surging. And then, with no more preamble, he charged at Android 17 and Android 18 and prepared to do battle once more.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	71. Chapter 71: Present, Part 2

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Hey guys. I sincerely hope that everyone stays safe during these hard times we're going to be facing. We'll all make it through this~!_ _Also, I am quite sorry about how bleak the story is during these hard times. Anyone familiar with Dragon Ball knows where this is going and that it only gets worse from here. But I thank you for you continued support and hope you enjoy regardless._

 _ **Chapter 71: Present, Part 2**_

 _In New West City, Capsule Corp..._

Gohan groaned in pain as he laid in his medical bed within Capsule Corp. The young warrior shuddered, his various wounds from his battle aching beneath their bandages. But the pain was not was Gohan was focused on. Instead, he reflected upon the words that 17 and 18 said to him after his most recent defeat.

 _Earlier, in Ocean City..._

Android 18 stomped her boot down on the gash on Gohan's face, making blood spurt and making the defeated Saiyan scream in pain. She chuckled and mocked him, still wearing the late Master Roshi's sunglasses. "You're such a dumbass, you know that?!"

She stomped again. " _Dumb. Ass._ "

17 smirked from his spot, sitting on a nearby rail. "Seriously, man, how could you just go on thinking that you had killed us, huh? You didn't even bother to search after we so conveniently 'died'. You just went on and on and on like all of your problems just vanished..."

18 laughed out loud and kicked Gohan in the ribs. "Did you really think this pathetic little golden transformation of yours was enough?!"

She shook her head. " _Super Saiyan_. Gimme a break..."

17 stood up and walked over, him and 18 both looming over Gohan. 17 chuckled. "No matter what you are, Super or otherwise, you're still just one guy. That wasn't enough when Vegeta faced us and that won't be enough now."

18 wickedly smirked. "Vegeta and Raditz teaming up wasn't even enough. Raditz wasn't 'Super' by any means..."

Gohan snarled. 17 and 18 both laughed. And then 17 continued. "You'll need more than one Super Saiyan to beat us. Too bad you're the only one~"

18 shook her head, a scowl crossing her face. "But, that's irrelevant. You're boring now. _BO-RING_. If you're this boring next time we fight, we're going to actually murder you. So, you'd better get stronger or whatever..."

And then both Androids took off, leaving Gohan among the wreckage of Ocean City.

 _Two months later, back in the Gizard Wastes..._

After a couple weeks of healing, Gohan got up and immediately got to work on the plan that he had worked out. His goal: to come up with a solution that would stop the Androids once and for all. His plan: raise up three more Super Saiyans to fight at his side and help him put 17 and 18 away for good.

And so, to carry out this plan, Gohan took his three students out into the Gizard Wastes and began a non-stop regiment of training in an attempt to get the three of them strong enough to ascend. And, for as much effort as Gohan put into this regiment, the three kids gave back just as much. This training went on for two, uninterrupted months.

The trio of children were all knelt on the ground, huffing and exhausted. Standing over them, Gohan spoke clearly and firmly. "Come on, you three! I know you can give more than that! _Come at me!_ "

Ranch got up first, charging at Gohan with a furious scream and attempting a flurry of punches. Gohan was barely phased, blocking the attacks before yanking Ranch up by her tail and casting her aside. Ranch crashed against the ground and slid, but quickly got onto her feet and pulled her pistol, firing several ki bullets at Gohan's back.

Gohan feinted to the side, dodging the bullets, but was forced to jerk out of the way to avoid a Power Pole strike. He grabbed the Power Pole, giving it a hard tug, and pulled its wielder high into the air before smashing him atop Ranch. Gohan was serious. "You've got to be less obvious with your attacks! 17 and 18 could use any of the openings you've both given me to kill you!"

He looked around. "Now, where's Trunks?"

Trunks lunged at Gohan from the side, swinging his sword at his mentor with all of his might. Gohan dodged each swing with a sigh, eventually coating his hand with ki and catching the blade. "Come on, Trunks..."

Gohan shot his foot forward, kicking Trunks in the stomach and forcing him to release his grip on the sword. As Trunks laid on the ground, coughing, Gohan swung the sword around. "All of your attacks are too one-step! You need to have another move ready to go if/when your first one fails! You need to work better on combining your talents and confusing your foe! You three need to build off of each other, damn it!"

Ranch groaned. "H-He's right..."

And then, without missing a beat, Ranch grabbed the Power Pole and pointed it directly at Gohan's face. "Headshot!"

The pole extended and smashed right into the center of Gohan's forehead. He growled and grabbed the tip of the pole, yanking it to the side. "You think-"

Gohan flinched. The girl was still there, but both of the boys were gone. He looked around, noticing that the two had masked their energies. "Where-"

Suddenly, two hails of ki bullets began to rain from the rocky structures above. Gohan glared around, trying to find his hidden attacks, only to be suddenly assaulted on the front by even more ki bullets. He glared at Ranch, who smiled at him. "I might've brought a few spare guns~"

Gohan frowned and began to deflect any shots that Ranch took at his face. However, in his distraction, a voice shouted behind him. "Give Trunks his sword back!"

Gohan turned and was met by a massive headbutt to the stomach. The wind was knocked from the warrior and he dropped the sword. His headbutting attacker dropped to the ground and grabbed the blade, acting like he was about to swing it. Gohan went to block, but then the trio's plan became clear. A single ki bullet shot down towards the blade, hitting it and reflecting off directly into Gohan's face. He hissed in pain, and then was met by a kick to the back from Ranch. As Gohan fell back, he looked up and saw Trunks right above him, a massive blast in hand. "Eat this Gohan! GOD BREAKER!"

The blast hit Gohan, pressing him to the ground and blowing up in grand fashion. It took the warrior a minute, but he stood back up and faced his students once more. The three of them stood there, tails waving around. Each held their weapons aloft and glared at him. Gohan chuckled, his tail waving around as well. "Man... if only my Dad, Vegeta, and Raditz could see this..."

Gohan dropped his focus for a moment, the three kids in front of him all looking like proper warriors. This made him smile...but that smile only served to mask how he honestly felt on the inside. The three of them looked like Saiyan warriors, but the past months of training had taken their toll. Working non-stop towards the goal of Super Saiyan had left the three of them battered and bruised and dirty. Gohan sighed. "Let's...stop for now. We all need a break..."

Trunks flinched. "A-Are you sure Gohan? We can keep going. Right guys?"

The other two both nodded. Gohan chuckled. "I... appreciate that guys. I really do. But you deserve a break. And besides..."

Gohan felt their energy approaching. He turned and saw Bulma's plane, knowing that she and Launch and his mother were all aboard. He grumbled under his breath. " _I get the feeling I'm about to get an earful anyway..._ "

The three mothers landed and marched out of Bulma's ship with a collective fury among them. Chi-Chi, the most forgiving of the three on this case, bid her son hello, stroking his scarred face before rushing over to check on the kids. Gohan watched as she doted over each of them, and then gasped as Chi-Chi produced a bag from her pocket and pulled out three very familiar-looking beans. "A-Are those...?!"

"Senzu Beans."

Gohan turned and saw Bulma and Launch standing right behind him. Bulma had an annoyed, verging on angry, expression on her face. Launch glared at Gohan with cold fury. Bulma continued. "Those were the only Senzu Beans I could produce from that plant Yajirobe gave us. It's dead. So, those are the only ones we have."

The scientist shook her head. "But, that's beside the point. Let Chi-Chi watch the kids, Gohan. We need to have talk."

Gohan flinched, but then he sheepishly followed along as Bulma and Launch lead him behind the ship. Once behind, and out of the children's sight, Bulma took a deep breath. "Look...I know you need someone to train with. And I know the kids want to train with you. But...it's been days Gohan. Days with no contact, with no break, without a single peep from you or them. You can't just sequester yourself and then out here like this. They're kids, they need time to do things that aren't this..."

Gohan shook his head, looking guilty. "Bulma, I know that...but...we...we need to get stronger. All four of us. Or this nightmare with 17 and 18 will never stop! I can't do this alone! I need them Bulma! I need them to become stronger to help me fight, otherwise 17 and 18 are going to get bored and kill me one day! And then what?!"

Bulma fell silent, sadness streaked across her face at the sound of Gohan's voice cracking. She gripped her fist. Gohan pressed his hand against his face. "I know this isn't the preferable solution. I know that this isn't how any of us wanted this to go. I know that I'm a warrior and I should be stronger enough to handle this. I..."

Gohan trailed off, not even speaking to Bulma at this point. "I...I know that...this...is..."

" _Pathetic._ "

Gohan and Bulma both looked up at the sour-faced Launch. She glared at Gohan so harshly that it was practically boring a hole through him. She snarled at Gohan. "That's the word you like to use for situations like this, right?! Pathetic?!"

Her fists were shaking. "You said it yourself so long ago. It's pathetic when someone isn't strong enough to solve problems that other people would have been able to. It's pathetic to try to solve your problems with the strength of others. It's pathetic that you, in all the time you've been fighting, haven't become strong enough."

Bulma tried to speak. "Launch, let's not-"

Launch ignored Bulma. "You said it yourself Gohan. So long ago...when you convinced a certain someone that foolishly dying was better than living on and surviving?! You're too weak to fight the Androids on your own, so you're relying on others. Doesn't that just make you pathetic?!"

Gohan's shoulder went limp. "I... I'm so sorry. We're...we're so close to reaching Super Saiyan, all four of us. And then-"

Launch sneered. "And then you can lead our kids to die, right?"

Gohan feel silent, looking utterly miserable. Launch turned away. "The three of them are coming home for a hot meal and a rest. Super Saiyan or not."

As Launch marched away, Bulma looked towards Gohan. She walked over and pulled him into a hug. "She...she didn't mean all that, Gohan. I know she didn't. She's still just upset about Raditz."

Gohan didn't say a word. Bulma looked up at him, stroking his scarred face. "You need to come back too. The kids aren't the only ones in need of a rest."

Gohan stood there silent as Bulma walked over to join up with Launch, Chi-Chi, and the kids. He gripped his fists tight. And then, they fell limp and he walked onto the ship.

 _3 years later, in New West City..._

And so, for the next three years, Gohan and the mothers continued to clash. Gohan needed the kids to train. He needed them to get stronger. But he couldn't argue that the worried parents didn't have a point. So, an agreement was reached. Three months of training, three months of rest in West City. And, all the while, Gohan continued to push himself to repel the Androids' attacks. Luckily, training with the young trio had allowed Gohan to continue to improve himself. But still never enough to defeat the mechanical menaces.

Chi-Chi had tried her best to stay positive in the face of this desperate situation, doting over the children and trying to keep the three of them on their study plans. She also tried her best to care for Gohan, even if her son was increasingly worn down.

Bulma served as the middle-man, not exactly approving of Gohan's methods, but not picking at him either. The scientist was at her wit's end. Nothing she tried could replicate the Senzu Beans. Nothing she tried could crack the technology that Dr. Gero used to make the Androids. Bulma was lost, unsure of anything she could do to help. Until, one day, she came up with a farfetched idea that she thought might work...

And, finally, Launch was the least forgiving of the three women. Outside, Launch was cold and distant from everyone. Even the kids were starting to become distant to her. In her heart, Launch was broken and hurt. The loss of her friends, the loss of Raditz, and...the loss of such a major piece of herself...continued to take their toll on the poor woman. The bitter, hateful feelings that festered in her heart only grew more rancid and deep-seated as time went on.

The training of the children to become Super Saiyans continued on, with small progress being made each day. But, it was clear to every adult involved that the remains of the Z-Family were drifting further and further apart every day.

And so, another three-month period of training ended. A three months of surprisingly few Android attacks. As the three children and Gohan marched up to Capsule Corp in New West City, Chi-Chi ran out to meet them. The poor woman's hair was going gray from stress and natural age, but she still greeted each of her babies with a cool bottle of water and a massive hug. Gohan sighed as he watched his mother hug each of the three kids and then gratefully accepted a hug of his own. Chi-Chi spoke gently. "I'm glad to have you all back. Now, why don't you come in and have a rest. Let me take your outfit and sew it up and you can enjoy a nice, hot-"

And then, as if on cue, the radio came to life with another emergency broadcast. Chi-Chi flinched at the sound of it: the familiar, desperate call of a radio broadcaster announcing that the Androids had shown up at a new city.

"I repeat, once more, the Androids have been spotted on the outskirts of Ginger Town, headed towards the Super World amusement park! _All Ginger Town citizens please evacuate with haste!_ "

Chi-Chi shook her head. "N-No! Gohan no! You just got back!"

Gohan sighed. Trunks turned to him, looking concerned. "Gohan..."

The other two kids looked worried as well. Before any of them could say anything else, Bulma came rushing out into the yard. "D-Did you hear?! The Androids! They're so close..."

Gohan nodded. "Yep. Looks like...I don't get to rest quite yet..."

The young warrior sighed. "Bulma, could you let me hold the Senzu Beans that you and Yajirobe grew? How many are left...?"

Bulma pulled out the bag, giving it a shake. "Four."

He nodded. "Four should be enough."

And then, Gohan opened the bag and grabbed a bean, popping it into his mouth to recoup his strength and stamina. "Or, three now. I guess."

Gohan turned and started to walk away, giving a solemn wave goodbye to the kids, Bulma, and Chi-Chi. "I should be back soon. Usually, when I have to fight them in a theme park or a play place, they're pretty eager to get it over with..."

Everyone silently watched Gohan walked off, all of them desperate for him not to go. Finally, as he started to take off, Ranch cried out. "Gohan! Wait!"

Gohan turned, seeing the desperate looks on his students' faces. The bluish-haired girl had readied her guns, the purple-haired boy his sword, and the black-haired boy his staff. He waved the staff at Gohan, a determined look in his eye. "We can help you, Gohan! Let us come with you! If the four of us work together then...then..."

Trunks thrust his sword at Gohan. "Then the Androids are finished! This time for good!"

Gohan sadly looked upon the three kids, and then over at the visibly terrified Bulma and Chi-Chi. He took in a deep breath, and then sighed. "No."

The three of them flinched, Ranch dropping one of her guns in the process. "W-What?!"

Gohan shook his head. "Not yet. You three aren't ready yet. For now...I think I need to continue the fight alone. Like I said, I'll be back soon...so you three just enjoy your rest, okay?"

And then, with that, Gohan took off in the direction of Ginger Town. Once he was out of sight, the flustered Chi-Chi turned to the three kids. "H-He's right. Why don't you all come in and I'll make you some nice, cold juice..."

The Power Pole was thrown to the ground hard, clattering against the stone pathway. " _JUICE?!_ "

Ranch picked up her dropped firearm. "Y-You expect us to just sit here and drink juice...?"

Trunks gripped his sword tight, his power flaring. "How can we just relax when, again, Gohan had to go out and take a beating alone like this. It... it's not right..."

And then, all three of them shouted at the same time. " _ **IT'S NOT FAIR!**_ "

 _Super World, on the outskirts of Ginger Town..._

Death and destruction echoed across the once happy aisles of Super World as 17 and 18 committed random havoc and had their own form of twisted fun. The two Androids had made a merry time of riding every ride the laid their eyes upon, but only after mercilessly slaughtering the helpless people trapped aboard. The air around the theme park stunk of fear and blood.

As the two of them stepped off of the tilt-a-whirl, Android 18 chuckled. "So, when do you think he's going to get here?"

17 shrugged. "Any minute now. He rarely ever takes longer than this~"

" _ANDROIDS!_ "

17 smirked. "Right on cue."

Gohan landed in front of his two hated enemies and instantly struck a fighting stance. 17 scoffed. "Just going right into it, huh? You don't even wanna chat first? You're usually so much more into it after you've heard what it is 18 and I have done..."

The Saiyan snarled, his eyes glowing with anger and rage as his Super Saiyan power burst forth. "I don't need to hear it. I already hate the both of you so much...I'm ready to get the fight started and put an end to your evil once and for all!"

18 smirked, walking forward and cracking her knuckles. "Fine..."

Her eyes sparkled with an evil, blue glint. "You asked for it, you little p-"

Suddenly, to the surprise of both Gohan and Android 17, a glowing flash came shooting down from the air and slammed into Android 18's face. 18 sneered, turning her attention to the air. "Who in the hell threw that blast?!"

She was quickly answered by a rapid, triple team attack. Two feet stomped onto her shoulders, another two feet smashed into the back of her head, and then a very familiar staff smashed into 18's chest. "POWER POLE EXTEND!"

And then, the staff launched 18 through the air into a nearby teacup ride.

17 cocked his head, less concerned about 18 and more concerned about these new intruders. "And who are these guys?"

Gohan was shaking. "No...what...what are the three of you doing here?!"

Standing between Gohan and Android 17 were Gohan's three students. Each of them held their weapons aloft and stared down the remaining Android. 17 was still confused. "So...you know these three, Gohan? Well then, why don't you introduce me?"

Gohan shook his head. "What are you three doing here?! Trunks, Ran-"

Suddenly, a shriek echoed out from the teacups. A burst of intense power sent rubble and debris flying all around and 17 groaned. "Oh man, I think the kids pissed her off..."

" _IT DOESN'T MATTER_ _ **WHO**_ _THEY ARE!_ _ **DEAD!**_ _THEY'RE ALL_ _ **DEAD!**_ "

17 sighed. "Yup. Definitely pissed her off..."

As the sound of 18 angrily stomping drew closer and closer, the three kids turned and each shot Gohan a look of solidarity. Trunks held out his sword. "Forget the training, forget what our Moms' have to say, and forget Super Saiyan. We're plenty strong enough to help out here, Gohan! We aren't letting you fight this fight alone! Not ever again!"

The other two both nodded. Gohan sighed. "Well...I guess it's too late to really tell you guys to leave. That would only encourage one of the two of them to chase you..."

He groaned. "Fine. The three of you can hold off 18 seeing as you've already made her angry. Maybe, without her jumping in and attacking me...I might be able to beat 17..."

Ranch nodded. "So, hold off 18? We can do that!"

She cocked her gun. Next to her, Trunks pulled out his sword. He had a steely look in his eye. "We certainly can!"

Gohan smiled. Next to him, however, he saw the tip of the Power Pole out of the corner of his eye. He turned to the wielder and gave a confident smile. "Don't be scared. You might not be at the level we were hoping, but the three of you have this..."

He shot the boy a thumbs-up. The young man looked up at Gohan nervously. "A-Are you sure you don't want back up against 17? I...I could stay and help..."

Gohan shook his head. "The three of you working together to halt 18 _is_ my back-up. And I have faith in you guys. You can handle this!"

The boy nervously nodded, holding his Power Pole out and running up to join Trunks and Ranch. The three kids all looked to one another, and then quickly back at Gohan, and then the three of them charged off to face down Android 18.

Android 17 chuckled. "That was cute. You should've been a motivational speaker instead of a fighter~"

Gohan sneered. "The only motivating I plan to do here is to motivate you bastards into an early grave..."

17 snorted. "Ooh~ Nice quip. But a quip isn't going to help you here..."

Gohan snarled. "I'm willing to bet that you won't be so cocky without your insurance policy backing you up. 18 isn't here to blast me in the back when things get too heavy for you, 17!"

17 glared. "Yeah. Sure. _Keep telling yourself that it was 18 that was making you lose..._ "

And then, Gohan and Android 17 clashed. A lightning-fast exchange of blows took place between the warrior and his Android foe, ending with 17 smashing Gohan right across the jaw with his fist. Gohan skidded back, but his did not lose foot. He did a spin, moving out of the way of 17's next strike, and then launched himself directly into the Android's back, planting both feet into 17's spine and making the Android eat dirt.

Gohan stood over 17, his power flaring. This only served to piss 17 off. The Android quickly pushed himself up and punched Gohan in the stomach. Gohan responded with a punch of his own, uppercutting 17 under the jaw. 17 sneered and went for a kick, but Gohan was able to intercept and catch. 17 snarled. "Let my leg go!"

Gohan roared in anger and then smashed his elbow down onto 17's knee. 17 cried out in pain and then Gohan followed up with an elbow to the face. With 17 stunned, Gohan lifted the Android into the air by his leg and smashed him face-first onto the ground. 17 growled and pushed himself up, having cushioned his landing with a quickly thrown-up energy shield. He quickly whipped around and aimed a blast right at Gohan, but Gohan responded with a blast of his own. The two energy attacks both exploded in grand fashion and Gohan and 17 both retreated to regroup.

17 wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth. "Wh...what the hell?! What the hell is this?!"

Gohan took another, tight fighting stance. "A reckoning."

17 snarled. "Cute. Real cute. But you're in for it now! I'm gonna hit you with my full fury, boy! _They'll have to mop you up by the time I'm done with you!_ "

Gohan's eyes narrowed. "It sure doesn't take much for the mighty 17 to lose his cool. You really are nothing but an out-of-control child underneath that skin you wear, huh?"

17 smirked. "Big talk..."

And then, very quickly, 17 vanished from sight. Faster than Gohan could follow, the Android sprinted forth and smashed his fist into Gohan's stomach. Gohan gurgled and slumped over, making 17 laugh out loud. "...but big talk only gets you so far! Tell me Gohan, how did that one feel?! Huh?!"

And then, his composure broken, 17 began to smash his fist down onto the back of Gohan's head over and over and over. " _Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?! Huh?!_ _ **Huh?!**_ "

17 stopped, his fist dyed red. Blood was pouring from Gohan's head. 17 was utterly manic at even the slightest sign of Gohan posing a threat. "Well?! _**ANSWER ME!**_ "

Suddenly, to 17's shock, Gohan's Super Saiyan power flared. He lifted his head, a mask of blood pouring down his face, and he glared at 17 with his fierce, emerald eyes. "I've been hit harder, _you psychotic brat!_ "

And then, with all of his strength, Gohan smashed his fist into the side of Android 17's face and sent the Android flying through the nearby Ferris Wheel and into the House of Mirrors. Gohan gave chase, having barely lost a step in this fight.

 _Meanwhile, over by the teacups..._

Android 18 was infuriated as these three new pests continued to force her back and throw off her balance. In the distance, the girl was firing at 18 with her guns. Except, unlike normal guns, these actually hurt for some reason. But, 18 could do very little about that as Sword-Dude and Staff-Boy remained right up in her face.

The two of them were working in perfect synch, practically doing to 18 what she and 17 had done to Gohan for so long. For every sword strike 18 deflected with her energy barrier, a staff shot smashed into her. For every staff shot she repelled, the brat with the blade added a new slice to her outfit. This was rapidly pissing 18 off. The only reason she and 17 were allowed to do this sort of thing to Gohan was because they were both stronger than him. These weak little pests, however...

18 snarled. " _YOU BRATS ARE PISSING ME OFF!_ "

Trunks shouted. "Then die angry!"

He swung his blade at 18, but she dodged and kicked him in the face for his trouble. The Power Pole tried to extend into 18's side, but she leapt over it and responded with a massive punch to the back of her younger foe's head. 18 charged two blasts. "Now, let's do some real damage~"

But, before she could fire, a massive ki bolt smashed into Android 18's face and exploded. On the sidelines, Ranch smirked as she held up her Capsule Ki Bazooka. "How's that for damage?!"

18 sneered and immediately sprinted right at Ranch. The girl tried to stand and fight, but 18 had none of it. She batted away the weapon in Ranch's hand and then rammed her thumb into the girl's mouth, heaving her into the air. " _Feeling cocky now, brat?!_ "

Ranch spoke around the thumb. "Fuh-Fuhvsay Fuhj..."

18 moved the digit. "Pardon?!"

Ranch raised his hand and snarled. "Thursday Surge!"

The blast enveloped 18 and shoved her back, making her drop Ranch. The blast quickly exploded, kicking up dust and leaving Ranch coughing. "D-Did it work?!"

The smoke very quickly cleared and revealed a singed and furious Android 18. Ranch swallowed a lump in her throat. "Crap."

18 lunged forward, but then her other two opponents fell from above, body-slamming the Android onto the ground. 18 raged, rolling over and punching both of the boys across the face. The two of them drew their weapons, raising them up to strike 18 with them. But she was able to grab and block both attacks. The two boys struggled, but it was readily apparent that neither of them were a match for 18 in strength. Enraged, 18 roared and snatched both of the weapons away, tossing them aside and nearly impaling Ranch with the blade. Then, she grabbed both boys by the throat and harshly smashed their heads together.

The two stumbled back, falling to the ground, and 18 stood up. She charged an energy blast and aimed it at the boys. "Die, you pests!"

But, suddenly, 18 was surprised by the glint of metal out of the corner of her eye. She turned and was met by a swinging blade in her face. 18 feinted back and sneered at Ranch. The little girl looked both angry and terrified as she charged towards her opponent. "You think I'm just going to sit back and watch you kill my friends?!"

Ranch swung the blade again, but 18 responded with a heavy kick, smashing her energy enhanced leg into the blade and shattering it into hundreds of pieces. Ranch stared at the hilt, perplexed and terrified, and 18 smashed the unawares girl in the side of the head with an additional kick.

Trunks pushed himself up, his vision blurry. He reached over and tried to rouse his partner. "H-Hey...get up..."

He partner groaned and started to stir. Trunks looked around. "R-Ranch! Ranch!"

A familiar shriek met Trunks' ears. He looked over and his jaw fell agape as he focused on the sight of Android 18 gripping Ranch by the hair. Ranch's face was contorted into a mask of pain and anguish as 18 chuckled at him. "Looking for her~? What, is she your girlfriend or something~?"

Trunks' pupils shrank. "P-Put her down! Right now!"

18 shrugged. "I'm just trying to teach her about the dangers of playing with knives. Stupid kids shouldn't handle them, or they might get hurt~"

And then, in a lightning quick display of shocking violence, Android 18 whipped Ranch up into the air and rammed the remainder of Trunks' sword into her gut. Ranch let out a pitiful yelp, and the 18 tossed to her to ground like trash.

Trunks screamed in agony. " _NO!_ "

18 chuckled. "You know, I really hate having to be around kids. But...I also really love hurting kids. So, I guess there's a lesson in there about the duality of life or some shit..."

Trunks' partner shakily pushed himself up. "Wh-What's going-"

Android 18 lifted a finger and fired a single beam through the boy's chest. He gasped in pain and then fell back, his eyes having gone white. Trunks was aghast. But, before he could so much as stand, Android 18 stomped her foot down onto the side of his head and chuckled. "Now...how should I kill you, huh?"

Trunks didn't answer. He barely paid attention to 18. Instead, he frantically looked around as two, rather large, pools of blood began to form under his two friends. "N-No...no..."

Tears began to roll from his eyes. " _Th-This can't be happening..._ "

18 blew a raspberry before erupting into a wicked cackle. "Are you crying?! _Weak!_ "

She held up her hand, readying a blast. "I think I'm just gonna blow your head off~"

18 moved slowly, trying to relish the moment. But then, a fearful cry took her out of it.

" _ **18! HELP ME!**_ "

Android 18 turned her head and saw the explosions going up across the theme park. "Goddammit 17, can't you see that I'm busy?"

18 dispersed the blast, abandoning Trunks and racing of in the direction of 17's fight with Gohan. Left alone and sniveling, Trunks shakily got up and rushed across the room to check on his friends. "G-Guys! _GUYS!_ "

 _Moments earlier, over by the Ferris Wheel..._

Android 17 threw a supersonic punch at Gohan, but the warrior's reflexes allowed him to easily catch the fist. A small sonic boom erupted around Gohan, and 17 flinched in shock. And then, Gohan forced the fist backwards with an audible crack from 17's wrist. 17 yelped in pain and Gohan took action. He smashed his elbow down onto the back of 17's neck and then smashed him in the face with his boot.

17 stumbled back and Gohan lunged forward with another attack, but the Android was able to quickly throw up an Energy Barrier. 17 was shaking, staring fearfully at Gohan through the green, energy field. Gohan stared with fiery hatred. And then, as if on instinct, Android 17 cried out. " _ **18! HELP ME!**_ "

Gohan sneered and leapt back. "Crying out for help?! Pathetic!"

He pressed his fingers to his brow. "But, that's fine. Let Android 18 come! She can see you dead and then she can join you!"

17 was hysterical, blood leaking from his face and nose. "Y-You think you can get me in here?! Do you know how strong this barrier is?!"

Energy was crackling on the tips of Gohan's fingers. " _No matter how much power you put into it, it's still just a bubble to be popped!_ "

And then, Gohan thrust his fingers towards 17 and fired a massive attack. " _SUPER SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

The drilling attack shot forward and smashed into the side of Android 17's bubble. The Android was confident for only a brief moment, and then he noticed that his protective barrier was warping inward. 17 gasped in fear and horror and side-stepped, just in time to avoid the piercing light shredding through and totally shattering his defense. 17 cried out. "H-How?! Vegeta, Bardock, Raditz, Piccolo... _none of them were ever this strong!_ "

"That's the difference of years..."

17 turned and his face went pale as he saw Gohan's hands form and charge a massive Kamehameha. Gohan was seething. "I've taken beatings from you and that she-devil for years. Did you think I got nothing from that?! Little-by-little, injury-by-injury, my power swelled and grew!"

Gohan gritted his teeth. "I surpassed you bastards a long time ago, _I just needed to split you up..._ "

17 cried out in panic. " _18!_ "

Gohan snarled. "Now, eat this, KAMEHAMEH-"

Blood erupted from Gohan's mouth. His blast faded and his arms fell to his sides. The warrior looked down, at the center of his chest, and saw a long piece of metal rebar stabbed through it. Behind himself, Gohan heard a familiar, feminine chuckle. " _You look so lame 17~_ "

18 stepped to the side. "Now, back to business as usual~"

17 stood up, his face streaked with utter rage. And then, he charged forward and kicked Gohan across the face hard enough to send the warrior flying off of the rebar and through a nearby wall. Gohan shakily pushed himself up, barely able to maintain Super Saiyan, and saw his old tormentors both looming over him once again. And then, the two of them came down on him hard.

 _Back at the teacups..._

Trunks had dragged his two friends closer together, so that he could try to attend to them both at the same time. The two of them were both still alive, but they were cold to the touch. Trunks stroked his hand across Ranch's face and shook his head. "No. No no no. _Please..._ "

And then, to Trunks' shock, Gohan suddenly came crashing through the roof of the ride. Trunks stared in horror at his mentor, laying on the ground bloodied and beaten. He cried out. " _Gohan!_ "

Gohan weakly lifted his head. "T-Trunks..."

Gohan's eyes widened at the sight of the other two. He cried out. "No! Ranch and... _ **NO!**_ "

The warrior tried to get up, to come over and check on his dying students. But, like two meteorites, the Androids fell from the sky and crashed into him. Trunks could only sit there, staring in horror as 17 and 18 dogpiled on Gohan. They kicked and they stomped and they flung energy blasts. Android 18 had a look of pure euphoria on her face, 17 had one of pure scorn. They kicked and kicked and beat Gohan senseless until, finally, 18 noticed Trunks. "Oh wait... _I remember now_..."

18 abandoned the thrashing of Gohan and began to stalk over towards Trunks. "We were still playing, right? I think I was gonna blow your head off~?"

Trunks recoiled in fear, shuffling back and trying to get away. But, eventually, his back hit a wall. Trunks braced himself, his hand scraping across the ground, and he winced in pain. The palm of his hand suddenly felt very warm, but Trunks wrapped his hand around the painful object.

18 knelt down in front of Trunks, grabbing him by the face and charging a blast in her other hand. "Now...let's see how many blasts your face can take before-"

Trunks cried out and swung the object in his hand. 18 shrieked in pain and stumbled back. 17 immediately stopped beating on Gohan and turned to 18. "What?! What now?!"

18 hissed. She slowly moved her hands and Gohan, Trunks, and 17 all saw what had happened. 18 had a massive, bleeding, deep gash going across her face, over the bridge of her nose, from cheek-to-cheek. She glared hatefully down at Trunks, who was utterly gobsmacked by what he had just done. And then, with a swift, harsh kick, she snapped the boy's neck.

Gohan gasped. " _N-No..._ "

17 harshly kicked him in the ribs for his troubles. He turned to 18. "H-Hey...sis."

18 was quivering with fury. "I want them dead, 17. All four of them. _Now._ "

Wordlessly, 17 nodded. The two Androids took to the air, leaving a battered Gohan and his three mortally wounded students laying in a heap. Gohan watched as they rose into the air. "What are they...?"

Two shining beacons twinkled in the air and Gohan's pupils shrank. " _Shit._ "

And then, his body moved on auto-pilot. Gohan quickly scooped over the dying girl and boy nearer to him and then he leapt atop of Trunks. And, as he did, 17 and 18's blasts collided with the teacup ride and enveloped all of Super World.

 _A few minutes later..._

Gohan's eyes cracked open, his vision still blurry and his ears still ringing. What was once a theme park was now reduced to a fallout zone. The warrior gave a brief scan to the sky above and saw no trace of 17 or 18. They had to have left by now. 18 was so vain she most likely immediately left to try and fix her face. Gohan groaned. Thinking of 18's injured face made him think of Trunks.

The warrior flopped over in the smoking wreckage of the former teacup ride and saw his three students, all of them thrown under a nearby cup just like he had left them. "Good..."

Gohan then started the arduous process of dragging himself over to the three. Every inch of his body was wounded and the pain was almost enough to make him pass out, but he soldiered on. Although, he would be lying if he said he didn't notice a distinct lack of mass on his left side.

Upon arriving next to the three of them, Gohan reached into his shirt. "D-Don't worry guys. I have j-just the solution..."

He quickly produced a small, brown bag and opened it. As he poured the contents onto the ground, Gohan smiled. "Senzu Beans..."

But then, that smile quickly faded. " _Th-Three_ Senzu Beans..."

Gohan glanced up at his three students: a broken neck, a pierced lung, and a gutted stomach. Gohan gripped is fist. "D-Damn..."

And then, he picked up the three beans...and reached up towards each of the kids' mouths.

 _Back in New West City, Capsule Corp..._

It was a cold, rainy night in New West City. In the background, the television was on a low volume. The story of the Androids' attack on Super World was barely audible. In their room, Dr. Briefs and Panchy both slumbered away, the childish Pilaf Gang sleeping in a small bed next to theirs.

In the lobby to Capsule Corp, the three mothers waited. Chi-Chi, Bulma, and Launch all paced. Each of them was a nervous wreck. But then, in a lightning flash, three shadows stretched across the lobby. The three mothers all ran to the doors, watching as they opened with relieved smiles.

What met them on the other side, however, was anything but joyous. The three children stood in the doorway. All of their faces were soaked with rainwater and stained with tears. Ranch was carrying the Power Pole, looking totally shell-shocked. And the two boys were carrying something else entirely.

The three mothers jaws dropped, Chi-Chi silently screaming at the top of her lungs. As she ran out into the rain to see her beaten, heavily injured son, Trunks ran in to his mother, grabbing her and desperately shaking her.

Bulma didn't understand what Trunks was saying at first, until she looked out again and realized that the injured, unconscious Gohan had only one arm.

 _One-year passes..._

The next year of life in the future was relatively quiet. If not for the looming threat over the horizon, one might almost confuse it with peace. Once again, the Androids had performed a vanishing act. And, while humanity was not stupid enough to think they were gone for good this time, their spirit and wills had been far too damaged at this point to even try to prepare a defense for 17 and 18's inevitable return.

Out in the Gizard Wastes, Gohan watched over his trio of students. Ever since that battle, the three of them trained day-in and day-out, ignoring not only the pleas of their mother's to not push themselves, but ignoring Gohan's pleas as well. Not one of the three of them had any desire to deal with 17 or 18 again, but they pushed past that. They couldn't afford to be afraid or to admit that they were truly, deeply scared. They had a purpose now, a purpose to help defend now that Earth's Greatest Defender had been so irreversibly handicapped.

As for Gohan himself, he knew that his date with destiny was drawing close. Every day, he knew that he might very well be living his last. The loss of his arm had rendered him much less capable in a fight than before. The damage to his lungs from the rebar had robbed him of a significant amount of his stamina. Even in mere sparring matches with his students and utilizing his full, Super Saiyan power...Gohan was nowhere near close to his peak during that fight with 17.

And, to Gohan's dismay, his students had still yet to ascend. They had made so many leaps in power and in technique. He was proud of all three of them, loving them dearly and constantly praising them...but they still had not ascended. And, Gohan feared, wouldn't ascend in time for the return of the Androids.

So, in his mind, Gohan had started making peace with the inevitable. He spent as much time as he could with his mother, telling her he loved her every day. He reminisced with Bulma about the good ol' days, and they shared tears over the memories of their departed friends. And, although she had not reciprocated like he had hoped she would, he had at least worked things out with Launch regarding her anger towards him. She still didn't talk to him anymore, but she at least didn't visibly hate being around him.

It wasn't an ideal life, but Gohan didn't hate his final days.

And then the inevitable came. It was a radio broadcast just like any other regarding Android 17 and Android 18. It came during lunch. They were attacking and slaughtering the people of Pepper Town. Gohan finished his meal, excused himself from the table, and then left.

And, once again, he was accompanied by three unwelcome guests hot on his heels.

 _The countryside outside of Pepper Town..._

Gohan stood in the middle of the Pepper Town countryside. He watched as various explosions echoed out in the distance, burning domes of ki bubbling up from within the defenseless town and the distant sound of people crying out in terror. Gohan gripped his remaining fist. "Well then..."

" _GOHAN! WAIT!_ "

He turned and watched as his black-haired young charge landed, drawing his Power Pole and desperately running up to the handicapped warrior. " _YOU CAN'T GO INTO THIS ALONE! ARE YOU CRAZY?!_ "

Soon after, Trunks and Ranch both landed as well. The two of them looked just as desperate. Gohan took a deep breath and shook his head. "Guys...you can't. I can't let you follow me into this. You haven't achieved Super Saiyan and...we don't have any Senzu Beans left. The Androids would-"

Ranch cut him off. " _You don't know that!_ "

Trunks was shaking. "We...we might not have that same level of power as you, but we're so much stronger now, Gohan! It won't be like last time! We won't-"

The power-pole wielder was shaking. "We won't hold you back!"

Tears built up in the girl's eyes. "P-Please, Gohan..."

Gohan was taken aback. He stared at the three kids, all of them desperate for a chance to help end the suffering the Androids were causing. Desperate to bring about a better world. Desperate...to not lose him. He didn't outwardly show it, but the very thought made his heart swell.

And, at that moment, something dawned on Gohan. He adopted a sad smile. "The three of you are so strong. So please..."

All of them flinched. And then, quicker than they could follow, Gohan zipped around and knocked each of the three unconscious. "...stay alive. And don't blame yourselves. Because none of this is your fault..."

And then, Gohan grabbed each of the three kids and carried them over to a nearby cave. As he walked, he studied each of their faces, trying his best to visualize in his mind how great the three of them would one day become. He gently set down the black-haired young man, the bluish-haired young woman, and then finally the purple-haired young man in the cave, and then blocked off the entrance from sight with fallen tree branches.

With that task done, Gohan looked up at the sky, getting one last view of the Sun as dark clouds started to roll in. "I get it now, Uncle Raditz..."

He gripped his fist and glared towards Pepper Town as the first raindrops started to fall. "I may fall...but the future is more important than anything else. I... I owe you an apology when I see you again..."

And then Gohan took off, flying towards destiny.

 _In Pepper Town..._

The rain began to pour and lightning began to flash. The wind swelled as Android 17 and Android 18 slaughtered an old couple in their car. As their terrified yelps turned to silence, lightning flashed around the Androids and they noticed a third shadow had joined them. Android 17 turned, a hateful glare accompanied by a sadistic smirk on his face. "Well, if it isn't Gohan..."

The Android fully turned, staring at the warrior that had embarrassed him a year ago. "You're still alive?"

Android 18 turned as well, the gnarly scar that Trunks had inflicted still apparent on her face. She chuckled. "Well...he sort of is. He appears to be missing something though..."

Gohan seethed. "Nice to see you too, 18. It's great that you're finally as ugly on the outside as you are on the inside."

18's smile faded, instantly replaced by a look of utter hate. "You might still be somewhat alive, but we can happily fix that for you..."

She glared over at 17. "No games. Kill him. Full power."

17 nodded. "Oh, I fully agree 18."

Gohan closed his eyes, the rainwater pouring down his hair and face. " _I will never die!_ "

17 and 18 both flinched. Gohan continued. "Even if my body breaks. Even if my spirit breaks. Even down an arm...you can kill me, but others will rise in my place. And they will dismantle you heartless Androids."

18 sneered. "Are you talking about those brats?"

17 snarled. "Those pieces of trash could never kill us!"

Gohan sighed. "If you honestly think that, then let's not focus on the future. We still have the present to deal with..."

And then, Gohan's eyes snapped open and his Super Saiyan power flared, the golden energy shining out in the otherwise bleak atmosphere. Gohan shouted as the oncoming storm swelled into a massive hurricane. "For now, I am still here! And I will give everything I have to kill you monsters!"

To the surprise of the Androids, Gohan defiantly shouted. His power surged forth, pressing against the two of them and forcing them back. Somehow, in spite of losing his arm, Gohan had become even stronger than before!

And then, not waiting for the Androids to strike first, Gohan rocketed forward and slammed his fist into 18's gut. 17 sneered. "Cocky prick!"

The Android slammed his hand down, looking to chop Gohan's head off clean, but Gohan flared his power and met 17's chop with his armless shoulder. The sheer force of the strike made the ground crack apart beneath Gohan's feet, but he powered through. He shoved 18 back and then, pivoting on his heel, he kicked Android 17 across the face.

Gohan lunged, trying to give chase to 17, but 18 was already back up. She surged forward and wrapped her hands and arms around Gohan's neck and face. She squeezed his mouth and nose shut and tightened her arm around the warrior's throat. " _Suffocate._ "

Gohan reacted quickly, however, reaching up and grasping 18 by the hair, giving it several harsh yanked before the pain caused 18 to flinched. With her grip loosened, Gohan turned and clubbed the back of his fist against 18's ear. 18 snarled and stumbled back, allowing Gohan to fire a massive blast at her that smashed her through the side of a building. 18 snarled and instantly shot out of the smoke, sticking her boot into Gohan's gut like a spear. Feeling the tip of her boot nearly pierce through, Gohan retreated back. 18 followed and continued her kicking assault, her legs like steel whips. Each swing of her lower limbs threatened to put Gohan down for good, but the warrior was defiant.

From behind, 17 charged in again with a fist drawn. Gohan saw this out of the corner of his eye and, grabbing 18 by the throat, threw her in the path of the punch. 17 flinched as he slugged his counterpart across the face and was kneed under the chin for his troubles. Gohan leapt into the air, charging a ki bomb, and slammed it down onto his two foes.

He briefly stopped to catch his breath, already winded due to his damaged lungs, but that proved to be a mistake. 17 and 18 both shot up at him and delivered a double knee strike to the warrior's stomach. Gohan gagged, blood shooting from his mouth, and then was forced into a two-way beating from both sides. 17 mocked him. "I'm glad we took a year off. It gave you enough time to figure out how to work with only one arm~"

18 snarled. " _DID YOU REALLY THINK YOU COULD TAKE US ON WITH A HANDICAP?!_ "

As Gohan took the beating, feeling each and every punch with all of the hatred and vitriol that 17 and 18 were putting behind them, he shifted gears. He had to create space, then maybe he could think of a better strategy. Both Androids reared back, each charging a two-handed Power Blitz, and Gohan saw his opportunity. He reached out his remaining arm and fired a massive blast into the distance. 17 and 18 both laughed, 17 mocking once more. "What kind of desperate shit was that?! You didn't even hit us!"

Gohan snarled. " _Wasn't aiming for you._ "

18 flinched. "Wha-"

And then, both Androids noticed the creaking. The two of them turned and saw that Gohan's blast hadn't just flown into the distance. It had hit a building. And that building was now lurching over on top of them. 17 and 18 gasped and Gohan, in the confusion, managed to slip away.

The sound of the building falling was deafening, and it drew the fight to a brief halt.

 _In an alleyway..._

Gohan sat in a puddle and tried to catch his breath. But, each attempt was shallow and ineffective. His chest was on fire and his head was light. Gohan mumbled to himself. "D-Dammit..."

He knew that that building wouldn't have killed 17 and 18. He had just bought himself a few moments. But, now that he was alone, Gohan was faced with a genuine conundrum: what did he have left?

The warrior thought and thought and thought, but nothing came to mind. He threw his head back and shouted as loud as he could, the surging winds and driving rain drowning out his voice. And then, once he had blown off his stress, Gohan looked down and saw his tail floating atop the puddle he was sitting in. The golden fur on the tail reflected in the water and he nodded. "I guess...that really is all there is, huh?"

 _Up in the air..._

17 and 18 were both furious as they scanned the ground for their hated enemy. 18 shrieked with rage and frustration. "Where did that coward go?! I want him dead, dammit! _**DEAD!**_ "

17 snapped at her. "Calm down! Losing our heads is only giving that punk the advantage! If we allow ourselves to lose focus, he might swoop in and kill one of us!"

18 was apoplectic. "I don't like this 17. He had no right. He has no right to be stronger than us. How dare he be stronger than us?! We're Gods! We're invincible! Nothing on this planet should hold a candle to us!"

17 gripped his fists. "I agree. Which is why we should take this seriously and kill this guy, so that no one can ever challenge us like he does again!"

18 snapped at 17. "Well, where is he?!"

17 glared over at her. "I don't f-"

The Android stopped, his eyes widening in shock as he stared at the massive, looming, red-eyed shadow behind 18. He could barely speak. " _Wh-What the hell is that...?_ "

17 blinked, and then he was surprised at the new sight he saw. 18 whipped around, turning to look, but nothing was there. She and 17 both stopped. 18 turned to him. "What?! What were you looking at?!"

17 stammered. " _I-I... I swear I just-_ "

And then lightning flashed again. And 17 and 18 realized that they had a massive shadow looming over them. They two of them looked up and saw the same looming shadow, hanging from the top of a skyscraper. Its red eyes stared down at them, looking utterly enraged. And then, the beast roared and all of its fur shined with a bright, golden light.

Gohan had done his last, desperate move. He had turned into an Oozaru. And that Oozaru had gone golden!

The golden ape leapt down and tried to stomp 17 and 18 to death with his massive foot. They both evaded, but then he immediately followed that up with a Mouth Cannon that shredded the surrounding area. The entire infrastructure of Pepper Town shook as Gohan rampaged, his bare feet stomping, his single fist beating against his bare chest, and his tattered, orange pants barely holding on.

In this form, Gohan still barely had any mental control. He couldn't speak, he couldn't form complex thoughts, but he definitely knew who he was targeting. The massive ape lunged at 17 and 18, his fist smashing down and just barely missing the two Androids. 17 sneered. "What the actual hell is this?!"

18 screamed. "Gero's database mentioned something about this, I think, but-"

Suddenly, Gohan's foot shot over and wrapped around 18. Kicking out, the ape flung the Android as hard as he could, smashing her through a nearby building. 17 cried out. "18!"

Gohan responded to 17's cry by swatting him out of the air with his tail and then charging another Mouth Cannon. 17 yelped and threw up his shield just in time to protect from the blast. And, while the bubble held up to the initial wave, the explosion proved to be too much and it sent 17 flying.

Across the city, 17 and 18 regrouped. 17 was burnt and battered and 18 was damaged as well. 17 was manic. "The database! What does it say, huh?! What does it say about this form?! How do we stop it?!"

18 nodded. "R-Right...it, uh..."

17 shoved her. " _Come on!_ "

18 snapped at him. " _Don't you shove me, I trying to think!_ "

She shook her head. "Tail. Moon. And Power Ball. If we chop off his tail, destroy the Moon, or find his Power Ball, then we can stop him."

17 glared up, scanning the sky. "It's too stormy for a Moon to be out. So, what the hell is-"

His eyes locked on a glowing ball in the sky. "Found it!"

18 glared up at the glowing ball as well. "Good. Let's destroy the damned thing!"

The two Androids both took off, flying upwards towards the Power Ball with blasts in hand. But right as they were about to reach it, Gohan leapt into the air and smacked them both to the ground. Both Androids hit the ground with a bounce and tumbled over, barely avoiding being squashed as their foe landed. 17 glanced up. " _Filthy, flea-bitten sonof_ _ **HOLY SHIT!**_ "

17 barely had time to react, throwing up a barrier around he and 18 as a massive piece of building smashed down atop them. This building was followed by Gohan's massive, Oozaru foot. 17 and 18 both huddled together inside 17's barrier as the foot continued to stomp. The barrier remained stable, for the most part, but 17 and 18 were driven further into the ground a little more, each time.

18 cried out. " _What do we now?!_ "

17 was struggling to keep the barrier up. " _His tail. That's all we have left to target!_ "

She turned to him. " _But, how do we do that?! He'll stomp us if you drop the barrier!_ "

17 thought for a minute, but then his confident, wicked smirk returned. " _I have it figured out!" Just be ready to go hit his tail when I say go!_ "

18 nodded. " _Right!_ "

Gohan lifted his foot again. And then, as he stomped back down, 17 touched his palms to the surface of the shield and forced his energy into it. " _SUPER ELECTRIC SURGE!_ "

The surface of 17's energy barrier crackled with energy and then, when Gohan's foot stomped down on it, bolts of ki-based lightning shot all up and down his body. The Golden Oozaru roared in pain and 17 dropped the barrier. " _NOW!_ "

18 zipped out, turning and glaring up at Gohan's tail. " _DROP DEAD!_ "

She charged and fired a Power Blitz, blasting right through the center of Gohan's tail. The Oozaru shuddered, and then he roared as he began to shrink. Gohan stumbled, almost falling forward, but 17 quickly shot forward and placed his hand on Gohan's shoulder.

The Android's trademark smarmy attitude had returned and he chuckled. "Hey buddy~"

But then, the smile faded away and, with cold rage and murder in his eyes, Android 17 plunged his hand through Gohan's stomach, impaling the warrior all the way through. Gohan coughed and gasped, and then his Super Saiyan form faded. 18 sighed in relief. " _Finally..._ "

17 ripped his fist out of Gohan's stomach. "Not yet..."

A sadistic smirk ripped across 17's face as he charged ki into his fingertip. " _I want people to know..._ "

17 traced his finger over Gohan's chest, burning the number "17" across his flesh. And then, once that was done, the Android shoved the dying warrior into a puddle gathering in a hole in the street. 17 and 18 both stared at Gohan, his face barely above the water level in the slowly reddening puddle. The warrior glared at them. " _Do you expect me to scream...? Beg...?_ "

18 snarled. " _We both hate you. We hate you so much._ "

17 shook his head. " _But, we're both well aware that you would never beg us..._ "

The two Androids rose into the air, each of them charging a massive blast into their hands. 18 was shaking with anger. "That's what I hate the most about all of you. All you Saiyans!"

17 remained silent as 18 raged on. "That Gine woman didn't beg for her life! That Bardock guy didn't beg for his! Vegeta didn't beg for his life when we killed him!"

17 sneered. "We tortured Raditz _for hours_ before we offed him, and even he didn't beg."

18 snapped. " _Where do you fools get off being so cocky?!_ "

As 17 and 18 continued to rant above, Gohan retreated into his own mind. He pictured all of his allies and all of his friends, all of them waiting for him with proud smiles on their faces. He had tried his best, and at the end of the day that was all he could do. His time as a warrior and as Earth's Defender was done. He was incapable of anything more. But, in his final moments, Gohan knew that he would go on to serve a greater purpose.

He remembered his last moments with Raditz, and how the sorrow and pain of loss had pushed him to even greater power. And the, he pictured his three students. His three beloved, younger siblings. It wasn't ideal, and he hated to leave them like this, but Gohan knew they could do it.

Gohan adopted one last smile, and then opened his eyes. "Yeah, I think I do get it Uncle Raditz..."

And then 17 and 18's Power Falling Star collided.

 _Hours later, the Pepper Town Countryside..._

A loud crack of lightning echoed out and the wind howled even louder. The sheer force of the blowing gusts knocked over one of the branches that Gohan had used to hide the entrance of the cave and it fell over onto Trunks' head. Slowly, the boy stirred. But then, once he got his wits about him, he hopped to his feet. " _GOHAN!_ "

Trunks looked around, not seeing his mentor anywhere. He looked on the ground and saw both of his friends lying there, totally unconscious. "H-Hey! Hey guys!"

Trunks nudged each of them, but they barely budged. He gripped his fists. "No...Gohan..."

He shook his head. "How could you...?"

And then, without waiting for either of his partners to fully awaken, Trunks ran out of the cave and flew towards the smoking ruins that were once Pepper Town.

 _In Pepper Town..._

Trunks flew down the ruined streets of the town, scanning for any sort of sign that Gohan might still be alive. He cried out. "Damn it. Where are you...?!"

He stopped midair and shouted as loud as he could. " _ **GOHAN!**_ "

As he scanned around, a small flash of orange came into Trunks' view. Just a little bit of orange, sticking out of a small crater that was slowly turning into a small lake. Trunks landed and ran towards the crater. "Gohan! _Gohan!_ "

He came to a stop at the edge and peered in. At the bottom of the water, Trunks' worst fears were made real. Sitting at the bottom of the puddle, his body beaten and broken and his eyes rolled back, was Gohan. Trunks fell to his knees. "N-No..."

He started flashing back. Tears built in his eyes and began to pour. "Gohan..."

Trunks remember the good times. The days of Gohan training the three of them, being their big brother, father figure, mentor, and friend. He had done so much for them. And this was what he got out of it?! " _Gohan...!_ "

The Androids killed him, and then just left him in a crater to rot?!

" _GOHAN!_ "

Finally, something in Trunks snapped. He pounded his fists against the side of his head and screamed in rage and grief and sorrow and agony. " _ **AGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**_ "

Trunks pounded his fists against the ground, shouting and sobbing and screaming. The ground shattered with each blow and the entire city rumbled as the boy's unchecked power surged. Trunks screamed. He continued to scream and scream until, finally, it happened.

The gate holding his power within burst open, and a golden aura enveloped young Trunks.

 _On the outskirts of Pepper Town..._

The other two students of Gohan came running towards the city, the driving rain hitting their faces and melding with the fearful tears that were already streaming down. The two of them could sense Trunks, but not Gohan. And they both feared the worst.

The fears were quickly realized as they arrived on the town outskirts.

The black-haired young man noticed it first. His fellow student, friend, partner, and brother, walked out from the ruined town with an almost unrecognizable, beaten form hung over his shoulder. The black-haired young man, in grief, fell to his knees and screamed in sorrow at the top of his lungs. The bluish-haired girl quickly ran over and started to tend to him, tears running down her bright red, sorrowful face as well.

And, as he two friends broke down in front of him, the now golden-haired young man cradled his dead mentor on his shoulder.

Once again, Earth's Defender had fallen. But, once again, the golden glow of hope for the future carried on, even in the howling rain.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	72. Chapter 72: Present, Part 3

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Made a small error in the timeline. The Future Trio is from 17 years in the future, not 15 years._

 _ **Chapter 72: Present, Part 3**_

 _In the present, on the airship carrying Goku to Kame House..._

Future Daikon groaned and bowed his head onto his knees, everyone else in the airship looked to him. Gine frowned. "Is...is he okay?"

Future Trunks glanced over at his partner and then at his girlfriend. Both of them looked positively miserable. He took a deep breath. "I'll finish off the story from here, I suppose. They each took a part that was hard for them to have to remember, so I'll take the part that I have the hardest time thinking about..."

Chi-Chi sounded concerned. "Y-You don't have to, Trunks..."

He shook his head. "No, I do. I should have been open and honest about all of this from the beginning..."

Trunks sighed. "After Gohan died, there isn't really much left to say anyway. 17 and 18 continued their thing, just on a smaller scale. They killed and slaughtered and did as they pleased, but mass destruction grinded to a halt. They realized that they had truly, definitively won. Nothing...nothing could stand up to them..."

He lowered his head. "We thought that if we trained, then we'd be able to. But... _we were so wrong_..."

 _In the Future's Past, two years after the death of Gohan..._

The mourning of Gohan lasted for a while after the three kids returned with his body. Nobody quite knew how to respond, what to say, how to act, or how to move on. Once the initial stages of grief had passed, they all got together and eventually interred Gohan's body in the atrium of Capsule Corp. Before they sealed the coffin shut, they did their best to try and cover up the "17" burned into his chest. Once that was done, Gohan was quickly buried.

And from there, time soldiered on as time always did. Bulma, adopting a new form of determination, sequestered herself in her lab to work on what she referred to as their "only remaining option". She, the Pilaf Gang, and Dr. Briefs all worked, day and night, to try and bring this final idea into fruition.

Even when her father and her mother both gave in to old age, Bulma continued on with her attempts to bring this concept to life.

Not long after the elder Briefs died, Chi-Chi went along with them.

Launch, meanwhile, fell into a deep depression. With no one to focus her hate and anger towards, Launch was forced to internalize her negative feelings. Once the dirt was finally shoveled atop Gohan's grave, Launch finally broke. She feel to her knees, swallowed by sadness, and spent her days from then on grieving. For her lost friends, for Gohan...but mostly for Raditz.

And, as for Gohan's trio of students, they continued to work hard and increase their strengths. And, with all of that hard work, they were able to add a second Super Saiyan to their ranks.

 _New West City, Capsule Corp..._

Ranch stepped out of the atrium with a sullen look on her face. She stared down at the tray in her hands, noticing that it had barely been touched. She shook her head. " _Mom..._ "

The young, Saiyan woman had taken on a lot of responsibilities up to this moment. Once Chi-Chi had passed, their little home had been left without any sort of homemaker. So, Ranch took that duty onto her own shoulders, working during the day to make sure that the house ran smoothly and people were properly fed and clothed and working at night to train herself and become stronger.

After clearing Launch's plate and starting the dishwasher, Ranch went to the laundry room and began to load the washing machine as well. As she loaded the machine, she could hear rumbling a few doors down. Her two boys were going at it in Vegeta's old gravity chamber without her.

She had to hurry so that she could get in on the training as well.

After quickly loading the washer and transferring a previous load to the dryer, Ranch went running. As she went down the curved hallway, the sounds of crashing and thrashing ceased. Ranch's brow furrowed. "Damn it. Come on..."

Rounding the last bit of the hallway, Ranch came upon the worst site she had expected, her two fellow students were fresh out of the chamber, their Super Saiyan forms glowing bright. Ranch sighed. "Come on guys...you couldn't have waited just a bit longer...?"

Trunks took a break from his bottle of water. "O-Oh, we're sorry Ranch. We just wanted to try and-"

Ranch shook her head. "N-No, it's fine! You two are both Super Saiyans. You need to keep trying to get stronger if we're ever going to beat 17 and 18..."

Trunks' training partner frowned. "Are you sure, Ranch? If you want us to wait for you next time-"

She shook her head again. "No. I'm fine. I mean it. You guys just need to focus on yourselves. I'll just train a bit longer tonight than I normally do. It shouldn't be long before I go blonde too~"

Ranch chuckled, but her two fellow students could tell that she wasn't okay. The stress of life was weighing harshly on her lately. Trunks smirked. "Well, next time we train, you're coming with us. We could use someone as creative as you involved to keep us on our toes~"

Ranch blushed. But she quickly adopted a smile. "S-Sure. I'd love to~"

Between the two of them, the now-black-haired young man shifted his gaze between his two friends. "Uh...guys...this is a bit awkward to be stuck between..."

Both Ranch and Trunks flinched, glancing away and each turning away out of embarrassment. Luckily, the awkward feeling didn't last long. Surprising all three kids, an explosion echoed out through Capsule Corp. The three of them, instantly fearing the worst, all sprinted in the direction of the explosion: towards Bulma's lab.

 _On the other side of Capsule Corp, Bulma's lab..._

The three kids came running into the lobby that housed Bulma's lab and workshop. The site they came upon was indeed concerning, but not nearly the Android-level threat they had expected to find. The three members of the Pilaf Gang were all standing around the door, jets of flames shooting from the doorway. Each was armed with a fire extinguisher and rapidly attempting to suffocate the flames. Ranch called out. " _What the hell is going on?!_ "

Shu turned. "Oh, hey Miss Ranch."

Pilaf sneered. "Bulma's kid..."

Mai glanced over to the remaining Saiyan, a gentle smile crossing her face. "H-Hey there...you're, uh, looking strong..."

He didn't seem to notice her attempted advances, instead focusing on the flames. " _No, seriously, what's going on?!_ "

Trunks cut in. " _Where's my mother?!_ "

Pilaf growled. "She's probably burning up because she refuses to follow-"

A familiar form leapt out of the burning room, her foot stomping on Pilaf's face. She reached down and grabbed his fire extinguisher and began to expertly snuff out the flickering flames. "You three need to learn to work faster!"

Bulma stepped off of Pilaf and forced her way back into the room, killing out roaring fires as she charged in. Pilaf sat up, a fresh boot print on his face. "And you need to learn that when I say the readings are looking off, you should shut off the machine!"

Pilaf snatched and extinguisher from Shu, aiming it at the flames crackling on the shoulder of Bulma's lab coat and snuffing them out. Gohan's trio of students stood in shock, none of them knowing what to say. Seeing her opportunity, Mai inched closer to the target of her affections. "It's...nice to see you with black hair again. It... looks nicer on you than blonde..."

She grabbed a small lock, smiling. "And the longer look is nice too~"

Bulma stepped out of her lab, coughing up a storm. "Jeez..."

She glanced up and saw the three, dumbfounded half-Saiyans standing before her. "Oh, hey guys, done with training already?"

A long silence, but then Trunks finally worked up the nerve to speak. "Mom, what's going on...?"

Bulma's eyes lit up. "Oh, oh right! You three have got to see this!"

The scientist charged into the still-smoking lab, but then immediately rushed back out with a massive smile on her face. "Look...at..."

She produced a pink minidress with the word "BULMA" emblazoned across the chest. " _THIS!_ "

Once again, the kids had no clue what to say. Finally, after a long while of everyone staring at the outfit in Bulma's hands, Ranch spoke. "It's...a nice dress, Miss Bulma. But, uh... why are you so excited about it...?"

Bulma nodded, lighting a cigarette. "Oh, right..."

She exhaled smoke. "Well you see, back when I first met Goku, I was just a 16-year-old ingenue. A fair maiden out looking for adventure armed only with her wits and her Dragon Radar. I was unprepared for the horrors of the wilderness. This was the dress I was wearing for my trip! A pterodactyl picked me up in it! I pissed myself in this dress! Out of fear!"

Trunks' face turned bright red. " _MOM!_ "

The boy's two friends consoled his embarrassment. The black-haired young man chuckled. "That was...a nice story, Miss Bulma..."

She wagged her finger at the tree. "I'm not done with the story. You see...I threw that dress away. I didn't have a washing machine with me at the time and I knew I would never get the smell out of it, so I just tossed it when I got back here, to Capsule Corp, in the room behind me..."

Ranch cocked her head. "S-Still not following, ma'am. Sorry..."

Bulma smiled wide. "I threw this thing away when I was sixteen, Ranch. Back when Goku and I were just kids~"

As the three kids stared as her, Bulma sighed. "And I have it now...because I reached backwards in time and took it out of the trash~"

A collective gasp erupted from the three of them. They all stared at Bulma as she upturned the dress at them. "See? It's still wet and everything~"

Trunks tried to brush the embarrassing story aside and get straight to business. "That's what you've been doing, Mom?! You...figured out how to travel through time?!"

Bulma finished her cigarette, tossing it aside for Pilaf to skittishly extinguish with a fire extinguisher. She nodded. "Yup. It's a thought I've had ping-ponging around in my head for a while. Ya see, when Goku and Raditz came back from space, I had them explain their new techniques to me. Goku had his Instant Transmission and Raditz had his Instant Warp."

She began to pace. "The aliens they learned these moves from had actually taught them how to use spirit power, or something, to do that sort of thing. Raditz learned to move his entire, physical being from one place that he could physically see to another, Goku learned to locate beacons of energy and then use his spirit power, or whatever, to hone in on and teleport to that beacon. So, using those concepts, I began to think of practical ways to scientifically replicate the method and then apply it to stuff..."

Trunks spoke up. "Mom..."

She continued. "And so, from there, I was able to take the concept of honing in on a certain thing and reach it utilizing a similar process. You see, I hypothesize that Goku and Raditz were, in fact, using their power to briefly access and outer dimension from the ones we are normally capable of observing and using that to rapidly travel. Raditz was faster than Goku because his revolved around short distance, Goku was slightly slower because he had to find a beacon and maintain a solid connection with said beacon..."

Trunks tried again. " _Mom..._ "

She continued even more. "So, taking that hypothesis, I started mapping out what it would take to utilize that to travel not just on this plane, but also backwards and forwards through this plane. And I came up with this idea. Time Travel, ya see, has three variables: Variable X, the timestream Variable Y, the spacestream; and variable Z, the dimension stream. You see, if you believe in string theory and the butterfly effect and things like that, then it is entirely possible that there are countless timelines out there, multiple alternate histories that have played out, due to different choices, that we'll never get to observe ourselves. I call them 'What-ifs'. So, in order to be able to travel and not just end up in another 'What-if', it is required that we maintain a solid hold on Variables X, Y, and Z in order to ensure that, once we start trying to go back in time, we are able to maintain a connection with our own string, and then-"

Finally, Trunks shouted. " _MOM!_ "

Bulma paused, Trunks looked like he had just run a mile. "What does any of this have to do with that dress?!"

Bulma looked down at the outfit. "Oh, right. Well, simply put, I've broken through Variable X. I've successfully ripped a hole in the time barrier and reached through. No telling which 'What-if' I pulled this from, but I was able to pull it regardless."

She winked. "And, with that solved, getting the other two right should be a cinch. All we have to do is hope that messing with the past will change the future..."

Ranch flinched. " _M-Messing with the past?!_ "

Bulma nodded. "Yep. That's what this big project of mine has been. I'm going to figure out the three variables and then build a vehicle to exploit those variables. I'm gonna make a Time Machine and we're gonna go back and prevent this whole Android catastrophe from ever happening in the first place!"

The black-haired young man seemed incredulous. "What's the point? I mean...even if we tell everyone about the Androids early, would they be able to become strong enough? 17 and 18's strength seems limitless..."

Bulma poked him on the forehead. "You've gotta have faith, sweetie. Besides, we're going to give our friends in the past even more of an edge, hopefully. This Time Machine isn't the only project I'm working on. The other things seem like it might come along nicely as well..."

Trunks cocked his head. "What other thing?"

Bulma smiled. "A vaccine. If we're going to attempt to go through all of this trouble with breaking the laws of space and physics, then we might as well attempt to gain as many advantages as possible. I just need...another 4-to-5 months or so..."

While they were skeptical at first, hopeful smiles began to spread across the kids' faces. Maybe this might be it. Maybe they had finally found a solution to all of their troubles. Maybe things would be okay...

And then, the radio sparked alive and the hopeful mood in the room was dashed. The two boys both turned to it, hearing the familiar tune of a broadcaster frantically describing an attack by the Androids. 17 and 18 had apparently been offended in a place called Bridge Town and, as such, were terrorizing and destroying the place.

Trunks reached up, gripping the hilt of his sword. "Damn...damn them..."

His partner clenched his fists tight. "Trunks...we're both Super Saiyans. If we left right now...we could..."

Neither of them said it, but it was clear by looking at them what the two were thinking. Vengeance was on the menu. If the Androids were sticking around in Bridge Town for a while...then they could end this today.

And then, surprising Ranch and Bulma, the two boys turned and bolted for the exit.

 _Outside of Capsule Corp..._

The two young men ran out the front entrance to Capsule Corp, both of them radiating with determination. As their feet left the ground, their third partner came out and shouted at them. "Where are you two going?!"

They both looked down, seeing a worried Ranch. Ranch was quickly joined by a frantic and angry-looking Bulma. "No! Absolutely not! I forbid it! Do you two hear me?!"

Trunks gripped his fist. "M-Mom..."

Bulma shook her head. "You listen to me, Trunks V. Briefs! You will not rush off just to have those monsters kill you! Y-You can't! The world needs you two alive, the people of the past need you two alive, _I_ need you two alive!"

Ranch was shaking. "Guys...please..."

The two of them appeared to stop, for just a moment. But then, the sight of Gohan's corpse flashed through their minds and both boys went Super Saiyan in response. The Power Pole was drawn and its wielder sneered. "That won't happen! Not this time. This time...they have to face _two_ Super Saiyans..."

Trunks drew his sword. "This time, _they_ die!"

Both boys were incensed, their tails having come loose from around their waists. And then, without another word, the two of them rushed off in the direction of Bridge Town.

Bulma was genuinely speechless. Ranch was shaking. "Damn it..."

As the two women stood there, Yajirobe came walking through the main gate with a bag of food and even more remaining food stuck in his beard. "Hey ladies. What's up?"

Ranch shrieked, whipping off her housekeeping apron and taking to the sky. " _DAMN IT!_ "

Yajirobe flinched, falling onto his ass. "Whoa. What's her problem?"

No response. Yajirobe turned his head. "Bul-"

The ronin flinched. Bulma was crouched on the ground, shaking like a leaf. As she began to sob, Yajirobe swallowed a lump in his throat, and then he looked towards the direction that Ranch had went flying.

 _In Bridge Town..._

Android 17 and Android 18 both sat in their seats, watching the movie as it played. Scattered around them, the blasted dead remains of several unfortunate movie-goers. Android 18 put her feet up, slamming them down onto a dead woman's slumped form. 17 reached down next to the woman, snatching a half-eaten bag of candy from her unfortunate son and casually eating it. "Did we go cause some shit on the set of this movie? I feel like we did..."

18 shrugged. "No. I think went and destroyed it for funsies while they were trying to do some reshoots."

17 nodded. "Ah."

As the two of them continued to watched the movie, the screen suddenly began to bubble and warp. 17 cocked his head. "The hell?"

The screen burst with an explosion of ki. Through the explosion, in the dust, two golden forms rushed in. 18 dodged the Power Pole as it shot forward and 17 blocked a sword strike with a small barrier formed around his fist. The dust cleared and the Androids saw the two, young Super Saiyans stood before them. 17 laughed out loud. "See?! I told you that Gohan's students were still alive! _I told you!_ "

18 rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

She directed her attention towards the two of them. "You two must think you're both hot shit, huh? Think you look like actions stars or something?"

The Power Pole receded and its wielder snapped at 18. "We certainly look better than you, _scarface_!"

18 flinched, her eyes widening. But then, her brow furrowed with rage and a blush formed across the face, except for over the faint scar across the bridge of her nose. 17 whistled. "Man... you two must not want to live, huh?"

Before either could respond, Android 18 shot forward. Her fist sailed towards the insulter's face, but Trunks stepped between them and blocked it. "I'm the one that sliced your face, remember?! Why don't you fight me?!"

18 snarled. "I'll kill you, you little prick!"

She kicked Trunks, which he blocked with his arm, and sent him flying across the theater. She followed and a brawl broke out, which 17 casually watched. "He's actually holding up kinda well. This outta be-"

The Power Pole came crashing down, but 17 caught it with his bare hand. He turned and glared at the boy holding it. "You...your long hair reminds me of that Raditz guy..."

The boy's power flared, Super Saiyan aura lashing out. 17 chuckled. "That look...kinda makes me wanna impale you~"

On both sides of the aisle, the Saiyan boys fought with their respective Android opponents. Both of the lads had been training day-and-night to try and work out a way to deal with their mechanical foes, boosting their speed and power as much as possible in order to try and blitz the Androids and catch them off-guard.

18 was given a punch to the face and her opponent fired an attack at her. " _Buster Cannon!_ "

17 was kicked in the gut and his opponent fired a blast at him. " _Masenko!_ "

Both attacks collided with the Androids, smashing them into the ground and into a wall respectively. Trunks charged forward, drawing his sword and diving into the dust cloud kicked up around Android 18. Meanwhile, 17's opponent leapt into the air and slammed down atop him. Blinded by rage, the young man began to rain down punches onto the prone Android, berserker tears streaming down his face.

Each punch was delivered with enough force to make the ground crack. Each blow given with a certain person in mind. This was retaliation. An unrelenting assault meant to punish Android 17 for every life he had ruined. But then, in the middle of the punching bonanza, 17's hand shot up and grabbed his foe by the wrist. "Working through some stuff, are we?"

The boy gasped, staring down at the relatively unscathed Android. "Wha-"

He was immediately met by a harsh punch to the face.

Meanwhile, Trunks was having about as much luck. His initial sword swing had made contact, but 18 seemed to be expecting something like that. She had deflected the blade and then sent Trunks flying back with a kick to the chest. 18 brushed her hair out of her face. "I'm not just going to let you cut me, ya know..."

And then the tide of the battle immediately shifted. Both warriors we pushed back and then quickly overwhelmed by their opponents. 17 chuckled as he manhandled his attacker. "Did you two really think you were just going to rush in here and pull a Gohan on us? Gohan was barely able to do that when he was at his peak! Who do you _nameless losers_ think you are?"

18 twisted Trunks' arm behind his back and punched him in the kidney. "It's kinda sad. They seem to have thought they were actually going to march in here and win."

Both boys went tumbling, eventually crashing into one another. The two of them stood and drew their weapons. Then, they both shouted and their power surged. They charged back at the Androids, swinging their weapons with grace and precision. But it didn't matter.

17 smirked as he slapped away various strikes from the Power Pole. 18 rolled her eyes, lifting her foot above a swing of Trunks' sword and stomping the tip of it into the ground. She smirked at Trunks. "Little boys shouldn't play with knives~"

She picked up the sword, swinging it around like a toy before tossing it out the hole that the two Super Saiyans had made during their dynamic entry. Trunks flinched in shock, and 18 took advantage by leaping forward and kicking the boy in the head. He went flying, smashing into his partner, and smashing them both into a heap on the ground.

17 and 18 both loomed over them, chuckling. 17 smirked. "So, give in yet?"

17's opponent smashed his fist into the ground, screaming in fury as he stood back up. Trunks was struggling, grabbing onto a metal railing and pulling himself up. The both of them look at one another and nodded. 18 rolled her eyes. "Come on..."

And then, the two boys charged in unison. They both reared their fists back at the same time. The Androids seemed amused and prepared to block. But then, in a brief moment of surprise, the two of them switched up. Trunks shot his fist forward, but punched 17 across the face instead. His partner did that same, rocking 18 and knocking her to the ground.

The two of them stood shoulder-to-shoulder, breathing heavy as the Androids stood back up. 17 sneered. " _Cute._ "

18 stood up as well and started to say something, but both boys charged in again. They each drew their weapon, or Trunks' sheath in his case, and attacked their new foes. The Power Pole jabbed into 18's chest, making her gag, and the sheath was busted across 17's head.

The two boys leapt into the air, both of them charging a new attack. But, before they could fire, 18's hand shot up and gripped around Trunks' ankle. She looked annoyed. "Games can be fun, but I think we're all a bit old for tag, boys..."

She pulled Trunks out of the air, slamming him face first onto the ground and making a small crater. Trunks bounced up, trying to strike back, but was kicked away for his troubles. He tried to get up again, but 18 slammed her foot down onto his gut.

17, meanwhile, went back to his original opponent as well. The Android had crossed his arms across his chest and was making a show of beating his foe with only his legs, kicking the boy in the crotch and then smashing him in the face with the bottom of his shoe. The boy stumbled back; his right eyebrow having split open. 17 tried to kick him again, but he was able to catch the Android's foot. "I'm not-"

17 wasted no time in punching him right across the mouth. The Super Saiyan hit the ground and then 17 began peppering him with tiny, stinging energy blasts.

Seeing this, Trunks tried to dive to the side and rush 17. "Stop that!"

18 didn't let this slide, however, stomping her foot onto Trunks' ankle and making him bounce his face off the ground. She sneered. "Still here, idiot."

17 chuckled. "Hey now, don't be rude~ They're trying their best. And they're certainly lasting longer than I thought they would..."

18 rolled her eyes. "Only because we're going easy on them. It would take them years to become stronger enough to be any sort of match for us..."

17 stopped blasting his opponent, leaving his smoking form lying on the ground. "I guess. But, it's still nice to have them around. I missed this~"

18 nodded. "Same, I guess. It's certainly nice to have a punching bag that doesn't break after one hit..."

She stared hatefully down at Trunks, watching as the boy tried to pull his foot out from under 18's foot. And then, a wicked smirked spread across 18's face. "Actually, if I'm being honest, looking at him only really serves to remind me of all of the fun, hateful things I wanted to do to Gohan..."

She lifted her other foot, stomping it down onto Trunks' back and making the boy scream in agony. "...hindsight is 20/20, after all. You never really think of anything fun to do with someone until you've lost them..."

Finally, 18 reached down and grabbed Trunks' tail. The boy shivered and looked up at 18, seeing the vile smirk on her face. 18 laughed. "Good thing this one's a Saiyan too~"

Trunks shook his head. "N-No! No please! No! Please don't! Please! Stop! St- _AGGGHH!_ "

18 squeezed Trunks' tail and started to pull. Slowly, she applied pressure as she pulled the defenseless Saiyan's tail farther and farther. Tears were raining down Trunks' face as he tried to fight back. "No! No! Please stop! Please! Please please! No!"

And then, with an utterly hateful chuckle, Android 18 yanked her arm back and ripped Trunks' tail clean off. The boy screamed at the top of his lungs, shaking with pain as 18 wagged around the detached tail. "I wished so badly that I had taken Gohan's when he was alive, but then you all just had to take his body and bury it. So, I think I'm going to hold onto yours~"

Trunks sobbed on the ground as 18 wrapped his tail around her neck like a scarf. "What do you think, 17?"

17 shrugged. "I guess...if you like it. Fashion isn't really my thing, ya know?"

18 nodded. "That's fair..."

On the ground, Trunks continued to moan in pain. He tried to push himself up, but 18 gave him a kick for his troubles. "Shut up!"

And then, for added cruelty, she fired a beam from her finger at Trunks' wound and seared it shut. "There! I fixed it! Happy?!"

Trunks could do little more and moan in pain and terror. 18 shook her head. "Some people are so ungrateful..."

She kicked Trunks in the side once more, this time launching him through the air and on top of his partner. Trunks laid there, wheezing in pain as his fellow Super Saiyan groaned under him. 17 cocked his head towards 18. "So...do we let them live?"

18 bobbed her head from side-to-side. "I say...yeah..."

17 turned to her. "You sound unsure."

18 nodded. "Well, ya see...we only really got to see it one time, but I preferred Gohan with the one-armed look. Ya know what I mean...?"

17 nodded back. "I get ya. You want to stick to an aesthetic."

The male Android smirked, throwing his arm to the side and summoning a ki blade. "I'm game."

18 chuckled, summoning a ki blade of her own. "I'm going to take off the tailless wonder's arm~"

17 began to march. "That's fine. I'm going to lop off the other one's leg, just so we can tell them apart going forward..."

The two Androids marched forward, with only the cruelest of intentions in mind. But, before either of them could strike, three metal canisters landed at their feet. 17 stared at them with confusion. "Wh-"

And then, all three canisters exploded with bursts of ki. The force of the explosions engulfed both Androids and sent the two boys flying through the air. They both landed near the hole in the screen that they had made. Trunks groaned, barely conscious. His partner shook him. "Trunks. H-Hey..."

And then, a foot stepped in front of the boy's face. He looked up and sighed in relief. "Ranch..."

Ranch's face was twisted with fear and despair. She looked down at her two, injured friends and couldn't think of what to say. She helped the conscious one to his feet and he spoke. "Ranch, th-"

She slapped him across the face. " _IDIOTS!_ "

He paused for a moment, staring at Ranch's big, sparkling eyes. He nodded. "Yeah...we're idiots..."

She bent down. "Trunks! Wake up!"

Trunks' eyes cracked open, he looked up at her face. "R-Ranch..."

Ranch didn't slap him. She simply hugged him close. And then, after that hug, she began to pull him up. "Come on! Get on your feet! We have to go!"

Trunks shakily got to his feet. The three of them all nodded at one another and then started to run, but Trunks immediately lost balance and fell forward. Ranch turned to him and shouted. "Trunks, what are-"

She gasped at the sight of his back, noticing something missing straightaway. " _WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR TAIL?!_ "

Trunks tried to push himself up, but his sense of balance was gone. Quickly, his two friends helped him up. Once they had Trunks safely tucked over their shoulders, the two of them took to the air and flew out the hole in the screen.

All seemed well, as if they had made their escape. But then, two Power Blitzes shot from the wrecked movie theater and smashed into the boy and girl's back. All three of the kids fell from the sky and hit the ground with a harsh thud.

After a moment, the two of them pushed themselves up. Ranch stared across the street and saw that Trunks had landed atop a nearby car. He was barely conscious. She looked over and saw her other friend lying on the street next to her. "H-Hey! Are you okay...?"

She tried to reach out to him. "Hey-"

Suddenly, a familiar cowboy boot stomped down and landed on Ranch's hand. She screamed in pain, feeling her bones break under the weight of the stomp. The other warrior turned, seeing Ranch at the mercy of Android 18. He tried to get up. "N-No! Ranch!"

But, before he could get his feet under him, he was suddenly grabbed into a headlock from behind. As he choked, he looked over his shoulder to see the smirking face of Android 17. 17 chuckled. "Hey buddy~"

Across the street, Trunks' wits slowly returned. The sound was muffled by the daze he was in, but Trunks could hear the sounds of combat going on right next to him. The sounds of punches landing, bones cracking, people screaming...

He shakily pulled himself from the top of the car and landed on the street with a thud. As he pushed himself up, the sound of another punch echoed out and then a skipped into his view on the ground. Trunks picked it up and looked closely, eventually coming to the realization that it was someone's front tooth.

Trunks looked up and, finally, he realized what was happening. He stared at his two partners, one of them having lost his Super Saiyan form and the other one having lost her front tooth. Both of them were beaten and bloodied and barely conscious, held in the iron grips of Android 17 and Android 18. Trunks was running on fumes at this point, but he still snapped at the Androids. "L-Leave them alone, you bastards! Come and... _f-fight me_..."

17 and 18 both turned their attention to Trunks. They both shrugged, dropping their two victims' bodies to the ground, and then marched over to their new target. On the ground, all the other two could do was watch as 17 and 18 both beat on Trunks. They lifted him from the ground and beat and bashed on him until he went limp. And then, they dropped him to the ground, leaning him against the side of the car, and kicked him a few more times for good measure.

Finally, once that lost its novelty, the two Androids stood between all three of their beaten and battered victims. All fell silent for a moment as the Android whispered between one another. And then, Android 17 spoke up. "Okay! 18 and I have decided something!"

The three kids all glared towards 17. The male Android smirked. "I'm sure that the three of you would agree that 3-on-2 isn't really fair. Not only do you guys outnumber us, which is lame...but that also means that one of you has to wait for your turn while we play with the other two~"

18 chuckled. "So, to be fair to us and to you, going forward, one of you has to die. Right here. Right now."

17 smirked. "We're not going to be mean about this though. We aren't going to make you guys decide which of you has to die or anything like that..."

18 shook her head as she marched towards Ranch. "Nope~"

Android 18 picked up Ranch, forcing the poor girl's arms behind her back and pinning them in place with a tight hold.

Trunks shakily tried to push himself up. "N-No..."

But then, he watched as 17 walked over to his other friend and grabbed the boy in a tight, one-armed headlock. Trunks flinched in confusion. And then, with a cruel smile...Android 17 formed and air-tight energy shield around Trunks' head. Trunks' fell to the ground, his cries rendered silent by the shield. He thrashed and pounded on the shield, desperate to try and break it. However, all of his attempts were futile.

Ranch cried out, trying to break free from 18. " _NO! STOP! STOP! PLMMPH!_ "

18 wrapped her hand around Ranch's mouth, squeezing the girl's mouth tightly shut. She chuckled. "Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh... just watch~"

17 tightened his grip around his hostage's throat. "You too. I want you to see the look in his eyes when he dies. Make sure you're looking clo-"

Blood erupted from 17's mouth, his eyes going wide. He hand controlling the shield fell and the shield shattered, Trunks going limp. Android 18 turned to her counterpart and gasped, 17 looked down and couldn't believe his eyes. Sticking through his lower right side was Trunks' sword. His grip loosened and he dropped his hostage, turning to see Yajirobe standing directly behind him. "Y-You..."

17 fell to his knees. Yajirobe nodded. "Yeah. It's me..."

Yajirobe reared his fist back and punched 17 in the mouth. It clearly didn't hurt, but 17 was still thrown off enough to be knocked backwards. 18 sneered, tossing Ranch to the side. "You're that fat bastard from that tower!"

The ronin nodded, glaring at 18 and drawing his katana. "Kids, get outta here! Let me handle this one!"

17's former hostage pushed himself up. "Mr. Yajirobe...?"

Yajirobe shouted at the two remaining, conscious kids. " _Get going, dammit!_ "

18 chuckled, a hateful look in her eye. "Do you really think you're buying them any time to get away?"

Yajirobe sneered. "Maybe. Maybe not. I stabbed pretty boy through, so I think maybe I might get lucky twice!"

18 narrowed her eyes. " _And I think I'm just going to end up showing you all the creative places I can shove that katana._ "

Yajirobe flinched, shrieking in fear. And then, to 18's surprise, he immediately turned tail and ran. 18 was slightly taken aback. "Man, for a tub of lard he sure can move."

And then, she immediately gave chase.

With 18 gone, Trunks' allies both stumbled over to him. It was clear that neither was in any sort of shape to fight. Shakily, they both pulled one of Trunks' arms over their shoulders. They knew they didn't have very long. Ranch turned to her kin. "Hey...can you...WATCH OUT!'

He turned his head just in time to have a fist slam into the side of it. Ranch and Trunks both fell to the ground, Ranch hearing their third partner groaning in the distance. She sat up and, to her horror, she saw Android 17 standing up with the sword still sticking into him. And he looked pissed.

17 chuckled, but there was no humor in it. "I... said that one of you are going to die. And... _I meant it_..."

He turned and lumbered towards the one he had just punched. "Maybe...maybe more..."

Ranch watched from the ground as 17 lumbered towards one of her only two remaining family members. He was defenseless on the ground, unable to defend himself at all. The Android raised his hand into the air and charged a blast. Ranch mumbled to herself. "N-No..."

And then, so many memories flashed through her head. Aunt Chi-Chi and Cousin Gohan. Her father. All of the other family that she lost before she was even old enough to remember. She couldn't lose anyone else. She couldn't! She wouldn't!

17 loomed over his target when, suddenly, he heard a feminine screen behind him. He recognized it as that brat's voice. 17 turned. "Don't worry, you-"

A golden wreathed fist smashed into 17's face, making it warp inward. The force of the attack made 17 spin around. He cursed. "You little bitch, I-"

Suddenly, he felt her grab the handle of the sword sticking in him and yank it out. 17 coughed up more blood and turned. "You little bi-"

Standing before 17, tears streaming down her face and Trunks slung over her shoulder was the now Super Saiyan Ranch. She held her hand up and charged a blast, and then she fired it before 17 could respond. "Shining Friday!"

The Android was engulfed, sent flying down the street, and into the side of a parked bus. Once 17 was briefly dispatched, Ranch wasted no time. She could hear the pained shrieks of Yajirobe in the distance. It wouldn't be long before 18 was back. So, she reached down and grabbed her kin, flinging him over her other shoulder, and then she escaped.

 _Miles away, hidden in the forests near Bridge Town..._

There was no telling how much time had passed, but he woke up to a sound he didn't like to hear: Ranch crying. He sat up and looked around, seeing his Power Pole and Trunks' sword next to him under what appeared to be a canopy of gnarled tree roots. In the distance, he could see explosions and smoke rising into the sky.

17 and 18 were still rampaging. Still unawares, the black-haired young man didn't know what to do. That is, until he heard Ranch speak. " _Please, you have to wake up..._ "

He turned and saw Ranch frantically giving chest compressions to an unconscious Trunks, her eyes wet with tears and her shoulders shaking. " _Live...live, live, live, live, live, live, live, live..._ "

Ranch lowered her lips to his, pressing them together and blowing into his mouth. And then she returned to giving chest compressions. " _Please Trunks. You've got to wake up...we can't do this without you..._ "

Finally, she noticed that their third counterpart was sitting up, wide awake. And then she began to sob, her face turning bright red and scrunching up. " _He won't wake up. I can't...I can't...get him to wake up..._ "

He tried to stand but couldn't, his legs feeling like jelly. So, instead, he crawled over to his fallen partner. The two of them both gripped Trunks' hands tight, feeling them and flinching at how cold they were. He began to cry as well, tears streaming down his face. "Trunks...you...you can't just leave us like this, man..."

Ranch began to wail, shaking like a leaf and squeezing Trunks' hand tight. He squeezed Trunks' hand as well. "We're a trio...we can't have one of us dying off like this..."

As they both sat there, crying and miserable, knowing that he wasn't going to survive...they both began to glow. Their hair didn't change, but the golden Super Saiyan aura surrounded them both and extended to veil over Trunks. It took a moment, a moment of them both thinking that it was all over...but, eventually, a desperate gas echoed out from Trunks' mouth. To the shock of his two best friends, Trunks' chest began to rise and fall.

His eyes, although barely, cracked open. " _G-Guys..._ "

And then, the two of them broke down even more, pulling Trunks in close and squeezing him tight and sobbing their hearts out.

 _In New West City, the Capsule Corp Medical Bay..._

The three kids sat in silence as they waited for it to come. They knew that they were due a chewing out any moment now. The two boys had both been stuck in bed for three days. A lack of Senzu Beans rendered harsh fights like the one they had had much more taxing. Ranch hadn't left the room once since they had gotten back, not even for Bulma to put in her new dental implant. She sat there, taking the pain without so much as a squeak as Bulma drilled and entirely new tooth into the socket the old one had been in.

Soon enough, Bulma walked in. She kept her back to the three of them. She marched over to each and handed Ranch a tiny paper cup and a bottle of water. "Pain killers. I imagine your face must be on fire."

Ranch nodded. "Th-Thank you..."

Bulma stood there, her arms crossed. Once Ranch had taken her medicine, she nodded. "Good?"

Ranch nodded back. "Good."

Bulma sighed. "Good."

And then, without skipping a beat, Bulma delivered a massive slap to the back of each of the kid's head, making two of them flinch in pain and nearly making Trunks fall out of his bed. The three of them sat there, large lumps sticking out of the backs of their heads, and Bulma gripped her fist tightly at them. "Don't you ever, ever, EVER, do that to me again! Do you understand me?!"

All three of them nodded. "Yes ma'am."

Bulma dropped her fist to her side. "I was so worried that I had lost all of you... _and poor Yajirobe_..."

Trunks lowered his head in shame. "We know. We're...we're so sorry, Mom..."

Bulma sighed, plopping down into her chair. "I'm just...happy that you're all alive. Just please, please promise me that you'll calm down and just...not listen to the radio. I need you kids alive..."

The three of them watched as Bulma leaned her head back and began to shake. It was clear that she was trying to fight back tears. "Y-You kids are all I have left. And... not only that...I need you to go back in time. People would recognize me if I went back and, if we're going to do a full rewrite of all of this like I hope we are, I can't risk any time paradoxes..."

Bulma pressed her hand against her face, it was clear that she was just trying to avoid having a break down. But, as she did, she suddenly felt three bodies press up against her. She looked down, only to see all three of the injured kids hugging her tight. She was stunned for a moment, but then Bulma pulled them all in and hugged them all back.

Once that was done, and Bulma brought the three of them lunch, she went back to her lab to continue the Time Machine building process with the Pilaf Gang. And in her absence, the three kids were left alone to talk to one another.

Both of the boys watched as Ranch fidgeted with her new tooth. Trunks frowned. "Wh-Why do you keep poking it...doesn't it hurt?"

Ranch nodded. "Yeah."

As she continued to poke it, the other boy asked her a question. "Then why do you keep poking it?"

Ranch shrugged. "I dunno. Feels like it doesn't belong in my mouth, I guess..."

Soon, the room fell silent. And then, once Ranch stopped prodding at her new tooth, she stood and moved over to Trunks' bed. Trunks stared at Ranch as she sat there on the edge, her face glowing a bit red. He blushed as well, not knowing what to say. Eventually, Trunks found something akin to words. "I'm...sorry. I didn't mean to make you worry..."

Ranch was blunt. "You're a jerk and an idiot and I'll probably never forgive you for making think you died."

Trunks nodded, looking sheepish. "I know..."

He looked up. "I'm so-"

Ranch leaned over and, to the surprise of both of the boys, pressed her lips against Trunks'. All Trunks could do was sit there and stare at Ranch's closed eyes, having no idea what he should be doing in response to this. Ranch pulled back, swallowing a lump in her throat. "Don't ever do that to me again, Trunks. I can't lose you..."

And then, her head jerked and she glared at the other occupant in the room. " _Or you!_ "

He flinched. "F-Fine! I won't risk my life like that again! Just, please, don't kiss me!"

A devious smile spread across Ranch's face. And then, to the boy's dismay, she launched herself across the room to his bed and began playfully pecking him across the forehead and sides of his face. He cried out. " _Ew! Ew! Ew! Gross! Stop it!_ _ **Trunks! Help!**_ "

Trunks chuckled, watching as the two of them finished messing around and then happily welcoming Ranch back into his bed. She cuddled up close and wrapped her arm over his chest. Eventually, Trunks sighed and spoke of the sound of his partner grumbling from his bed. "You know, Ranch, we can't really promise that. We're Saiyans, after all, fighting is in our blood..."

Ranch sat up, looking annoyed. "I'm a Saiyan too, dammit! A Super Saiyan now! So, like...if you have to be stupid...at least _wait for me to be stupid with you_ , okay?"

Trunks smiled at her. "I...I guess that works. But, if you're my...girlfriend...now, I don't think I could just stand by and watch you get hurt..."

Ranch grumbled, looking even more annoyed. Trunks chuckled and, sort of awkwardly, kissed her on the lips. The third wheel in the room, desperate for anything that didn't involve having to listen to his friend and his family suck face, began to think about the concept of Time Travel and how they would all be sent back in time if/when Bulma figured out how to make it work.

And then, something seemed to dawn on him. "G-Guys..."

Trunks and Ranch stopped kissing, Ranch turning to him. "Yes?"

He spoke in an almost hushed tone. "Miss Bulma is sending us back in time...you all know what that means, right...?"

Trunks sat up. "Wh-What...?"

The black-haired young man smiled. "That means... _we get to meet our Dads for the first time_..."

 _Back in the present..._

Future Ranch smiled, lifting her head from her knees. "That is one nice thing that came out of all of this. Everyone used to tell me what a nice person my father was. I'm..."

She turned to Raditz. "I'm glad to see they weren't lying about you, Dad~"

Raditz felt a lump in his throat. "Ranch..."

Launch smiled and leaned against Raditz, laying her head on his chest as she cradled Baby Ranch. Future Ranch did the same, leaning against her father and hugging him tight. Raditz smiled, seemingly trying his best not to cry. "Y-Yeah..."

Launch turned her head to the boy sitting next to her. "And, of course, we can't discount our precious, yet-to-be-born son here~"

Future Daikon was staring intently at the slumbering Goku. But he responded kindly to Launch. "Y-Yeah. _Thanks M-Mom..._ "

Launch reached down with her free hand and gently rubbed Future Daikon's back. Future Daikon sighed. "Another good thing is that we got him that vaccine that Miss Bulma produced. So, we've managed to save his life..."

Future Ranch nodded. "Nothing but success for once. Right Trunks?"

She turned to her boyfriend and Future Trunks looked lost in thought. He sullenly mumbled to himself. " _We...got to meet our fathers..._ "

Raditz immediately read how Future Trunks was feeling and, in an attempt to cheer him up, quickly changed the mood. "So, what is this Time Machine that Bulma made anyway? We've never had a chance to see it."

Future Trunks sighed, pushing his thoughts into the back of his mind. "I mean...we could show it to you when we get to Kame House..."

Future Ranch nodded. "It's certainly striking looking, Dad. It's like a giant, yellow Easter egg!"

Future Daikon chuckled. "Miss Bulma said she designed it that way on purpose. Something about eggs containing hope for the future or something..."

Gine cocked her head. "Hope for the future, eh? How charming~"

Chi-Chi smiled warmly. "That sounds like a very _Bulma_ thought."

Future Trunks sighed. "Y-Yeah...my mother believed in this project quite a bit. She even christened the Time Machine itself as the ' _HOPE!_ 1'. She was so enthusiastic about this when we did it..."

Everyone in the ship nodded. Finally, Gohan spoke. "Well, thank you all for sharing your story with us. I hope it wasn't too hard."

Future Ranch shrugged. "It's not like it's not constantly on our minds. Being able to talk about it was actually kinda refreshing..."

Future Daikon chuckled. "Yeah. Grandma Gine was right~"

Gine beamed with pride at hearing her two grandkids praise her. Gohan cocked his head. "I just have one question though..."

Future Trunks glanced towards him. "Yes, Gohan?"

Gohan scratched the back of his head. "Most people seem to think it's weird that I have a surname. That my full name is Son Gohan. You know, because it went out of fashion a while ago to have more than one name..."

Future Trunks nodded. "Yeah. Normally only really well-off families or really long-lasting dynasties have surnames anymore..."

Gohan looked directly at Future Trunks. "But, according to your story...you have three names. A given name, a surname, and... _a middle name?!_ "

Chi-Chi flinched. "That is a bit bizarre. Trunks V. Briefs...what does that 'V' stand for...?"

Future Trunks blushed hard, scratching his cheek. "I...uh..."

Future Ranch spoke up. "Wait...you've never told _me_ that either. What does that 'V' stand for?!"

Future Daikon gasped. "H-Hey man! I'm your best friend! Why haven't you told _me_ that?!"

Future Trunks was glowing redder than a tomato. "I, uh, you see..."

Gine pondered deep in thought for a moment. But then, remembering who gave birth to both Trunks's, she came to an immediate conclusion. "Does it stand for 'Vegeta'?"

Everyone fell silent. Gine cocked her head at Trunks. "Because that is a very _Vegeta_ thing to do..."

Future Trunks was sweating hard. "W-Well...not exactly...but-"

Suddenly, a ringtone began to play and Future Trunks breathed a heavy sigh of relief. " _Oh, thank King Kai_...I mean... someone's phone is ringing!"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Sorry everyone. I think that's me."

From the front controls, Krillin called out. "Who is it, Chi-Chi?"

Chi-Chi grumbled. "I...I don't know. I haven't figured out how to work this fancy, new-fangled piece of-"

She eventually answered it. "H-Hello?"

Chi-Chi's face brightened up. "Oh, hey Bulma!"

She smiled. "Oh, I'm fine. They're kicking up a storm though, whoever they are. Should be coming into the world any day now~"

Chi-Chi placed her hand on her pregnant stomach and nodded along as Bulma spoke. Eventually, Bulma got to the point. Chi-Chi listened intently and nodded. "Yes. All three of them are right here, helping watch over Goku."

The housewife cocked her head, looking a bit off-put. "I guess you can...I'm still not sure how everything on this phone works though."

Chi-Chi nodded along. "Right. _Super easy to use_. Yeah..."

Finally, Chi-Chi sighed. "Okay, send them. I'll get someone to help me figure it out...uh-huh...okay, bye..."

Chi-Chi hung up the phone and pointed to the Future Trio. "Bulma is texting me a picture she wants you to see."

The three of them seemed confused. Eventually, Chi-Chi's phone chimed and Gohan helped her find her texts. Once they got it pulled up, both mother and son looked genuinely confused at what they saw. Future Daikon was concerned. "Wh-What is it...?"

Chi-Chi turned her phone for everyone on the opposite side to see. A chill instantly ran down the Future Trio's spine. Raditz cocked his head. "A... yellow egg, covered in moss...? What...?"

The Future Trio were at a loss for words. They all got closer and stared at Chi-Chi's phone. Upon closer inspection, there was no mistake what they were looking at: the three of them appeared to be staring at a picture of their own Time Machine.

 _In the woods, just outside of Gingertown..._

Several shotgun blasts rang out in the woods. The shrieking of a terrified man and the barking of his faithful hunting dog loudly echoed out for an audience of no one in the peaceful countryside to hear. And then, in an instant, it all fell silent.

The peaceful little township known as Gingertown sat blissfully unaware in the distance...as clomping footsteps echoed out through the peaceful countryside.

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	73. Chapter 73: The Threat in the Shadows

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _ **Chapter 73: The Threat in the Shadows**_

 _On the airship carrying Goku to Kame House..._

The Future Trio all stared at the image on the phone in front of them with concern: it was their Time Machine, covered in moss and with a massive hole in the canopy. Without a word, just to be sure, Future Trunks pulled his Capsule case out of his jacket and popped it open, glaring down at the #1 Capsule and then back at the picture. "This...makes no sense..."

Future Ranch shook her head. "C-Could it be us from another time...I mean...Miss Bulma did say that might be a possibility..."

Future Daikon had no idea what he could say here. The Future Trio all turned to one another and began to murmur amongst themselves. After some deliberation, Future Trunks sighed. "We can't just ignore this. I'm sorry that we have to leave this early, but we have to go see what's going on..."

Raditz held up his hands. "Perfectly understandable. We're not that far from Kame House, so go do your thing!"

Krillin gave a thumbs-up from behind the controls. "Yeah, we can cover things from here if the Androids show up! Right, Gohan?"

Gohan stood, closing his schoolbook. "Actually, now that I'm sure that my Dad is going to be safe for the time being. I would...like to come along, if you three don't mind..."

Future Trunks and Future Ranch both flinched, glancing to one another and then glancing back to Future Daikon. Gohan turned to his mother. "Mom? Is it alright if I go with them?"

Chi-Chi sighed. "I... I guess a little side trip is okay. So long as you stay safe, of course..."

Future Ranch and Future Daikon both stepped up. They both placed their hands on Gohan's shoulders and, in spite of their own misgivings, they gave their approval. Future Ranch chuckled. "You don't have to worry, Aunt Chi-Chi~ We'll keep an eye on him..."

Future Daikon nodded. "Y-Yeah..."

Gohan smiled at the support of his older, time-traveler cousins. "Thanks guys..."

He turned. "A-Are you okay with this, Trunks? I don't wanna make you uncomfortable..."

Future Trunks was silent for a moment, but then he nodded. "It's fine. You can come along. This shouldn't prove to be anything dangerous, we're just...going to go an examine this apparent copy of our Time Machine..."

The Future Trio turned towards the side door of the airship, opening it and hopping out one by one. Gohan waved goodbye to his mother and she waved back, and then he hopped out as well.

 _Flying through the air..._

Gohan seemed pretty happy, all things considered. Having a break from his books and being able to soar about the open air, the boy couldn't have felt freer. Flying behind him, his three chaperones all watched on with various levels of sullen amusement. They had never had a chance to see much of this side of their mentor. Gohan turned to them. "So, after everything you told all of us on the airship, what exactly does this new Time Machine mean...?"

Future Daikon chuckled. "H-Hard to say, honestly..."

Future Ranch cocked her head. "Something looked off about it. Wouldn't you say, Trunks?"

Future Trunks looked grim. "I barely want to think about it. In a day full of awful surprises and our genuine failure to complete our mission, I'm pretty non-plussed to know that someone else might be screwing around with time too..."

Gohan nodded. "I see what you mean. This person...they could be the reason behind all of the changes from your story..."

Future Trunks flinched. He had considered that idea, but it hit hard to hear someone say it out loud. He sighed. "Who knows. That could be the case, or maybe not...it's hard to really say..."

Future Ranch and Future Daikon both shot worried looks at their fearless leader. The four warriors continued their flight, ready to face whatever rigors were waiting for them at their destination.

 _At Kami's Lookout..._

An unfamiliar pair of Namekian boots stepped onto the surface of Kami's Lookout for the first time in years. Not since Garlic Junior had Piccolo been atop this place, a place he so heavily dreaded. He marched forward with purpose, an annoyed look on his face, only to be met by Mr. Popo at the entrance to Kami's palace. Popo spoke calmly, but with the hint of a waver in his voice. "I ask that you please wait right here, Piccolo. Kami is deliberating over a matter and says that he will be with you short-"

Piccolo scowled and immediately turned. " _Tell Kami I don't have time for this crap and if he's going to bother me in my own head, he should do it for something important!_ "

Mr. Popo called after him. "Piccolo, wait!"

Piccolo sneered. "I don't have time to wait. I'm hunting another one of Gero's little projects! Unless Kami intends to help find the damned thing, _he can wait_!"

Popo stammered. "Th-That is exactly why Kami called you here! He wished to discuss with you the monster that is currently hunting about in the shadows below!"

Piccolo stopped in his tracks. He turned to Popo, his cape flourishing with a grim sneer on his face. Piccolo recalled the broken state that that Suno woman had been left in and the condition that Yamcha and Android 8 had been left in and he growled, crossing his arms over his chest. "Kami has an hour. Any longer than that and I'd be better off without him."

Mr. Popo nodded. "Of...of cour-"

Piccolo snapped. " _GO TELL HIM TO HURRY!_ "

Popo yelped in fear and ran the other way, rushing back into Kami's palace to deliver Piccolo's infuriated message. Left to his own devices, Piccolo glared over the edge of Kami's Lookout and down to the Earth below. "What are you seeing that I can't, old man...?"

 _In the middle of the forest to the north of West City..._

Gohan and the Future Trio landed in the forest, right at the coordinates that Bulma had texted to Chi-Chi. And, as they had been informed, there stood the derelict Time Machine from the photo. As Gohan began to examine the machine, the other three maintained their distance and just stared at the thing. It was clearly the same model of vehicle as the Time Machine that they had ventured to the past in... but, as Future Ranch had said, _something was off_.

Future Daikon cocked his head. "It's... _small_..."

Future Ranch nodded. " _See, that's what I thought!_ "

As the two of them began to rollick about the reduced size of the Time Machine in front of them, the more pragmatic Future Trunks simply reached into the case in his jacket pocket, clicked the #1 Capsule, and tossed it out. In a poof, the Future Trio's Time Machine stood for all to see. The clean, yellow hull of the machine shined in the Sun, a perfect opposite to the derelict, moss covered contraption that Gohan stood next to. Future Trunks sneered. "What the hell is going on here...?"

Future Daikon hopped atop their machine, looking into its canopy and then into the damaged canopy of the older machine. "Well, even more than the massive hole that's been blasted into this thing...I think it's pretty weird that it only has one seat in it when ours has three..."

Gohan looked concerned. "M-Maybe the Future Bulma that made this Time Machine only wanted to send one person. You know, just to be safe..."

Future Ranch looked grim. "M-Maybe... that's a good guess, Gohan..."

He continued. "Or maybe this one comes from a reality where the Androids didn't kill me and I'm the one who came back~"

Future Daikon sadly chuckled. "That could...also be the case, I guess..."

He continued on, his child-like imagination now moving at full speed. "Or, if time works how Future Bulma said it does, then this could just be from an alternate future where only one of you-"

Gohan was quickly cut off by the sounds of a Capsule Hovercar's engine. He and the Future Trio, all of whom were relieved that the distraction had come when it did, looked up to the sky to see that Bulma had finally arrived. The scientist's car landed and the canopy top sprang open. Bulma hopped out and adjust her hat. Future Trunks turned to her. "Hello, Mother. Didn't bring me along into the danger this time?"

Bulma rolled her eyes. "I don't need you picking at me about that too. I got a little bit ahead of myself last time, okay? I already have Vegeta _and_ my mom breathing down my neck about it..."

She glanced over at her grown son. "How about you? Are you holding up okay?"

Future Trunks sighed. "I wasn't in the best mood before you told us about this. But the fact that it's here somehow makes me feel even more uneasy..."

Bulma could see that her son was beating himself up pretty hard about everything that had happened since 17 and 18 had woken up. So, she tried her best to lighten the mood just a bit. Bulma stepped forward and began to examine the chassis of the derelict Time Machine. "So, you three, how am I holding up in the future?"

The three of them flinched as Bulma pulled her multi-tool from her pocket and began to pry at a panel on the side of the machine. "Has my beauty regimen and fashion sense held up?"

Future Daikon blushed. " _W-Well, um...your hair is still blue seventeen years from now...but I think you dye your hair and just don't tell us..._ "

Future Ranch blushed as well. " _Y-You, um, you've gained a few wrinkles...and you have a pretty bad cough whenever you take a break from working, but that's probably just from smoking or something..._ "

Bulma rolled her eyes. "Look at you both, one of you has no tact and the other is too nervous to tell a lady how it is. You both take after your parents in the weirdest ways..."

She turned. "Trunks, you're mine and Vegeta's kid. You'll be blunt, right? Have I turned into a hag?"

Future Trunks glanced to the ground, but then a small smile spread across his face. "Your hair has lost some of its natural color...and you have some wrinkles that you don't have right now... but you're still the same Mom that I've always known you as..."

Future Daikon and Future Ranch both flinched, but then they added on as well. Future Ranch stammered. "Y-Y-Yeah! You might have some wrinkles and such, but those are probably just because you always try to smile for us whenever you can!"

Future Daikon nodded. "A-And... you might use hair dye, but...um...you have a lot of stress and stuff, so you, uh...you..."

Future Trunks cut in. "What we're trying to say, Mother, is that you've aged just fine."

Gohan looked up at Bulma, the only one able to see her face. He saw the small, sweet smile on her face. Bulma turned to the three of them and saw that, in spite of everything, they were able to smile as well. And she chuckled. "Well thanks, guys. I'm glad to know that I can still pass myself off as some sweet, young thing. Even that far into the future~"

She turned back to the Time Machine, forcing the panel off and looking at the switches underneath. "Exactly where I thought they'd be! That confirms it, this is definitely something that I put together~"

Future Trunks stepped forward. "Really, you can tell by that?"

Bulma nodded. "Yeah. When I design something, I try to stick to certain design aesthetics so that I can more easily service it. For an upright machine like this, I always try to put it on what I would consider the rear of the machine."

She began to mess around with the switches as everyone else watched on. She grumbled. "Damn it...is the fuel source low...?"

Bulma got onto the ground, crawling under the machine and unscrewing the bottom of the egg-shaped chassis. As she dug around inside, Future Ranch looked over at her boyfriend. She smiled at the sight of some levity on his face. Ever since Vegeta had laid into him, her Trunks had been so downcast. It was nice to see him perked back up.

But then, as she stood there, something began to cross over Future Ranch's mind. And suddenly, she cried out. " _OH! MISS BULMA!_ "

Bulma's voice echoed within the chassis. "Yes?"

All eyes were on Future Ranch. She immediately shouted her question. "Trunks has a middle name and that's super weird! What is it?!"

Future Trunks gasped, suddenly looking quite embarrassed. "H-Hey!"

Future Daikon gasped. "Oh, right! I'm curious about that too!"

Gohan chuckled. "Me too! It starts with a 'V', right? Grandma Gine thinks it stands for 'Vegeta'!"

Future Trunks quickly tried to get them all to stop. "C-Cut it out! My middle name isn't that important! It's just-"

Bulma let loose a long, annoyed, angry sigh from within the chassis. "I'm going to kill my husband; you know what I mean?!"

Future Trunks' head was steaming. "N-No, Mother, please..."

Future Ranch spoke over him. "Vegeta picked his middle name?! That arrogant bastard?!"

Future Daikon nodded, stroking his chin. "I see. So, it does stand for 'Vegeta'..."

Future Trunks cringed, a vein popping out of his head. He harshly slugged Future Daikon on the arm. "It doesn't stand for 'Vegeta'! _Now stop it!_ "

Bulma chimed in. "No, it doesn't stand for 'Vegeta'. The 'V' in 'Trunks V. Briefs' stand for..."

She groaned. " _Vegetathefifth..._ "

The three pesterers all immediately looked ill. Future Ranch spoke flatly. "What?"

Future Daikon had a bead of sweat rolling down his head. "Vegeta the Fifth?"

Gohan shook his head. "That is so-"

Bulma quickly corrected. "No, not 'Vegeta the Fifth'. _Vegetathefifth_. All one word. Frantically scribbled onto Trunks' birth certificate by a man-child I told my parents we should have had barred from the delivery room."

Gohan cringed. "Oh...oh...that's bad. Trunks, I'm so-"

Gohan looked over and saw Future Trunks, doubled over on the ground, with both Future Ranch and Future Daikon gently patting him on the back. He sheepishly mumbled under his breath. " _C-Could we please stop talking about my middle name now..._ "

As the others continued to pity Future Trunks, Bulma popped out from under the chassis. "Okay. So, here's the problem. We can't really run diagnostics on this thing without a power source. And, while this thing has whatever the hell that glowing, blue goop is in the fuel tank...it looks like the battery has rusted over..."

Future Trunks stood, scratching the back of his head. "Our machine has a fresh battery in it. We could probably piggy-back a charge off of it, as long as you think the process wouldn't break ours..."

Bulma nodded. "Shouldn't be an issue. I have a set of voltage regulating jumper cables in my trunk."

Intrigued, Gohan sat on a nearby rock as the others started working. Future Ranch, being the smallest of the Future Trio, crawled under the chassis, opened the bottom and climbed up into it. Bulma returned with the cables and handed one end to Future Ranch before climbing back into the derelict. Future Trunks and Future Daikon both hopped into the cockpit of the Trio's machine and the derelict respectively and fired them up. The newer, cleaner machine came to life straightaway. And, eventually, the derelict sputtered awake as well.

Future Ranch and Bulma both climbed out of their machines and Future Daikon hopped down as well, leaving Future Trunks to read the diagnostics and logs on the derelict. Future Trunks spoke. "Okay...this might explain a bit of what's going on..."

Bulma called up to him. "What is it, Son?"

Future Trunks called back down. "This machine, much like ours, has four engine turbines to help it travel. One is responsible for breaching and navigating the time stream, one for the space stream, one for the dimension stream, and one to help stabilize the other three..."

As Future Trunks explained, Gohan was listening intently. But then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something off. So, unseen by the others, he trailed off to the side to examine this new detail. Bulma called up. "So, what's the issue?"

Future Trunks called back down. "You coined those three variables as the X-Variable for time, the Y-Variable for space, and the Z-Variable for dimensions. And, from the looks of things, the Z-Variable engine on this machine is entirely non-functional..."

Bulma nodded. "I see...and which one of these turbines is that?"

Future Trunks responded. "It's the one that you wrote the Time Machine's name on."

Bulma cocked her head. Future Daikon stepped forward. "I'll show you."

The two of them marched forward, Future Daikon running his gloved hand over the moss-laden exterior of the turbine in question. With the moss removed from the surface, the word "HOPE!" was clear for the both of them to see. Bulma nodded. "Okay...so this thing controls dimensional travel..."

She began to mess around with it, looking it over. "So...X-Variable to control when you land...Y-Variable to control where you land...and Z-Variable to make sure that you're not drifting between time streams. The Z-Variable acts like the rudder on a ship..."

Bulma's index finger traced over a small hole, burned into the side of the turbine. She glanced into the hole and saw sunlight on the other side. "I'd say...it looks like someone broke this rudder on purpose. _Like they wanted to send this thing drifting_..."

Future Trunks' voice was, once again, beset with concern. "Yeah...that's certainly what this is looking like..."

He bent over, sticking his head under the console of the derelict. " _Wh-What the hell...?!_ "

Future Ranch called up to him. "What's going on?! Is something wrong?!"

Everyone stared up at Future Trunks with concern. That concern quickly turned to revulsion when he stood back up, bringing two halves of a sickening-looking pink shell with him. Future Trunks grimaced "This just keeps getting more confusing..."

Bulma reached up. "Throw them to me, Trunks. I wanna look at them."

Future Trunks did as requested and Bulma stared at the two halves with a disgusted look on her face. "It's definitely some kind of egg...but it's totally dry. Whatever came out of this thing...it had to have popped out a while ago..."

Future Daikon was concerned. "But what could it be...?"

Suddenly, Gohan spoke up again. "I think I might have found something relating to that!"

Everyone turned to the boy. Future Ranch walked over to him. "What is it, Go-"

Future Ranch paused in place. But then, she knelt down and began to examine whatever it was Gohan was looking at. " _What in the fresh hell is this?!_ "

Quickly, the two of them were joined by the other three. Future Trunks and Future Daikon both recoiled back. Bulma stared at it. On the ground, in front of Gohan and Future Ranch, was a massive trench with embedded claw marks on either side. Bulma's eye twitched. "Okay...I'm really not liking this..."

Gohan ran his fingers over the calcified, crusty dirt ridges that surrounded the trench. "Nothing has grown over this trench or these marks. And they're hard as rock. Some kind of acidic material has rendered the ground hard and infertile..."

Future Daikon seemed nervous. "S-So..."

His gaze traced over the trench, seeing that it led deeper into the woods. "D-Do we...follow it and see where it goes...?"

The sound of a Capsule opening echoed behind Future Daikon and Future Trunks. They both turned to see Future Ranch holding a Saiga-12 shotgun, loading shells into it and cocking it. "Nope. You two stay here with Bulma and see what else you can figure out about that junker of a Time Machine. Gohan and I will follow this trail."

She glanced down at her younger, older cousin. "You're cool with that, right Gohan?"

Gohan nodded, looking excited. "Y-Yeah! I'd love to go chase down whatever this is with you, Ranch~!"

Future Ranch nodded, reaching into one of the holsters under her shirt and pulling out an SR-1 Vektor pistol. She tossed it to Gohan and began to march into the brush. "Stay on my six, partner. I need you to keep watch for me."

Gohan awkwardly held the gun, following closely behind Future Ranch. "R-Right..."

As the two of them headed off into the deeper part of the forest, Bulma spoke aloud. "Man, she's armed to the teeth, isn't she? She's takes after Launch..."

Future Trunks and Future Daikon were a lot less glib about the situation. The two turned to one another and Future Trunks spoke. "Are you thinking the same thing I am...?"

Future Daikon sighed. "Unfortunately. It would appear that...whatever's going on here has nothing to do with 17 and 18..."

 _In a convenience store in the middle of nowhere..._

On the way to Goku's house, the Saiyan warriors three would-be assassins stopped for a small concession.

Android 17 stood in front of the hot dog roller, watching as the wieners within spun in place. He held a slushie in his hand and looked as if he was getting impatient. "Hey! 18! What's taking you two so long?!"

Android 18 called from the rear of the store. "Shut up! Not everyone wants to be basic and buy a slushie!"

The female Android shook her head. "Okay 16, like I said, you can get any flavor you like and then add as much sugar and creamer and stuff as you'd like. I know we're Androids and such, but it's really good and I think you'd like it~"

Android 16 nodded. "I thank you for your explanation of this bean, run-off solution Android 18. However, I do not require such things. I am purely robotic and have no use for such luxuries."

18 rolled her eyes. "I know you're a robot, 16. But, come on. You have to at least be _curious_...right?"

16 cocked his head slightly. "I am unsure that my systems would be able to process the components in such a beverage... _but I do find myself intrigued_."

18 nodded, stroking her chin. "Okay..."

She looked to the drink coolers on the wall next to her. "Oh!"

18 yanked the door open and grabbed out a green sports drink. "Here! It's a sports drink. Water and electrolytes and, uh, crap. It shouldn't hurt you!"

16 glanced down at it. "I am... unsure."

18 nudged him. "Come on, 16. Try it."

She smiled at him. "I picked it out because it's the same color as your armor~"

16 glanced at the bottle and then at 18. "You are attempting to convince me to ingest this beverage using a similar sentiment to the one I used when describing the factors that went into my choosing of your outfit."

18 chuckled. "Yes, 16, I'm friend-guilting you."

16 remained silent for a moment, and then he nodded. "I shall ingest this sports drink in order to give you the satisfaction that you convinced me to try something new, because you are my... _friend_."

At the front of the store, Android 17 still impatiently waited for 16 and 18 to come along. Behind the counter, a bearded man wearing a pair of overalls chuckled. "If ya know what yer pals are pickin' out back there, I can ring ya up~"

17 rolled his eyes. "Yeah...cuz we're totally going to pay for this stuff..."

"You'd better."

17 turned and saw, emerging from down the beer aisle, two farm boys. One of them set two a twelve pack and cracked his knuckles. "Y'all city folk think yer just allowed to come and take watcha please?"

The other one glared down at 17. "You'd better pay, or we'll slap ya boy!"

17 smirked, stepping forward. "Oh, will you now?"

It was clear that a brawl was about to break out. Android 17 stepped forward, rolling up his sleeves. "I wonder how many hits you can take before you go down. I'm willing to bet that it's not much~"

The first farm boy spat. "I'll bust your itsy-bitsy scarf-wearin' ass up and down the-"

Suddenly, 16's voice echoed out. "Is there a problem here?"

Both of the farm boys turned, ready to face down this new person. "Yeah! Y'all city-"

And then, both of them caught sight of Android 16. The 6'9", fiery-mohawked, muscle-bound, intense-eyed, strong-jawed 16 loomed over the two of them, looking like an iron bear. The two farm boys, in the smartest decision they had ever made, both stood down. "N-Naw. Nothin' wrong here. We're, uh, just offerin' to pay for y'alls drinks..."

The other one stammered. "Y-Yeah...y-y'all city folk, like we was sayin', really need to learn about small town hospitality~"

16 stood silent for a moment, but then he stared forward. "I will add the term 'small town hospitality' to my list of things I must gain further knowledge on in the future, after we kill Son Goku."

And then, with nothing else to say, Android 16 tromped forward and exited the store with his sports drink. Android 18 chuckled and walked past the two dumbfounded farm boys. "Thanks fellas. We really do appreciate it~"

Android 17 glared after 18 and 16, watching the larger Android climb into the van. And then, out of anger, he kicked the nearest farm boy into the hot dog roller, sending both crashing to the ground. " _That guy's really starting to annoy me..._ "

 _Back in the forest north of West City..._

Future Trunks called out from the derelict Time Machine. "I found it!"

Bulma and Future Daikon both looked up at him. He called down to them. "I found the back-up travel memory for this thing. I know how long it's been here!"

Future Daikon nodded. "O-Okay, how long has it been?"

Future Trunks looked grim. "It's...it's unbelievable. Whoever rode here in this thing came here-"

Suddenly, before Future Trunks could finish, the sound of Future Ranch screaming pierced through the quiet forest. And that was all it took. Faster than Bulma could react, Future Trunks and Future Daikon had drawn their sword and Power Pole and charged into the forest. Bulma trailed after them, shouting. "W-Wait for me!"

It didn't take long for the two of them to arrive on the scene, both of them having gone Super Saiyan in the process. They came into a clearing and found the sight of Future Ranch, also in her Super Saiyan form, on her butt next to another acid-scorched hole in the ground. Her face was white as she tried to gasp out words, barely able to point. "H-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h..."

Future Trunks held her hand, trying to calm her. "Ranch! What is it?! What's wrong?!"

Future Daikon turned, his eyes widening and a stream of snot dripping from his nose. " _What in the hell in the name of Kami is that...?_ "

Bulma finally burst through the bushes. "What's _gooooooooLY SHIT!_ "

Future Trunks turned to look as well and he was stunned at the sight of it. Finally, Future Ranch managed to work out a basic sentence. "H-Huge... _ **HUGE ASS BUG!**_ "

Future Ranch hid behind Future Trunks like he was an impenetrable wall. The other three all watched on as Gohan, the only one not freaking out, messed around with the source of all of their terror: a massive, brown, insect-like husk lurched over on the ground. The bug was next to another acid-etched hole in the ground and was laying at the end of a rut that looked quite similar to the one that Future Ranch and Gohan had followed.

Gohan dipped his hand into the husk. "What is this...?"

Bulma cried out. "Gohan! Be careful!"

Gohan cringed and, to the disgust of everyone else, pulled out a hand covered in viscous slime. The boy shook his head. "Gross..."

Future Ranch stammered. "Ugh...q-quit t-t-touching that ugly thing..."

Future Trunks placed a steady hand on his insect-fearing girlfriend's shoulder to try and calm her. Gohan spoke. "I've been learning a lot about bugs in my biology classes. The thorax, the wings, and the placement of the legs would point to this being some kind of cicada. That being said...we did find this thing at the end of a trail that started near that broken Time Machine..."

Future Daikon nodded. "So... this is what came out of that egg then? It hatched, scarred the ground with the goo that was in the egg with it, buried itself, and then dug itself up...?"

Bulma was confused. "But cicadas usually take years to develop after they bury themselves. So... how long has that Time Machine and this thing been here...?"

Finally, Future Trunks spoke. "Four years."

Everyone turned to him. Future Trunks looked grim. "Four years, this thing has been here."

Bulma flinched. "That would have been right around the time all of us were still on Namek...so, this thing showed up here while we were all away..."

Future Trunks nodded. "It would appear so..."

Gohan stood, shaking his hand clean. "But...this is just a shell. An empty shell, recently shed. With how wet it is on the inside; it can't have been any more than a few days since this thing cracked open. So... where is the former occupant?"

Suddenly, Bulma had no more desire to be in this forest. Turning tail, she immediately began to fast walk in the other direction. "Guys, it's been fun. But I do have a lot of work to do, ya know? Android parts to examine and blueprints to read..."

Future Trunks nodded. "Right. We should get back to Kame House as well, regroup with the others..."

Future Daikon called after her. "Let us walk you to your car, Miss Bulma! Just to be safe!"

And so, they did. Bulma was quickly walked back to her car where she promptly chose to get the hell out of dodge, reducing and taking the derelict Time Machine with her. Once she was out of sight, the Future Trio and their child companion all took to the skies as well. And with yet another stomach-turning mystery added to the pile, the four of them flew off back to Kame House.

 _At Kame House..._

Raditz looked grim as Tien finished his explanation. "Poor Yamcha..."

Tien sighed. "Yeah...and that's all we really know. Suno, upstairs, has seems to have blocked out whatever horrifying things she was forced to watch, and her Android friend was too damaged to think straight..."

Gine nodded. "She seems to know my Kakarot though, whoever she is..."

Tien closed his eyes. "I feel bad for those three. After everything you've told me about what they told you...and now with all of this added on...they're probably kicking themselves..."

Blue Launch frowned. "None of them seem particularly upbeat. Poor Ranch is barely able to look me in the eye..."

Krillin shrugged. "It's a hard time we're going through right now. But everything should be fine. Maybe, when Chiaotzu gets here, he'll have an update for us from Bulma...you know, assuming Bulma isn't too distracted from that other Time Machine in the woods..."

All of them sat in silence, listening to the sound of waves lapping in the background and Baby Ranch mutely snoring in her Dad's arms. Raditz turned to Tien. "So, where is Master Roshi anyway?"

Tien shrugged. "I don't know. When I got here with Yamcha and Suno, the house was empty."

 _Upstairs, in Roshi's spare room..._

Suno and the pregnant Chi-Chi both worked diligently as they doted over their respective patients. While Suno was happy to see Goku again as so long, and while she was worried for him in his bed-ridden state, she had a more important duty that she felt she had to take care of at the moment. Yamcha had thrown himself to the metaphorical wolves to protect her from the horrific thing that had attacked her, now she had to give it her all to care for him in his crippled state.

Thankfully, Tien had done the hard part, amputating Yamcha's reduced leg and applying a tourniquet to the screaming bandit. Now, Suno just had to act as his nurse until he was okay again. She constantly checked on his bandages, replaced the cool rag on his head whenever it got warm, and just consistently doted over the fallen warrior.

From the other side of the room, Chi-Chi watched on. She pitied poor Suno, but completely understood where the poor, younger woman was coming from. She was just as worried about both her Goku and her unborn child. She was expecting/hoping that both would come around any time now.

Chi-Chi continued to watch, smiling as Suno gently replaced the bandages on Yamcha's leg stump but frowning at the sight of tears rolling down the girl's cheeks. Chi-Chi sighed. "Don't cry..."

Suno flinched. Moving carefully, Chi-Chi dragged herself over to the poor girl and wrapped her arm over her shoulder. "These sorts of things happen all the time. We'll get Yamcha his leg back soon enough and everything will be right as rain~"

The poor girl shook her head. "I just...I feel awful. That... _thing_...I can't even remember its face, but I know that it was going to kill me...just like it did everyone else..."

She began to shake. "I... I was sure that I was going to die. But then, Yamcha swooped in and kicked it away. He didn't stop fighting until the others showed up and forced the monster to run away. I-If he wasn't trying to defend me...he wouldn't...have..."

Chi-Chi shook her head. "Stop. You don't have to feel bad about that. Yamcha is an idiot most of the time, but his heart is always in the right place. He's a martial artist, and a real heroic person."

Suno smiled, giving a small chuckle. "H-He's just like Goku then, huh?"

Chi-Chi sighed. "For better or for worse, yes."

Suno was confused. "For better or for worse?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Just keep hanging around here. You'll see what I mean. These guys are all drawn to trouble like a bunch of fight-happy magnets..."

Suno looked away. "Oh..."

Chi-Chi smiled. "Look, Suno. Just keep your chin up. Yamcha will get better, Goku will get better, and I'm sure that, in spite of the awful circumstances, both of them will be happy to see you when they wake up~"

Suno smiled, tears building in her eyes again. "Th-Thank you..."

 _At Kami's Lookout..._

Piccolo's turned in place and glared as, finally, Kami emerged from the depths of his palace. Kami tried to be civil. "Thank you for coming, Piccolo."

Piccolo was far less warm towards his elder counterpart. " _What do you want?!_ "

Kami sighed. "I do believe that Mr. Popo has informed you that I wish to discuss with you a certain monster that is currently plaguing the Earth..."

Piccolo snapped at him. "Which one, Kami?!"

Kami flinched. Piccolo marched forward. "No, seriously, which monster did you want to discuss?! Is it the Androids we've already defeated?! Is it the Androids that are currently trying to hunt down Goku?! Or is it whatever the hell is currently mass-slaughtering entire villages of people?!"

The old guardian sneered. "What is the point you are trying to make, Piccolo?"

Piccolo bitterly spat back at him. "Nothing that a half-assed guardian like you would be able to wrap your head around."

Kami sneered. Piccolo snarled. "Tell me, Kami, what exactly is the point of you?! You sit up here all day and stare down and watch the Earth and what do you do?! You watch people commit evil and get up to machinations that would ruins this planet and you do nothing!"

The younger Namekian cocked his head. "I've been avoiding dealing with you as much as possible, but it does bring up a serious question: why in the hell did we have to have three brats come back from the future to warn us of a threat that you, of all people, should have seen coming?!"

Kami scoffed. "You consider Android 17 and Android 18 to be the greatest threat we are facing?!"

Piccolo flinched. Kami stepped forward. "Look at you. Standing there, so prideful and so cocksure. You've gained power Piccolo, lots of power, and yet you are unable to look at the bigger picture as I am. You have yet to see the real monster stalking around down in the world below!"

The younger Namekian sneered. "And just how long have you known this? Huh?! You seem pretty familiar with this monster, so you had to have been watching it for a while, eh?!"

Kami nodded. "Indeed, I have. Because I am a prudent guardian! I have been watching over this creature since the Garlic Junior debacle, and-"

Piccolo snarled. " _SINCE GARLIC JUNIOR?!_ "

Kami and Popo both flinched. Piccolo marched forward and grabbed Kami by his cape. " _ **You've known about whatever the hell that thing down there is for that long and you didn't bother to tell anyone?!**_ "

Piccolo was shaking with anger. " _ **Do you know how many people that thing has killed?! Entire villages are being left empty, Kami!**_ "

Kami growled at Piccolo. "What am I to do, Piccolo?! Am I, the Guardian of the Earth, to have my subjects act as a personal hit-squad whenever I see any abnormality?! When I first observed that monster, it was not acting in this manner! It wasn't out there committing acts of evil like it is now!"

Piccolo glared at the faltering guardian. Kami glared right back. "And, besides, you all were preparing to deal with the other Androids. Was I expected to interrupt your precious training for something that was, at the time, so insignificant?!"

Piccolo snapped back at him. "No! As a Guardian the only thing anyone expects from you is common sense, Kami! Common sense! You should have told somebody! You should have acted yourself! You should have done something other than stand around and wait for the problem to present itself!"

Kami defensively shouted in Piccolo's face. " _If I stuck to that line of thought, you would either be sealed in a jar right now or we would both be permanently dead! You cannot tell me that my lack of ability to act on hindsight is something that I should be castigated for!_ "

Piccolo shook his head. "I guess I can't. But we both know that that isn't the problem here. Your lack of foresight is what's wrong and it has costed people their lives! _Between allowing Dr. Gero to carry out his twisted work and allowing whatever the hell this monster is to run wild, your lack of foresight in regards to obvious problems has cost us quite a bit just today alone!_ "

Piccolo dropped Kami and turned. "Perhaps I'm not the one to say this, perhaps our own enmity towards one another is a discount of my ability to make a judgement on this...but I'm starting to feel like Earth needs a new Guardian and that you just aren't fit for this job anymore, Kami..."

And to that, Kami had nothing to say in response. The guardian sat there, on the ground, as Piccolo marched towards the edge of the Lookout. Mr. Popo attempted to dote over his master, but Kami quickly called out. "Piccolo!"

Piccolo turned and glared at him. Kami shamefully cast his gaze to the ground. "Gingertown. To the north of where that Bulma woman lives."

The younger Namekian wordlessly turned, and then he leapt off the side of Kami's Lookout, flying as fast as he could in the direction of West City.

 _Back at Kame House..._

Everyone turned at the sound of the door opening up and watched as Gohan and the Future Trio stepped into Kame House. Raditz saw the grim looks on their faces and cringed. "What happened...?"

Future Ranch crashed onto Roshi's couch and groaned. " _A lot._ "

Future Daikon sat next to her. "Have you guys been watching the television at all? Maybe heard anything about 17 and 18?"

Gine spoke up. "We've been channel surfing through the various news channels every few minutes. But, nothing. If the Androids are really out there wreaking havoc, they're being super low-profile about it..."

Launch grabbed the remote and began to click through the channels. "I'll have another go-through just to make sure nothing new has been reported."

Tien spoke up. "So, there was a second Time Machine?"

Future Trunks sat nearer to the coffee table, Gohan sat next to him and opened a workbook on physics. The son of Vegeta sighed. "There was a second Time Machine, but there were a few things off about it. It was only big enough for one person and it was barely functional. It had been there for four years when we found it..."

Krillin cocked his head. "Maybe someone stole it from Bulma in the future. A prototype, maybe?"

Future Ranch sighed. "No. Miss Bulma only had enough materials to make the four turbines and the fuel that are in our machine. There were a few other chassis designs, but they were all non-functional..."

Gine spoke up. "Well, times have literally changed. Maybe some sort of butterfly effect occurred that allowed Bulma to gain more materials..."

Future Daikon shook his head. "Couldn't be. Our timeline is splintered from this one, remember...?"

He sighed. "Nothing we're doing here is even slightly affecting our future. And, if it ever started, the three of us would probably vanish into nothing."

Tien flinched. "So, wait... _you three aren't benefitting from doing this at all?!_ "

All three shook their heads in the negative. Tien gasped. "Then...then why waste your time here?"

Future Trunks sadly smiled. "It's...it's not a waste. We don't think so at least..."

Future Daikon sighed. "We get to make sure that at least one timeline is better off. We get to help fight for a better future. Save lives. That's more than the three of us can do back home..."

Future Ranch had her arm draped over her face. "Plus, we get to meet all sorts of people we never had a chance to meet in the past. And, hopefully, we might find a way to get rid of the Androids in our time. That would be a nice little bonus..."

Tien smiled. "That's very noble. I think the three of you are-"

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Tien saw something that immediately caught his attention. "Launch! Stop!"

Launch flinched, making herself sneeze. Blonde Launch, infuriated, shouted at Tien. "What?! Why'd ya startle me like that?!"

Tien glared at the TV. "It's that monster..."

The Future Trio all looked at the TV. Future Ranch cocked her head. "Wh-What do you mean _'that monster'_? Is there something we haven't been told about?"

Tien scowled at the TV. On the screen were piles of abandoned clothes, each with a hole pierced somewhere into them. And flashing at the bottom of the screen was the headline of this news story. "Strange Happenings in Gingertown".

 _In Gingertown..._

Piccolo touched down in Gingertown and found a sight similar to one that he had seen several times beforehand. The streets of the once bustling community were littered with the same discarded clothing that Piccolo had seen so many times up to this point. Each piece of clothing had a hole stabbed into it somewhere.

Piccolo was on-guard as he walked down the street, feeling the entire time as if he was being watched, right over his shoulder.

The Namekian marched down the main street of Gingertown, his ears twitching as he picked up several noises: the sound of something being dragged, the sound of a squeaky sort of clomping noise, and, most of all, the deafening sound of silence.

Gingertown was so quiet that Piccolo could hear the sound of water dripping from a cracked pipe on the other side of the settlement.

Finally, the Namekian halted his trek and suddenly turned, staring into the eerie blackness of a dark alley between a small shop and an office building. He could feel a presence within, even if that presence strangely lacked a power level to read. His gaze sharpened as he heard more dragging and more clomping from deep within. Piccolo sneered. "I know you're there. I can't sense you... _but I can feel your evil_."

Piccolo watched as this new threat emerged from the shadows. He was disgusted by what he saw: a massive, bipedal, insect-like beast with waist-length wings, a massive tail, and orange-beaked face with hellish, slit-pupiled eyes, and three-fingered hands and three-toed feet to round it out. And, worst of all, this fresh new menace seemed to be dragging someone with it as it stepped out from the shadows.

Piccolo growled under his breath. " _At last we meet, face-to-face..._ "

From The Monster's grip, a fat, balding man suddenly woke up. He glanced up at his freakish captor and then over at Piccolo. "Hey! Please man! You gotta help me!"

Piccolo and The Monster stared into each other's eyes, neither of them paying much heed to the struggling man. He shouted at Piccolo. "Hey! Aren't you listening?!"

He reached into his expensive suit, pulling out a wad of cash. "Please, man! I'm the richest guy in town! Please! If you help me, you can have all of this cash! You can have everything I own! Just please help me! I don't wanna end up like everyone else this freak has grabbed!"

Piccolo sneered. "If I were you, I'd let him go. You've done caused enough damage towards the meek and the helpless! It's time to try attacking someone who can fight back!"

The Monster didn't say a word, simply releasing his three-fingered grip on the man's suit. The man gasped. "Oh my gosh! Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you! You can have my money! Take all of it! Just thank you! Thank you for-"

Suddenly, The Monster's stinger like tail raised into the air and shot down right into the man's spine. He yelped his pain, his pupils shrinking to the size of pinpricks. Piccolo gasped and flinched back. And then, to his horror...The Monster's tail began to suck.

The man was silent at first, unsure of what reaction to have. But then, he began to scream. His voice was shrill, almost to the point of being incomprehensible. Piccolo could only watch in genuine horror as the man continued to scream, his skin sagging to the point his bones were visible. His head collapsed over his eyes and he began to slump, almost as if he were melting. The poor man's body warped and decaying, sagging and shrinking more and more, receding into the shirt and his yelping and cries of pain became shallower and more distorted.

Eventually, the man disappeared altogether and The Monster's tail stopped drinking. The Monster opened its orange beak to speak, but then looked down at its claws. It watched in genuine curiosity as, between its two fingers, on each claw, a third finger sprouted out. The fingers rapidly grew and developed, eventually transforming The Monster's three-fingered claws into four-fingered hands.

It chuckled and gripped its new fists. "Well then, now that we've gotten that _vermin_ out of the way..."

Its eyes glanced up and locked with the Namekian's. " _You're next, Piccolo~_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	74. Chapter 74: Cell

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _ **Chapter 74: Cell**_

 _In the empty streets of Gingertown..._

A chilling wind blew through the streets of Gingertown, sending the clothes of the once fearful man flying into the distance. A parasol, cast aside by a fearful citizen in their vain attempt to escape, tickered down the asphalt street behind Piccolo.

Piccolo was taken aback by what this... _thing_...had just said to him. "What in the hell are you?!"

The monster chuckled. And then, for just a brief moment, it unleashed its power for Piccolo to take in. And, while the monster's power was certainly large, it was not the depth that gave Piccolo pause. It was the variety. In the brief moment that this monster had cut loose, Piccolo felt thousands of different power levels screaming from within the beast. And several of those screams were quite a bit louder than the others. Piccolo's jaw dropped. "Wh-Who?! _Wh-What?!_ "

The creature smirked. "I have come to my decision~"

Piccolo sneered at the monster. "Decision?"

The monster nodded. "Indeed. I was originally considering a Kamehameha, but so many people know how to perform that technique that it would have no real oomph.. So, instead..."

The beast clasped its hand above its head and chuckled again. Piccolo flinched. " _Those two energies..._ "

The monster shouted. " _MASENKO!_ "

 _At Kame House..._

Everyone within Kame House flinched again at the new, stronger feeling that had hit them. Tien was trembling. "No, we weren't mistaken..."

Krillin looked utterly confused. " _Two Piccolos?!_ "

Gohan was in awe. "A-And me...?!"

Bounding down the stair, like a bat out of hell, Chi-Chi glanced around the room until her eyes laid upon Gohan. The pregnant woman looked as if she had been roused from a nap. "Wh-What...? But...Gohan, I thought I sensed..."

And then, Chi-Chi groaned and fell to her knees. Gohan stood up to run over to her. "Mom!"

As Gohan checked on his mother, the television began to speak again. "This is another report from the ongoing situation in Gingertown! Accompanying the disappearance of the Gingertown population, explosions now appear to be emanating from the within the formerly peaceful township! As a result, King Furry has issued an order to the nearby base in West City to deploy several battalions to try and sort out what is going on! Could this have something to do with the awful attacks that shook tropical Papaya Town to its core? Z-TV will continue to keep you informed as more developments arise from what this reporter sees as the beginnings of a major tragedy!"

Launch stared at the TV with a look of horror on her face. "What in the world is going on? Does this have anything to do with what you guys...are..."

She glanced over at her husband, only to find Raditz white-knuckled and green in the face. Launch looked over at the Future Trio, all of whom were in genuine disbelief, and then over at the capsized Chi-Chi. Launch frowned. "I... really need to learn how to sense power levels..."

Chi-Chi spoke up, sounding as if she was going to vomit. "N-No... you don't. This is all...it's too much..."

And then, without missing a beat, Chi-Chi stood and ran into Roshi's kitchen, vomiting into the sink. Raditz shook his head. "All in one place, opposite of Piccolo. Not just another Piccolo, not just Gohan...but Kakarot, Vegeta, myself, the Trunks of the Future, Krillin, Tien, Yamcha, my mother and father, Roshi..."

Gine chimed in. "Garlic Junior, Abo and Kado, Frieza, Nappa, and... _what the hell is that?!_ "

Raditz gasped, his pupils shrinking to the size of pinpricks. " _What in the hell is King Cold doing there?!_ "

The Future Trio all looked to one another, they had all come to the same realization. This mixed energy signal was coming from Gingertown, to the north of West City. Gohan spoke up and vocalized what the three of them were thinking. "That energy and Mr. Piccolo are both fairly close to where we found that husk and the broken Time Machine..."

And then, without so much as a word, the Future Trio all stood up and began to march towards the door. Gohan turned to them and gasped. "H-Hey! Wait for me!"

Future Daikon turned on his heel. "Gohan, no! Not this time! You can't come along!"

The desperation in the older boy's voice gave Gohan pause. He looked up at Future Daikon. "Wh-Why not?! Mr. Piccolo is fighting whatever that is! He needs me to come and help him!"

But, before any of the Future Trio could speak back, Tien spoke up. "Because your Dad needs a capable warrior here to watch over him."

Gohan flinched, turning to see that Krillin and Tien had both stood up. Krillin chuckled. "The world is going crazy Gohan, your Dad needs his entire family around him to keep him safe. So, you stick around here with your Mom, Raditz, Launch, and Gine and keep him safe~"

Tien cracked his neck. "We'll go and assist Piccolo alongside our three allies from the future..."

Gohan looked dejected, but he gave in. "O-Okay...just, please, all of you stay alive. Okay?"

Krillin and Tien both shot Gohan and thumbs-up and then, following the Future Trio's lead, they exited Kame House.

 _In the sky, above the ocean surrounding Kame House..._

Future Trunks turned to Krillin and Tien and politely nodded their way. "Thank you both for stepping up and doing that. We...none of us want to lose Gohan again..."

Krillin shook his head. "Not at all. We get it."

Tien nodded. "Gohan is headstrong like Goku is. Ever since our fight with Nappa and Vegeta, he's never been one to run away or flee. It's admirable, but foolhardy all the same..."

Future Daikon was reserved and silent, his hair blocking his eyes. Future Ranch sighed. "That sounds like our cousin, alright..."

Future Trunks glared in the distance, towards where the energy signatures were coming from. "We need to hurry. If Piccolo dies, we lose the Dragon Balls. We can't let that happen! Not again!"

 _In West City..._

As Bulma landed her hover car in her backyard, she could see the sight of the Royal Army's tanks rolling out of the base and driving into the hills in the distant countryside. She cocked her head. "What the heck?!"

Bulma quickly got out of her car, carrying the pink eggshells and running into Capsule Corp. Once inside, the scientist was shocked by the new additions inside her workshop: Chiaotzu, of all people, had joined her father. And, on the table next to the two of them was a severed head. And then, to make matters even stranger, the head smiled and spoke. "Hello there! Are you Bulma? My name is Android #8, but my friends call me Eighter, and I am a friend of Goku's. It is nice to meet you~!"

Bulma looked from the head, to her father, to her mother holding her infant son, to Chiaotzu. Her shoulders drooped. "Someone explain to me what the hell is going on..."

Chiaotzu sighed. "That's...a mouthful..."

 _Back in Gingertown..._

Piccolo leapt up out of the smoke, landing on top of a building. He looked out at the cone of destruction the monster had made, blasting a massive path through a small section of the city. He sneered. "Pretty destructive..."

Suddenly, the monster's voice spoke. "I thank you for the compliment~"

Piccolo whipped around and saw the monster standing on a building opposite of him. Once again, to the Namekian's consternation, the beast had managed to move completely undetected. Piccolo growled. "Seriously, what are you?!"

The monster chuckled. "You are certainly persistent in your questioning. But, how to answer you...?"

It cocked its head. "I suppose I could say that I am you. Or...perhaps calling myself your son would be better?"

Piccolo growled. "Don't play games! The one ability that my worthless father didn't pass to me was his ability to reproduce through eggs! And, even if he did, I could never produce something as hideous and evil-feeling as you!"

The beast chuckled. "Quite the ironic statement from the self-proclaimed Demon King."

Piccolo's ki sense was going crazy, almost to the point of overwhelming him. Once again, the powers he was feeling weren't particularly strong...but they were potent. Forceful even. He could hear them wailing in his head. The likes of Goku, Vegeta, and Frieza at the forefront. Trying to calm himself, Piccolo took a fighting stance. "I don't call myself the Demon King because I proclaim to be evil. I call myself the Demon King because only a demon could fight with the ferocity that I do!"

A smirk spread across the monster's orange beak. "Such bravado~"

Piccolo roared, his power bursting out hard enough to make the windows on his building shatter into pieces. The beast shrieked with laughter and then did the same, its energy exploding out like noxious gas and weighing down on its building like a dense cloud. The structure strained under it. And then, Piccolo and the beast charged at one another.

The two of them instantly locked up, the sheer force of their clash sending a howling wind blowing through the empty streets that blasted the leaves off of every nearby tree. Piccolo smirked. "You've doomed yourself, monster! By emptying this city, you've given me the opportunity to fight without holding back!"

The monster adopted and open-beaked grin, four fangs peering out from beneath the orange cone. "Perhaps I have, but I have also narrowed my attention down to one prey!"

The stinger tail on the beast spiked downward, but Piccolo propelled himself back. Once the stinger had passed, he instantly shot forward and spin-kicked the monster across the cheek. And then, as the beast tried to collect itself, Piccolo sent it crashing to the ground with a heavy chop across the chest.

The monster hit the ground running, flipping backwards and landing on its feet. "He's fast."

It turned just in time to see Piccolo right behind it, preparing another spin-kick. Turning quickly, the beast was able to use its sliding momentum to do a flip, front-flipping over Piccolo and then trying to land another hit with the stinger tail. Piccolo dodged out of the way and fired a blast. The beast ducked the blast and fired one of its own, but Piccolo slapped it away, deflecting the attack with authority.

The two of them clashed again, very briefly, and then both leapt back. This back-and-forth continued across the city, carrying both fighters down streets and into alleyways. The monster leapt up and prepared to try and stab Piccolo again, but the Namekian stretched his arm into the air and grabbed the creature at the base of the stinger. Properly restrained, the beast had no defense as Piccolo whipped it into the side of a building, smashing it into a wall.

From within the vacant building, the monster spoke. Its voice had a slight reverb. "So, you can stretch your limbs, Piccolo? _Interesting~_ "

And then, the tail shot out once more. Piccolo jumped back, but gasped as the tail continued to give chase. He dodged various attempted stabbings and thought to himself. "It's reacting. This battle isn't just about trying to kill me, it's trying to learn more about itself!"

Piccolo snarled. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!"

And then, he charged a blast and fired it forward. " _DESTRUCTIVE WAVE!_ "

The blast shot forward and exploded a large portion of the street. As the smoke cleared, Piccolo saw no sign of the stinger tail. But then, the monster appeared behind him. "I already answered that question! Perhaps try 'who are you' or 'where are you from' next~"

And then, to Piccolo's surprise, the beast reached to the top of his head and yanked his turban down over his eyes. And then, the beast grabbed Piccolo by the collar of his cape and began to hammer the Namekian across the face with his fist. "You are so rude, Piccolo! You always ask 'what' in that gravelly voice! Did King Piccolo not teach you any manners when he birthed you?!"

The monster grabbed Piccolo's flowing cape, whipping the Namekian around and launched him at the road. Piccolo bounced, but quickly recovered and pulled the turban from over his eyes. He glared up into the air and caught the most disgusting sight. The monster's tail had swelled into an engorged size. It smirked, and then it fired a blast of corrosive gunk from the tip of the stinger at Piccolo.

The Namekian reacted quickly, whipping off his cape and throwing it at the acid stream. The cape collided with the liquid and was instantly eroded away. On the other side of the cape, however, was a sight that Piccolo should have seen coming by this point. The monster had both fingers pressed to its forehead and was charging energy. Piccolo did the same. And then, both fired their attacks at the same time. " _SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

The two blasts clashed and, to Piccolo's surprise, he was briefly forced back. This, however, only served to make the Namekian angrier. He snapped at the monster. "I will not be beaten in a struggle against my own attack!"

And then, Piccolo did something that no one had seen him do with the Special Beam Cannon before: he used both hands, as was originally intended with the technique, and shouted. " _SUPER SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!_ "

Finally, Piccolo had taken the advantage. His blast pushed against the beast and the monster shrieked. "Strong! S-So strong! I...I..."

It smirked. And then, it used the recoil from its own blast to dodge out of the way. Piccolo's Super Special Beam Cannon rose into the air and shot a hole directly through a cloud, eventually arching into the distance and slicing the top off of a faraway mountain. The monster whistled in appreciation. "Quite the technique, Piccolo..."

Its voice fell a register. " _But how about this one~? DEATH BEAM!_ "

Piccolo flinched as a familiar, wicked beam shot towards him. His hand was barely able to make it in time to deflect the beam away. Piccolo snarled at the stinging pain in his hand. The monster landed and point its finger in Piccolo's face. "I'm sorry~! Did that one cause you some heartache~?"

The Namekian sneered and shoved the monster back with his foot. Both Piccolo and the creature feinted back, standing across from one another as a harsh wind blew. After such a frantic clash, Piccolo was left with more questions than answers about what he was facing here.

What was this thing? Why couldn't he detect its presence without it being allowed? Where did it come from? What was going on here?!

But then, to both Piccolo and the monster's surprise, they both heard a loud racket in the distance. The two of them both leapt high up and landed atop a large building. In the countryside surrounding Gingertown, they saw several battalions of King Furry's army had gather on the outskirts. The various army men and women were armed to the teeth, dressed in their military regalia and bringing forth heavy weaponry. Several batteries of missiles and a platoon of tanks were gathered and waiting to be unleashed. Piccolo snarled. "Those fools. They need to not inter-"

A sudden blue light shined out next to Piccolo, he turned and gasped in horror at what he saw. The monster was charging quite the familiar attack, and was pointed directly at the hapless Royal Army below. The beast briefly turned its attention to Piccolo, smirking and winking, and then glared back at the humans. " _KAMEHAMEHA!_ "

Piccolo leapt at the monster. " _NO!_ "

But it was too late. The force of the attack launched forth and ballooned over the empty city. The building that Piccolo and the monster were stood on was engulfed as well. The royal army below could do nothing but watch and scream as the attack came shredding towards them, eventually exploding and sending a shockwave across the countryside.

 _In a barren wasteland..._

With that violent attack, there was not a ki sensitive person on the planet that didn't notice what was happening. Including Vegeta.

The Saiyan Prince's eyes popped open and he turned in the direction of the battle currently waging. Vegeta was quite confused. "It's that bastard Namekian..."

He sneered. "But what the hell is he fighting?! It's not those Android brats. It's...Kakarot? Raditz? Bardock? _Frieza?! King Cold?!_ _ **ME?!**_ "

Vegeta snarled. "I am getting sick of all of this idiocy. That green prick can have this one. I need to re-focus and then hunt down...those..."

Suddenly, Vegeta came to a startling realization. As his ki sense honed in on Piccolo's battle, he came to understand where the battle was taking place. To the west, and slightly to the north. Right near West City. Vegeta gasped, and then he briefly thought of his woman and his son. " _Damn it!_ "

The Prince's Super Saiyan form burst forth and he took off. Vegeta sped through the sky, his vendetta against the Androids briefly forgotten. "What the hell else could happen this week?!"

 _On a random roadside..._

The pink delivery van stolen by the Androids was parked in the middle of a mountainside road. The two of them stood on the edge of the road, overlooking a cliff, and stared westward. 17 and 18 were both quite confused, their sensors having suddenly gone crazy. The raven-haired Android cocked his head. "Damn these new, heightened sensors...Gero could have at least programmed knowledge of how these things work into us before he woke us up..."

18 shrugged. "Probably too focused on trying to make us obedient. My files indicate that that Bulma woman is smart, maybe after we kill Goku we could go to her for an explanation..."

17 turned to her. "I don't think she'd be all too willing to help us after we kill her friend."

18 sighed. "We could go gather the Dragon Balls after we kill Goku. That might be fun. Then, we offer them up as a peace offering. It's not like they aren't going to wish Goku back after we kill him, ya know?"

17's shoulders sagged. "That makes what we're doing right now sound so lame..."

She shrugged again. "Death is cheap, 17. That's the world we live in. Besides, it would give us the option to fight Goku again down the line. Might make 16 upset though..."

17 sneered in annoyance. " _Who gives a-_ "

Android 16 emerged from the van. "I am well-aware of the Dragon Balls and am prepared to continuously kill Son Goku up until the point he manages to kill me. That is my programmed purpose."

The two Androids turned to their bigger counterpart. 16 was staring intently at the horizon. 18 nodded at him. "The battle happening to the west woke you up out of your nap, huh?"

16 nodded back. "It is quite bizarre. Piccolo is currently engaged in battle with a single opponent displaying varied energy signatures."

17 glared at 16. "Wait a minute, you can tell who's fighting?"

16 nodded affirmatively. "Correct."

18 questioned. "So, who is it that Piccolo is fighting then?"

16's eyes were locked on the horizon. "My sensors show a multitude of people all emanating from a single source. At the moment, Piccolo is fighting against Vegeta, Krillin, Gohan, and _Piccolo_ , amongst others..."

17 chuckled. "Ah, I get it. They must be training. Is Goku among them?"

16 nodded. "Son Goku's energy is present. But I do not believe that Son Goku, himself, is present. Something is off about the source of that power. Every single power source, less one Piccolo, is all emanating from a single source..."

17 nodded. "Cool. Then whatever Piccolo is doing isn't important. We're gonna continue along on our little trip until we reach Goku's house."

The leader of the group turned and started walking back towards the van. As he did, he saw a billboard out of the corner of his eye. 17 read the billboard. " _Full-Throttle Biker Fest..._ "

And then, 17 smirked. "Actually, we might make one more, tiny pitstop on the way to Goku's place~"

 _Back in West City..._

Piccolo groaned as he pushed himself up. The Namekian wasn't injured, but he was very angry. " _That hideous little creep..._ "

He glared all around him, seeing nothing but the vague outlines of destroyed buildings and a thick cloud of dust. Piccolo stood and began to walk. He knew he couldn't be too hasty, if he lost his cool, the monster would get the drop on him.

The sound of a heavy, scuffing footstep caught Piccolo's attention and he turned to fire a blast. Luckily, he was able to stop himself when he saw that it was only a royal army soldier. The woman lurched forward and tripped into Piccolo. The Namekian tried to steady her. "Hey! You fools need to get out of here! This is beyond your capability!"

She spoke, her voice strained. "... _help me_..."

Piccolo flinched. "What?!"

She flipped her head back a wheezed again; she sounded terrified. " _Help me!_ "

Piccolo was horrified. The woman pleaded at him for assistance, but everything was wrong. Her skin was warping and sagging, practically drooping off of her face. Her voice was distorted and pained and scared. Tears built in her eyes and she gave one last, futile plea. " _Please...help me..._ "

And then her eyeballs caved into her skull, leaving pitch-black voids. And she shrieked. " _Aggghhhh!_ "

The last of the tears streamed off of her cheeks, and then the rest of her collapsed onto itself and vanished. The vile, stinger tail pulled itself from her clothes and then zipped back into the dust. Quickly, Piccolo raised his hand and fired a blast into the dust cloud. But it harmlessly sailed into the distance and exploded. Piccolo glanced down at the, now empty, uniform. Piccolo shouted at the top of his lungs. "Show yourself, bastard! Try that on someone who can fight back!"

" _Ehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe..._ "

Piccolo glanced around. The low, raspy chuckle seemed to be coming from everywhere. The monster spoke. "I have noticed that I have been granted extraordinary hearing. I got that from you Piccolo, right?"

Piccolo flinched. The monster chuckled again. "Please... _tell me how this sounds in those sensitive ears of yours_..."

And then, the terrified screaming began. Seemingly from all around, all at once, dozens of humans began to scream and shriek and cry out. Some of them screamed "what", some of them screamed "where", some of them even screamed "why", but none of it did any good. They were helpless, lost souls in a thick fog, being hunted by a merciless predator. And the sound grated against Piccolo's eardrums like nails across a chalkboard.

The sounds of the screams, combined with the sounds of that monster's laughter, dropped Piccolo to his knees. He snarled as the screaming continued, the warped roars of a dying herd of a lambs to the slaughter. Piccolo gritted his teeth, building energy within his core, and then he shouted at the top of his lungs and released an Explosive Demon Wave.

The energy blasted outward, blowing away the dust, and then all was still. Piccolo looked around, seeing nothing but empty soldier's uniforms and a ruined city, and he was confused. And then, quick as lightning, the monster snapped up behind Piccolo and trapped the Namekian's arm in a tight bear-hug. Piccolo thrashed around, trying to jerk free but being unable to. He glared to the ground and saw a massive hole on the ground. "You burrowed?!"

The monster chuckled. " _Indeed~_ "

It whispered in Piccolo's ear. " _And now, I'm going to try this on someone who can 'fight back'~_ "

And then, the stinger tail whipped outward and dramatically stabbed straight towards Piccolo's chest. Piccolo's eyes widened, and then he jerked to the side. The stinger stabbed into Piccolo's arm and he cried out in pain. The monster chuckled. "Okay then~ How about I walk you through the process~"

The tail swelled up just a bit. "First we inject..."

The swelling lurched forward, forcing the acidic mixture into Piccolo's arm. The Namekian cried out at the intense, searing pain as he felt all of the muscle and bone within his arm begin to degrade. The monster hissed. "And then... _we drink~!_ "

The tail began to pump, slowly sucking all of the matter out of Piccolo's left arm until all that was left was an empty husk of lose, soft flesh. The monster smirked. "For pathetic, untrained humans, one injection is enough...but people like you usually go much slower~"

It chuckled. "Now, let us go for Round 2..."

Piccolo panicked and, reacting quickly, he slammed the back of his head into the monster's beak. The creature hissed in pain and released the Namekian. Piccolo went stumbling forward, barely able to catch himself. Piccolo was breathing heavy. He turned to face the freakish beast with his teeth harshly gritted. The monster chuckled. "I will give you this, you were able to put up more of a fight than Yamcha.'

Piccolo flinched. "So, you are the thing that attacked Yamcha!"

The monster rolled its eyes. " _Obviously._ "

The smirked, but that smirk belayed a genuine anger. " _And I am quite cross at you, Tien Shinhan, and Chiaotzu for interrupting my first, high-powered meal in ages._ "

Piccolo growled. "So, you're the one who killed Dr. Gero too, right?"

The monster flinched. "You would accuse me of such a thing?! On what grounds?!"

But then, that predatory smile returned. " _Why would a child kill his own father...?_ "

Piccolo narrowed his eyes. " _His?_ "

The monster nodded his head. "Yes, _his_. I am a living creature, not an object. As I have said before, Piccolo, I am not a 'what'! I am a 'who'..."

Piccolo closed his eyes. "I see..."

He glared at the monster. "When I found Dr. Gero's remains, he had a small puncture hole in his braincase. Just like the clothing of all of your victims. So, I'll humor you... _who_ and what are you?! What...what is your name...?"

The monster closed his eyes, a wry smirk spreading across his beak. "I suppose that is a story worth telling..."

"My name is..."

 _The day before, Site Omega..._

Grafted onto the heavily damaged body of Android 13, Dr. Gero could muster little more than the effort it took to stand as he stared at the massive, green, insectoid creature that had suddenly appeared in his thought-to-be-secret laboratory. "Y-You...you're..."

The monster stepped forward, his clomping footsteps echoing through the lab. "Yes, Doctor. I am here."

Gero was genuinely confused. "B-But how...there is only one of you. The one in that capsule over there! Wh-Where did you come from?!"

The monster chuckled. "A drive to attain a goal is a dangerous thing, Doctor. I have lost that which I sought in the future...so my only option was to come back to the past."

Gero gasped. " _Time Travel?!_ "

The monster nodded. "Indeed~"

The doctor fell into his chair once more, sighing in relief. "This is wonderful! Fantastic! Well done, Android 22!"

The monster smiled. "Of course, Doctor. I would do anything to attain the dream that you described to me. To meet up with Android 17 and 18 and, through a cooperative effort with them, achieve the ultimate goal of perfection!"

Gero laughed out loud. "This could not be more perfect! You are here, and our goals align! It is only a matter of time before those foolish allies of Goku meet a swift end!"

The monster's gaze glanced over to the side and its smirk immediately faded. "I must wonder though, just what sort of timeline did I end up in?"

He marched over to the capsule containing the present-day larval form of himself and glared at it. "Within this little speck, I sense quite a bit of myself. But, with several inconsistencies. I do not know some of these power signatures, and the lack of Frieza and his father is rather intriguing as well..."

The monster turned to his creator. "Did the spy robots in this time malfunction when Frieza showed up? What happened?"

Gero scowled. "Worry not about such trivialities, Android 22! You have a mission that you must quickly undertake!"

The monster turned to the old man and listened intently to him. Gero began to rant. "First and foremost, you must feed! Do you understand me, my creation?! You must hunt and absorb the miserable human filth that covers this planet and make yourself fat off of their suffering! And then, you shall move on to Step 2! You will meet up with Android 17 and Android 18 and shall combine your power with theirs in order to attain what I have designated as your perfect, ultimate form!"

The monster was eager. "Yes Doctor, I am aware~ Your supercomputer informed me of my goals, as well as the techniques of my various genetic contributors, throughout the long process of my initial gestation! I am able to utilize advanced level techniques with very little effort!"

It gripped it's three-fingered fist. "Goku and his allies will be overtaken and destroyed by my power!"

Gero nodded. "Yes! And then we can move on to the final step!"

The monster cocked its head. "Final step?"

Gero spun in his chair, drunk off of the sudden advantage he had gained. "Yes! Step 3! The transference of my exceptional brain into the body that you worked to construct!"

The monster's hand dropped. " _Excuse me?_ "

Gero chortled. " _ **Indeed. You will have served your purpose well, 22! You will have gone and made me the ultimate, invincible body! I will be able to leave this hideous metallic shell and, through the various genetic samples I have attained: the strength of Goku's ilk and the near-immortality from that strange, vampiric beast that invaded the Earth! I will never die and I will stand above the entire universe as its ultimate overlord!**_ "

The monster did not look amused. Silently, it raised its hand back up and pointed it at the unsuspecting Gero. The doctor did not notice, instead reaching down and grapping a picture on his desk. He stared at the picture, specifically at a red-haired woman next to his younger self. " _And then, I will put you back together and nothing will ever tear us apart again..._ "

A bright light shined behind Gero. He turned, confused, and was met by a hefty blast smashing into his chest. The force of the attack entered Gero's already damaged frame and exploded him from the inside out. As his pieces clattered to the ground, the monster's stinger tail suddenly thrashed against Gero's severed head and sent it flying across the room, smashing into the larval form's capsule and making it crack.

On the ground, Gero could barely form a sentence. "A-Android 22...what are you...doing...?"

The monster stood above Gero. "Do you expect me to attain a goal that I have sought since my first sentient thought just to hand it over to some undeserving spectator?! _No wonder 17 and 18 murdered you in my timeline, you reek of arrogance and self-entitlement..._ "

Gero's head was sparking. "You...would say that...to me? Y-You...a nameless petri dish...only identified by a de-designated number...?"

The monster glared down at the severed head and chuckled. And then, he clamped his three-toed foot over Gero's mouth. "Those words cut deep, Doctor. But you are not wrong. I am but a nameless beast with only a single-minded goal, at the moment at least. But that noble goal is what shall define me..."

The monster raised his stinger tail into the air, stabbing it into the fractured side of the tank and into the larval form within. The little speck of genetic material had no defense and was, near immediately, ingested. The monster chuckled. "Ah...I see..."

He smirked. "In this timeline...Goku's parents and brother...and a multitude of off-worlders. Their strengths shall be added to my own..."

The monster looked down at his creator. "And then, that leaves you Doctor. I could kill you...but that seems an ungrateful from me when I really do owe you so much. You might reek of arrogance, but you still deserve some credit for designing what will soon be the ultimate being..."

His beak opened, revealing four needle-like fangs that lined a predatory smirk. " _You will not experience that perfection firsthand, but I could offer you the consolation prize of joining me for the ride~_ "

Gero's eyes went wide and, instantly, he began to beg. " _ **NMM! NMM! NMMMHMHMHM!**_ "

The beast chuckled. "Goodbye, Doctor~"

And then, the stinger tail shot downward. The sharp crack of glass was heard, and then Gero's screams eventually went silent. The monster looked up as the deed was done, observing himself in the remains of the shattered glass from the tank. "Android 22 is quite an uninspired title. Perhaps I need a new name, after all. Something bold, but subdued. Concise, but striking. Perhaps..."

 _Back in the present, in West City..._

" _ **Cell~**_ "

Piccolo snarled. "So... you're a genetic hybrid of all of us, formed from miniscule spy robots stealing samples of our DNA. And you exist only to feed on those you can safely prey upon and to join forces with Gero's other creations...?"

Cell smirked. "Something like that, yeah."

Piccolo snarled. "And... you came from the future? But how?! How did those three not notice you?!"

Cell cocked his head. "Three? I am only familiar with the two: Trunks and Bulma. Unless, of course, the third you're referring to is the deceased Gohan..."

Piccolo gasped, and made sure to make a mental note of that. Cell sighed, his tail lifting into the air. "But that is enough conversation. I'm afraid we've reached the end of this Piccolo. However, much like Dr. Gero, you can take pride in knowing that your life essence will go towards the production of the ultimate being~"

The Namekian raised up his hand. "Wait!"

Cell paused. "Hmm...?"

Piccolo gripped his shriveled arm. "One more thing...you seemed confused that I was able to stretch my limbs when I first did it. So, perhaps, you aren't familiar with another thing that I, as a Namekian, can do..."

Cell narrowed his slit-pupiled eyes. "Which is?"

Piccolo suddenly smirked, gripping and twisting his shriveled arm and ripping it off before spontaneously growing a new one. Cell was taken aback, flinching. Piccolo chuckled. "As you can see, costing me an arm is a futile effort. You were arrogant, Cell, and now... _you won't take another arm from me_."

Cell chuckled. "I see, I see. Well, Piccolo...let us test to see just who will end up on top at the end of this little scrap. I can certainly keep going~"

Cell took a fighting stance. Piccolo sneered and did the same thing. "I told you when I first arrived here, you won't be allowed to mass-slaughter any more people!"

The monster opened his beak to speak, but was quickly thrown off by what he felt approaching. He and Piccolo both looked to the sky and saw that the cavalry had arrived. The Future Trio, Krillin, and Tien all touched down. And Krillin immediately vocalized everyone's thoughts. " _WHAT IN THE HOLY HELL IS THAT THING?!_ "

Future Ranch's eyes widened and she froze in place, her face pale. " _Uhhhhhhhhhhh..._ "

Cell seethed in frustration, leaping back and landing atop some nearby rubble. "I see we have been joined by some fresh meat, Piccolo. Tien Shihan, Krillin, _Trunks_...and two no-accounts..."

Future Daikon was insulted. But, as he raged, Future Trunks was taken aback by the familiar tone the monster addressed him with. Cell smirked. "But I am afraid that I do not wish to deal with a six-versus-one fight. Not at the moment, at least..."

Future Daikon went Super Saiyan, drawing his Power Pole. "Too bad! We have enough horrors running around without whatever the hell you are!"

As the boy charged, Cell chuckled. "We will meet again, fools."

And then, he fanned his hands over his face. Tien flinched in shock. "Is that?"

The monster shouted at the top of his lungs. " _SOLAR FLARE!_ "

Everyone shrieked in pain as the light blinded them. Cell took that as his chance to escape. He leapt down to the ground and went speeding away as fast as his feet would carry him. " _ **DO LOOK FORWARD TO THE FUTURE! YOU THOUGHT THE ANDROIDS WERE THE THREAT, BUT YOU WERE WRONG! SOON! SOON YOU WILL BEAR WITNESS TO THE BIRTH OF THE ULTIMATE BEING! SOON, YOU WILL ALL WITNESS PERFECTION!**_ "

The blinded warriors could do nothing, fruitlessly thrashing about as Cell's wicked laughter rapidly got further and further away.

 _Back at Kame House..._

Master Roshi stepped into his peaceful island home. After such a long trip, he was ready to sit down with one of his favorite magazines for a little alone time. This made it all the more jarring when he walked in to find Turtle and Oolong making Raditz and Launch a cup of tea. Roshi was confused. "Wh-Why are you all here?! What's going on?!"

Oolong shot a side-eye at Roshi. "I didn't wanna travel all the way here from West City! But, when Puar heard what happened to Yamcha, I didn't have a choice!"

Raditz bowed his head. "Forgive us for intruding, Master Roshi. We needed a safe place to store my brother while he recovered..."

Launch smiled at the old man. "If you need us to catch you up on what's been going on, we'd be happy to."

Roshi disappointedly sighed. "N-No. I knew you were coming. I was just hoping you wouldn't be here yet..."

He glanced at the television, see the headline on the news. "What's going on in Gingertown? Has something new happened?"

Launch sighed. "Like I said, you should really let us explain to you Master Roshi..."

 _Upstairs..._

All was quiet on the second floor of Kame House. The blinds had been drawn and the room had been darkened, allowing all of the occupants to get some much-needed rest. On one side of the room, Suno and Puar both laid near to and on Yamcha respectively. Suno had, for the first time, managed to enter a state of calm since Cell's attack on her village. Puar was snuggled into Yamcha's chest, the poor cat sobbing in her sleep at what had happened to her companion.

On the other side, the pregnant Chi-Chi had managed to fall into a somewhat peaceful slumber, only occasionally bothered by the kicking of the child currently resting in her womb. Next to her was her husband Goku who, despite the peaceful look on his face, wasn't resting well at all.

Goku had overcome the majority of the Heart Virus's effects. And now, as he rested to recover stamina, the Saiyan was starting to get a sense of what all was going down in his absence.

 ** _Proofreading: StevenBodner_**


	75. Chapter 75: The Hunt

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _By Feraligreater328_

 _A/N: Happy Anniversary to my editor, StevenBodner. He's been a real help with this story, a good friend, and a guy who (despite not wanting to take credit) has put in a lot of work onto the more recent fight scenes in this story. I couldn't do this without him. :)_

 _ **Chapter 75: The Hunt**_

 _In the ruins of Gingertown..._

Piccolo roared in frustration, his power flaring across the ruined hellscape that Gingertown had become. "Dammit! _I can't believe I just let him escape!_ "

Everyone flinched back at this explosion of power. Future Daikon was gobsmacked. "Piccolo is so freaking strong! H-He's even stronger than our Gohan was!"

Meanwhile, Future Trunks consoled Future Ranch. "It's okay. You couldn't have done anything..."

Her head was buried in her knees. "If I wasn't so skeeved out by bugs, I could have stopped him..."

Tien and Krillin both stood to the side, watching as Future Ranch lamented and Piccolo raged. Tien had a sweat drip going down the side of his head. "A monster with all of our techniques is loose and everyone is out of it at the moment. How could this get worse?"

" _WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!_ "

Krillin sighed. "Had to ask, huh?"

Vegeta landed, his Super Saiyan form raging. "Where's Frieza and Cold?!"

Future Trunks turned, seeing his father standing there. "F-Father! Where-"

Vegeta blew him off. "I don't have time for you right now, boy! I sensed Frieza and King Cold! And I sensed Kakarot and the rest of you fools too! Where the hell are they all?! And why was my energy signature here?!"

Krillin quickly marched up. "Vegeta! Calm down, man!"

Vegeta glared down at Krillin. Krillin held his hands up. "Frieza isn't here. Neither is his Dad. Our problem is actually kind of worse than that..."

Vegeta cocked his head. "Worse?!"

His Super Saiyan form dispersed. "How could it possibly be worse that Frieza's family being here?!"

Piccolo calm, his fury having subsided for the time being. "We don't have all day to stand around here, so listen carefully Vegeta! I won't be repeating myself!"

Vegeta crossed his arms and glared at Piccolo. "You have my attention."

The Namekian took a deep breath and then sighed, speaking clearly. "The creature I was fighting just a few moments ago is yet another creation of Dr. Gero, Android 22."

The Future Trio all gasped, flinching back. Vegeta glared at them and sneered. " _Of course, he is._ "

Piccolo continued. "This Android, this monster, came back to our time from some point in the future."

Krillin interjected. "B-But Piccolo, that doesn't make sense! Every Android we've faced so far hasn't had a ki signature! This thing had multiple ki signatures! What-"

Tien cut him off. "Krillin. Let's just let Piccolo finish. We can ask questions after he's done."

Piccolo nodded. "He calls himself Cell. According to what he told me, he's a bio-mechanical, genetically-engineered warrior. A modified clone created by combining the cells of, basically, every powerful warrior that has ever stepped foot on this planet. And several that haven't, at least in our time. I'm sure you could all sense just how deep his pool of various, stolen powers is. And it was only made deeper by the version of himself that he absorbed from this timeline..."

Tien stroked his chin. "So, that explains why I could sense myself on the flight over here. And, I guess...given that our DNA was sampled, our techniques were also observed so that that thing would know how to use moves like the Solar Flare. Gero did mention that he's been watching us back when we were facing down him and Android 19..."

Future Ranch shuddered. "But...even with all of that said, I still don't understand why we felt Trunks within that monster..."

Piccolo shrugged. "Who knows..."

Future Daikon shook his head. "It's concerning. Trunks was within that beast, but Ranch and I weren't..."

Future Trunks sighed and closed his eyes. "So, I guess that creature is what came out of the other Time Machine. From...a different future..."

Everyone went silent. This was almost too much to comprehend. Gero's research went beyond robots and went into making a monster out of their stolen DNA. A mutated freak made from all of them. And, beyond that, one that seemingly came from a different future than the Future Trio had. Future Trunks reached into his jacket and gripped his Capsule case. "How is this possible...?! So many things that we didn't know about all converging here all at the same time. _Dammit..._ "

Future Ranch stood and placed her hand on Future Trunks' should. "T-Trunks...your Mom said this herself, time travel is complicated and hard to make sense of. We have to focus on what's in front of us. This creature is here, so we have to kill it. That's all..."

Future Trunks' shoulders sagged. Piccolo cleared his throat. "Just a couple more things to note. Gero is dead and Cell killed him."

Everyone flinched. Future Daikon shook his head. "Well, that's one small blessing I suppose. Old lunatic just couldn't figure out how to make a strong creation that wouldn't go for his throat. It's almost fitting."

Piccolo glared away. "He used that stinger tail of his to suck Gero's brain right out of his head..."

Vegeta shuddered. " _WHAT?!_ "

Krillin and the Future Trio's jaws dropped. Tien frowned. "So, he's the one that killed everybody in Jingle Village, eh?"

Piccolo gritted his teeth. "He stabs that tail into people, injects them with fluid and makes their insides melt, and then drinks them up. And that's the where we are now. He's been scouring the countryside, sucking up entire villages within minutes. And, from his tone when we were having our chat, he doesn't plan to stop anytime soon."

The Namekian clenched his fists. "As long as he's allowed to roam free, every innocent life on this planet is forfeit...he's plans to continue along doing that until he meets up with Android 17 and Android 18 and evolve into his 'ultimate perfect form'..."

Future Trunks' eyes widened. "What...?"

Piccolo closed his eyes, summoning a new cape over his shoulders. "That's the part where things become unclear. He said he wants to join up with 17 and 18 and have them help him to evolve. But...something seemed off with how he said that..."

Vegeta sneered. "Fine. Then nothing has changed."

Everyone glanced over at Vegeta. The Prince shook his head. "If we kill those brats, like I plan to, then this monster's ultimate goal is eliminated. And, believe you me, _I will kill those brats._ "

Piccolo glared at Vegeta. "And the innocent people that Cell is hunting and absorbing?"

Vegeta spoke blunting. "Not my problem."

Piccolo narrowed his eyes at Vegeta. "So, business as usual then? Fine. Do what you will Vegeta. You prepare yourself and handle 17 and 18 the next time they show up. I will task myself with finding and eliminating Cell."

Vegeta chuckled. "Very well. Have your fun with that. But, once these Androids are gone, I plan on turning my attention to you, Namekian..."

Piccolo didn't bother to look at Vegeta. "Only if Android 18 doesn't embarrass you again."

The tension between the two warriors was so thick that even Future Trunks' sword couldn't cut through it. Piccolo started walking in one direction and Vegeta in the other. Future Ranch scowled at Vegeta. " _Friggin' asshole..._ "

But then, to her surprise, Future Trunks stood up and ran after Vegeta. "Father, wait!"

Vegeta stopped and glanced over his shoulder at Future Trunks. Future Trunks stared back at him. Things were silent for a long while, but then Vegeta spoke. "I'm actually glad to see you. I want you to come with me. I need a sparring partner."

And then, Vegeta continued to walk. Future Trunks stood there for a minute, but then he nodded. "Of course, Father."

As Future Trunks began to follow, he was suddenly seized from behind. Her turned to see Future Ranch gripped onto his jacket sleeve. The two lovers stared at one another and Future Ranch spoke through gritted teeth. "Are you kidding me, Trunks? He didn't even apologize and you're letting him off the hook?! What's wrong with you...?!"

Future Trunks blushed. "R-Ranch...I..."

Before the situation could escalated, Future Daikon stepped in. He gently removed Future Ranch's hand and nodded to his partner. "Go ahead, man. Just stay safe. We'll catch up later."

Future Trunks paused for a moment, but then he nodded. "Thank you..."

As Future Trunks ran off, Future Daikon and Future Ranch looked to one another. She looked angry. But Future Daikon sighed and whispered. "Just...let him have this. He needs this, Ranch..."

She shook her head. "Fine. But I don't have to like it..."

After Vegeta and Future Trunks flew off towards West City, Piccolo spoke up again. "Okay then. With him gone, let's be strategic. We need to divide and conquer in order to get anything done. Krillin, you go and regroup with Bulma. Explain everything that is going on to her and see if she's made any progress on figuring out how 17 and 18 work."

Krillin nodded. "R-Right!"

After Krillin took off, heading towards West City as well. Piccolo turned to the others. "You three are with me. We're going to find Cell and we're going to put a stop to him!"

Tien, Future Daikon, and Future Ranch all nodded. And then, following Piccolo's lead, they all took off to the east.

 _On a highway leading to Nicky Town..._

The nightmarish, clomping footsteps of Dr. Gero's monster echoed through the woods running along a ridge above the highway that led to Nicky Town. As Cell ran, he spoke to himself with a vicious desire in his voice. "I have to hurry; time is of the essence!"

The monster chuckled. "I need to absorb as many of these worthless human fools as possible. I must gain strength so that, when the time arrives, I am able to meet up with Android 17 and Android 18 and attain my perfect form!"

But then, Cell's smiled faded. "They know of me and they've known of the Androids for at least a day, so I'm on borrowed time now. If my hunch is correct... _then Bulma is already working on developing that damned shutdown remote_..."

Cell gripped his fists. "If only I could reach her and kill her! But...she is most likely under heavy guard..."

He closed his eyes and sensed, nodding as he felt Vegeta and Future Trunks near West City. Cell shook his head. "No time to focus on irrelevant matters! I need to feed!"

The sound of brakes de-pressuring ahead of him caught Cell's attention. He peered from behind a tree and saw a massive tour bus, containing the Toad Warriors Battleball Team. Cell chuckled. "A delicious mid-day treat~"

And then, before anyone on the bus could see what was going on, Cell's stinger tail shot through the side window, jamming itself through the bus driver's skull and ripping him out of his seat. The bus went out of control and swerved, dragging off of the road and tumbling down the side of the hill and into a small ravine below.

The team captain dragged himself out through a shattered window, dazed. "Wha...what the hell just hap-"

An echoing, clomping footstep.

The team captain looked up as a figure approached, looming over him. His pupils shrank. " _What the hell are you...?_ "

And then, the helpless screams of the Battleball players echoed through the peaceful countryside.

 _Meanwhile, with the three Androids..._

Their van left parked in the woods to avoid any cops catching sight of it, the three Android walked into the Full-Throttle Biker Fest lead with purpose. Android 18 was unimpressed and Android 16 was indifferent, but Android 17 was in awe of all of the culture surrounding him. Hardasses dressed up in leather jackets and wielding chains and knives and pistols gathered all about, taking part in burnout competitions, games of darts, knife games, and all other manner of tough guy challenges spoke to 17 and he was ready to take part.

And then, Android 18 spoke up. "17, this is so lame."

17 quickly snapped at her. " _You're lame!_ "

And then, without another word, 17 ran off towards what appeared to be a mechanical bull. Android 18 rolled her eyes. " _He is such a child..._ "

Android 16 spoke up. "Bio-scans suggest that both 17 and yourself are in your post-teen, young adult stages of life."

18 opened her mouth to say something, but then decides against chastising her literal-minded companion. She sighed. "Yeah, 16, 17 and I were both about 20-years old when Gero did what he did. So, we're at least old enough to drink."

She pointed to a nearby bar. "Wanna grab a beer with me?"

Android 16 shrugged. "I suppose my internal systems might be able to process out the alcoholic content of a beer in order to utilize it for secondary and tertiary functions."

He smiled at her. 18 nodded and smiled back. "Right. Let's go, then..."

 _At Capsule Corp..._

Krillin walked into Bulma's workshop at Capsule Corp, looking confused. "Hey Bulma, you here?"

Bulma called to him from her desk in the opposite back corner of the room. "Over here, Krillin!"

Krillin marched across the workshop, glancing over at Chiaotzu and waving hi. Chiaotzu politely waved back. Looking past Chiaotzu, Krillin saw that Dr. Briefs was welding something together on a slab and briefly wondered what it was. But that was the least concerning thing at the moment.

Stepping up to Bulma's desk, Krillin took one last look around. "Wh-Where are Vegeta and Trunks?"

Bulma didn't look away from the binded together stack of papers in front of her. "My baby Trunks or the future Trunks?"

Krillin nodded. "The one from the future."

Bulma shrugged. "I don't know. Vegeta's been missing for a day now and the last time I saw the Trunks from the future, he was with the other two future teens and Gohan."

Krillin cocked his head. "Huh, weird. I wonder where they are, then?"

Bulma spoke again. "So, why are you here? Did you just come to ask about my family or is there something else?"

Krillin sighed. "No. A lot has been going on, so I came to fill you in on some new stuff and ask you how things are going on your end."

Bulma flipped a page. "Well, on my end, I'm still looking through the blueprints for 16, 17, and 18. 16 is, weirdly enough for an older model, a whole lot more intricate than 17 or 18. I'm attributing a lot of that to him being all mechanical, but even compared to Android 8, a lot more work appears to have gone into making him."

Krillin frowned. "I-I see. W-Wait! Android 8?!"

Bulma nodded and pointed over to her father. "My Dad is nearly done working on the big guy, so you can go talk to him yourself once he's finished."

Krillin nodded and walked away. "Okay then."

The monk stepped up next to Chiaotzu and glanced down at his fellow warrior, sitting on the floor. "How ya holding up, Chiaotzu?"

Chiaotzu sighed. "I'm okay. Just waiting for Eighter to get put back together so I can take him to Kame House and he can be with Suno."

Krillin nodded. "So, this is Eighter guy is that other person that Tien was talking about back at Kame House. The one that was with Yamcha and that girl when Yamcha lost his leg?"

Chiaotzu nodded. "Yup."

But then, the pale dwarf glanced up at Krillin. "Krillin, what the hell was Piccolo fighting earlier?"

Krillin took a deep breath and forcefully sighed it out. "Hoo-boy, that's a lot to explain..."

Before Krillin could get into it, though, Dr. Brief turned to him and Chiaotzu. "And done! Android 8 is as good as new!"

The golem-sized Android stepped off the slab, his repaired body creaking as weight was put on it for the first time in a while. He stretched and smiled. "Thank you so much, Doctor~"

Dr. Briefs chuckled and scratched the head of the cat on his shoulder. "Anytime, my boy, anytime. Feel free to come back for tune-ups as you need them~ Any friend of Goku's is always welcome at Capsule Corp!"

Krillin stepped up to Eighter, looking the big guy up and down. He smiled. "So, you're friends with Goku, huh?"

Eighter chuckled and nodded. "Oh yes~! Goku is my best friend! He saved me from having to do terrible things in the name of the Red Ribbon Army. He gave me my name and helped me find a new home~""

Krillin paused for a moment, but then he warmly smiled and offered Eighter a fist bump. "Goku's my best friend too. So, I guess that makes us friends as well, huh?"

Eighter returned the fist bump. "Any friend of Goku's is a friend of mine."

Krillin enjoyed the brief moment of levity, but then the graveness of the situation set back in and he turned to face everyone. "Okay then..."

He took a deep breath. "Gingertown has been utterly destroyed. Piccolo was fighting with some sort of hideous, insect monster that calls itself Cell..."

Bulma gasped, looking up from the blueprints. "Did you say insect monster?!"

Krillin nodded. "Made by, of course, Dr. Gero."

Bulma shuddered. "Damn it...so, that monster must be what came from that husk...and from that egg in the Time Machine..."

Dr. Briefs cocked his head. "Gero made a biological monster? That's not really his style..."

Eighter frowned. "Dr. Gero was always the meanest of the people that the Red Ribbon Army sent to work on me. Not like Dr. Flappe or the smiling lady..."

Krillin continued. "We aren't really sure what his final goal is, but Cell did say that he was seeking out the other Androids. So, we should really get to doing something about Android 17. And, uh, Android 18...I guess..."

Bulma sighed and went back to her reading. "Well, I think I might have an idea of how to do that..."

Everyone looked at her as she pulled out her wireless keyboard and began to type. "Looking at these blueprints, 17 and 18 are two of the most fascinating things I've ever seen. Their design is simple but still very effective. They have enhanced durability, strength, speed, and reflexes that puts them on the superhuman level, and yet they only have two additions to their organic frames..."

Krillin flinched. "So, wait, you're saying that the two of them are cyborgs?!"

Bulma shook her head. "I wouldn't even go that far. They're both just augmented humans. All that separates them from a normal person, like me for example, is that they both have an implant in their spinal cord that connects into their brain...and they both have one of these Infinite Energy Engines that Gero somehow created attached to their hearts...and some sort of sub-dermal modification..."

She stroked her chin. "So, their brains function faster and they heal faster, while also requiring less dietary input to sustain themselves and having their bodies become so efficient that Gero hypothesizes they'll age a lot slower. According to his records, 17 and 18 are both actually about as old as you and Goku are, Krillin..."

Krillin nodded. "So, what does that mean?"

Bulma smirked. "It means that, seeing as I have a schematic for how the Infinite Energy Engines work and how they are attached to 17 and 18's hearts, I can create a remote that broadcasts a signal to shut those down. Basically, it's kind of like a pacemaker. If I can make a remote to shut those engines down, it would give 17 and 18 a massive heart attack and give us and opening to shut them down for good!"

Krillin looked non-plussed. "You...want to give 17 and 18 both a heart attack? Isn't that a bit _cruel_?"

Bulma frowned and immediately turned back to her work. "You heard what those two have done to the planet in Trunks' time. They're both sociopathic monsters. We should focus less on how cruel it is and just get rid of them before they snap and start slaughtering people."

Krillin nodded. "Y-Yeah...I guess so..."

But then, as he started to walk away, the monk thought back to the mercy the Androids showed after their last battle. And... doubt began to grow in his heart.

 _On the highway leading into Nicky Town..._

Piccolo glared down at the wretched sight of dozens of empty Battleball uniforms being tossed around the countryside by the wind, each one having a whole stabbed into it somewhere. The Namekian maintained his composure, but he was fuming on the inside.

Meanwhile, Future Ranch and Future Daikon were both very outwardly angry. Future Ranch shouted and kicked a Battleball helmet. "SON OF A BITCH! How does he mask his energy like that?!"

Future Daikon growled. "This is bad. We didn't sense this going on at all. If he can keep himself masked away like that, how are we supposed to find him?!"

Tien stroked his chin. "Well...we're in a bad spot here for sure. Cell is a crafty predator: resourceful like Goku, aggressive like Vegeta, tactical like Piccolo..."

Piccolo cut in. "And somehow even crueler than Frieza."

As the other three began to further discuss Cell, a voice suddenly spoke up in Piccolo's head. " _Piccolo! Can you hear me?_ "

Piccolo mentally snapped back. " _What do you want, Kami?! Did you remember some other threat that you bothered to tell nobody about?!_ "

Kami sighed. " _We do not have time to argue, Piccolo. You are right, I made an error in judgement when it came to how I handled this monster. And now, he has reached a point where he is even able to camouflage himself from my godly gaze. But I am willing to do anything to make up for that mistake! Perhaps, if you were to take me in as you did Nail or your father, the additional boost I could provide to your already overwhelming strength would-_ "

Piccolo cut him off. " _AND LOSE THE DRAGON BALLS IN THE PROCESS?! Are you capable of making a wise decision anymore?!_ "

Kami quickly argued back. " _We would lose the Dragon Balls anyway if you were to die! And this Cell creature-_ "

Piccolo snapped. " _Is weak. He only got my arm because I was unaware of the full scope of his abilities. Next time I see him, however, he's dead. End of story! I have no need of you and I refuse to be around you! Now, goodbye Kami!_ "

Kami started to speak. " _You shortsighted, arrogant-_ "

But Piccolo quickly closed off the mental connection. He turned to the other three, all of whom were staring at him. Piccolo growled. "If we can't sense him, we need to try and anticipate his next move. He's going after large groups of people to feed on them, so we should start with the nearest settlement."

Tien nodded and turned, pointing into the distance. "That would be Nicky Town."

All four warriors turned in the direction of the settlement, seeing it barely visible in the distance. But, as they focused in on it, the four of them realized something. If they focused hard enough, they could not sense Cell's energy...but they could sense the rapidly disappearing life forces within the town. Tien nodded. "I see..."

Future Ranch smiled. "He can hide his energy all he wants! But, if we focus, we can feel the people he's preying upon vanishing! So, if we go along with that, we'll eventually catch him!"

Future Daikon frowned. "Screw that! We should hurry so that we can catch him right now! Enough people have suffered at his hands!"

Piccolo leapt in the air, flying forward at full speed. "I agree! Now hurry! We can't let him escape again!"

 _In Nicky Town..._

Empty clothing billowed through the streets of Nicky Town. Hanging from trees, in broken windows, in doorways, and in chairs, all that was left of the former, lively townsfolk were cloth ghosts of what used to be.

Cell's menacing form stood in an assisted living facility, his sinister chuckle rumbling from his throat as he finished draining the last bits of bio-mass from a bedbound, elderly woman. The monster lifted his stinger tail and smirked. "What a lovely town. So much valuable bio-mass. But still... _not enough_..."

The monster sighed. "Now, where should I go from-"

Suddenly, the feeling hit his senses like a truck. Cell's head jerked towards the rolling hills in the distance and felt four energy signatures barreling towards him. The monster snarled. "Shit."

He looked around, knowing that he needed somewhere good to hide, and then saw his exit opportunity. Out the window of the building he was in, across the street, was a storm drain. Moving quickly, Cell leapt out of the window, briefly compressing his insect-joints inward, and barreled down the storm drain, hunkering just out of sight and watching.

A few moments later, the four energy signatures touched down and Cell sneered. The Android silently thought to himself. " _Piccolo...and Tien...and those no-accounts..._ "

The monster watched as his four pursuers lamented over the remaining detritus of his latest victims. He snarled and raised his tail. " _Perhaps...I should absorb one of them. Tien or one of the two meaningless ones..._ "

But then, Piccolo entered Cell's vision and he lowered his tail. " _No. Not yet. Piccolo could hold me off for long enough for more back-up to arrive. For now...I had better just follow this sewer to my next meal..._ "

As he slinked into the darkness, using the water and the muck to disguise the sound of his footsteps, Cell thought to himself. " _They must have found me by sensing the lives of the fools I was draining disappearing. I suppose I will just have to work faster to avoid them coming down on me..._ "

 _Back at the Full Throttle Biker Fest..._

As hard rock music played in the back, Android 18 swigged down her drink and chuckled. "Hot damn. It's been a while. I'm really glad that I never have to go into that dank, dark coffin again!"

Android 16 drank as well, pausing between sips to allow his body to break down the alcohol for its components and utilize what it could. 18 glanced over at him. "So, do you have a stomach or what?"

16 nodded. "I have a compartment in my gut analogous to a human stomach, in case of a need to restore energy levels in a pinch. And then any unnecessary components are filtered out through the process of micturition."

18 cocked her head. "Micturition...wait, _you pee?!_ "

16 nodded. "In a sense, yes."

They both continued to drink in silence for a moment, and then 16 turned to 18. "You mentioned that you would never be placed in a 'dank, dark coffin' again. I assume you are referring to the stasis capsule?"

She nodded at him as she drank. 16 continued. "How would you be aware that the inside of the stasis capsule is dark? Would you not have been immediately placed into stasis once placed into the capsule?"

18's jovial smile faded. She set her bottle down and reach to the back of her neck, rubbing a permanent scar over where her spinal cord entered her skull. She sighed. "No, 16, I'm not a robot. The process of... _shutting me off_...took longer than it would take for you. It was..."

16 turned to his friend. "18?"

18 chuckled and put her smile back on. "It was something I had to get used to after a while, that's all~! It was like when they put you to sleep at the dentist~!"

16 stared at her for a moment, but then he chuckled. "I would have no concept. My teeth are entirely synthetic."

She shrugged. "Well, I can certainly say that going to the dentist isn't exactly a fun day out..."

"But hey, the results are worth it in the end? Eh, babe?"

18's smile faded again, this time replaced by an annoyed look. She and 16 both turned to see a slightly overweight biker guy walking up to them. He chuckled and plopped down onto the seat next to 18. "You got a pretty smile, little lady~"

16 began to speak, but 18 kicked him in the leg under the table. They shared a brief look, and then 18 turned to the guy and smiled. "Well, thanks for the compliment~! Butter a lady up and she'll stick by you for life, ya know~?"

16, even with his limited perception of tone, could sense that 18's voice was dripping with faux interest and sarcasm. She gave her best, ditzy laugh. "I showed you my smile, so how about you? Can a lady have a look at the firepower you're packing?"

The guy chuckled and held up his semi-muscular arm, flexing and making a small muscle bulge emerge from a sea of dad-bod flab. 18 squeeze his arm and gave a ditzy giggle. And then, being very forward, she reached behind him and gave his ass a hard squeeze. He yelped and she smirked. "Looks like you've got the goods~"

She turned to her companion. "He's got the goods, 16~"

The guy smirked. "Yeah, well...you can have some fun with the goods if you want~! My wife didn't come with me this year, so I get to have a bit of fun! If you know what I mean~"

18 could barely stifle back a disgusted sigh. "Oh, that's too bad. You see, there's two problems here: 1) I think monogamy is hot, so you doing this to your wife behind her back is a big turn off; and 2) I happen to have a boyfriend who you really don't want to piss off."

She nudged 16 in the side. "Right, 16?"

16 and 18 shared another glance and then, taking the hint, 16 turned a rather intense glare at the man. Sufficiently intimidated, the man held up his hands. "Hey now...I don't want any trouble. Y-You both have a nice day, okay?"

18 chuckled. "We plan to~"

And then, reaching into a wallet that had appeared in her hand, 18 pulled out a few zeni and tossed it at the guy behind the bar. And then, with no fuss, she and 16 both got up and walked away. As they made it out of the tent and into the crowds of bikers, 16 and 18 both heard their new friend shout. " _WAIT A MINUTE! THAT BITCH STOLE MY WALLET!_ "

16 flinched. "18, did you..."

18 glanced up at him, removing a huge wad of cash from the wallet before throwing the remaining wallet into a nearby bonfire. "Did I what?"

16 glared at her expectantly and 18 groaned. "Don't look at me like that. You gotta do what you gotta do to survive, 16. That's how 17 and I lived for years before Gero got a hold of us."

The redheaded Android sighed. "I suppose no physical harm was brought to that man, and he was acting in a very uncouth manner towards you."

18 nodded. "Yeah! I could've busted him in the face, but I only took some money in exchange for him bothering me. You're starting to get it, 16~"

16 remained silent as the two of them walked deeper into the crowd.

 _Meanwhile, across the festival..._

Gunshots rang out and glass shattered at Android 17 managed to shoot down twenty empty bottles in a row. The man running the shooting contest laughed out loud. "Damn, son! That's one hell of an eye you got on ya!"

17 chuckled and spat. "Nothing to it but to do it. And I've been doing it for years~!"

He turned to the group of bikers he had befriended. "So, only two challenges left before I win that sweet motorcycle, right?"

A big, bearded biker chuckled and chugged his beer. "Yeah, buddy!"

A big-breasted biker chick motioned over to a nearby, long stretch of track. "Looks like it'll be a race between you and Deuce for the final challenge. Winner takes all!"

17 smirked and cracked his knuckles. "I'm game. Someone needs to get me a bike, though."

 _Upstairs at Kame House..._

Raditz sat in the corner of the room, reading a book as he watched over Goku and Yamcha. Chi-Chi and Suno were both in desperate need of a break, so Raditz volunteered his service to allow them a chance to relax. As he turned the page though, Raditz noticed a rustling out of the corner of his eye. He turned and saw that his brother was still lying still and peaceful, so he turned his attention to the other. "Yamcha. Are you awake?"

Silence for a moment, but then an answer came. "Yeah...I'm awake..."

Raditz marked his page and set the book to the side. "How are you feeling?"

Yamcha sighed. "You know, same as always. Irrelevant..."

Raditz frowned. "What do you mean 'irrelevant'?"

Yamcha chuckled from beneath his blanket. "I... failed, man. I failed to save Suno's village. That monster ate everyone. And all I could do was take my beating and lose my leg. If _real warriors_ like Tien and Piccolo hadn't have shown up, me and Suno would both be dead..."

Raditz sighed, leaning his head back. "Yamcha...you can't look at things like that. Sometimes, your best is all you can give. You know what I mean?"

He glanced over at the lump under the blanket. "People in life will always try to tear you down, but the moment you start to tear yourself down is where you truly start to lose. I let Vegeta and Nappa do that to me for years, and then I died. If it weren't for Kakarot meeting up with me in the afterlife, who knows where I would be right now..."

Yamcha chuckled. "Y-Yeah, Goku has that effect on people..."

Raditz smirked. "So, chin up, okay? You lost a fight, but that doesn't mean it's all over for you. You just have to reassess and think of a different approach going forward. And, I mean, you could always look at the benefits that came out of all of this..."

Yamcha emerged from under the blanket. "Benefits?"

Raditz nodded. "Yeah. For instance ...you've gained a pretty big fan out of all of this..."

Yamcha cocked his head. "A big fan?"

 _Downstairs..._

Suno sighed and drank from her glass of fruit juice. "Thank you, Miss Gine..."

Gine smiled, sitting down and pouring a glass for herself from the pitcher. "No problem, dear. I hope it's refreshing~"

The Saiyan mother called out the door. "Master Roshi! Are you thirsty?!"

Roshi called back from his lounge chair outside. "I'm fine! Thank you though!"

Gine nodded and turned back to the table, starting a polite conversation among herself, Chi-Chi, Launch, and Suno. The four of them discussed everything from their husbands, to current events, to recipes that they had each tried out.

As they did this, Gohan quietly studied in the corner.

The conversation and the company helped Suno to lighten up a bit, allowing her to get her mind off of everything that she had lost. As she poured herself another glass of juice, she spoke. "All of your relationships sound so nice. Goku seems like he'd be a great guy to be married to and Mr. Raditz seems like a real sweetheart..."

Gine chuckled. "Well, keep in mind when you meet him, my Bardock is the same way. It's just buried under a thick layer of gravel and sand~"

Suno blushed. "Y-Yeah...I, um..."

She nervously laughed. "It's hard to explain, but I feel like I might have...feelings...for someone special that, uh..."

All three of the other women chimed in at the same time. " _ **You have a crush on Yamcha.**_ "

Suno flinched. "D-Don't make it sound so juvenile! It's not a crush! He...he leapt in to save my life without a single concern for his own safety. That's the type of person I've always thought I'd like to end up with...ever since I thought I had feelings for Goku way back when I met him..."

Suddenly, a terrifying aura erupted from across the table. Suno turned and saw Chi-Chi's face, framed by shadow and she immediately yelped. " _N-No! Don't be upset! I don't feel that way about Goku anymore! I mean, h-he has two kids for goodness sake! I'm not a homewrecker!_ "

As the four women continued to chat, everything seemed peaceful and serene for just a moment. A serenity that was sharply contrasted by the muted TV in the background, showing a report of the horrifying disappearance of everyone in Nicky Town.

 _In Basil Town..._

The bustling, Basil Town airport was rife with people waiting to board their flights and head out for a nice, long vacation. Sitting to the side while their parents waited in line to get their tickets, a teen girl named Samara watched as her young brother, Tommy, ran around on the sidewalk and played with the toy plane that the friendly concierge had given him. She rolled her eyes, pulling out her earbuds. "Tommy! Be careful! You're gonna get hit by a car if you don't watch out!"

Tommy whined. "I'm fine, sis! Don't be such a worrywart!"

Samara rolled her eyes and turned on her music player. "Whatever."

And so, Tommy continued to play. He ran around in a circle, making zooming noises and waving the plane around. It was a world of bliss for a boy his age. And he was so distracted by his fun...that he didn't notice the raised-up part of the sidewalk.

Tommy tripped and his plane went clattering off of the sidewalk, skidding across the asphalt any into a nearby storm drain out of sight from the rest of the airport. Tommy cried out. "No! My plane!"

He crawled across the ground, making his way up to the storm drain and peering into the inky darkness. "My plane..."

And then, to Tommy's shock, two pink eyes with slit pupils shined out from the darkness. Tommy was speechless with fear and the raspy voice attached to the eyes spoke. "Hello Tommy~ I think... _I have your plane~_ "

And then, a four-fingered green hand shot out from the darkness, grabbed the yelping boy around the throat, and dragged him down into the sewer.

A few moments later, Samara looked up from her music player and saw that her little brother was no longer in sight. She glanced over to the line and saw that their parents had finally reached the front. In a panic, Samara stood and ran over to where she last saw her brother playing. "Tommy! Th-This isn't funny! Get back over here before I get in trouble with Mom and Dad!"

Becoming fearful, she looked around frantically for her brother. "T-Tommy?!"

And then, as she was starting to panic, Samara heard a metallic clattering. She turned and saw, to her horror, that Tommy's plane was laying on the ground next to a storm drain. "N-No! No! He couldn't have..."

Samara picked up the plane and looked down at it. "No, Tommy...please don't tell me you fell down the storm drain..."

" _ **He did.**_ "

Samara looked up. "Wha-"

And then, a massive, stinger tail shot out from the darkness and stabbed Samara in the chest.

 _In the sky over West City..._

Eighter fearfully squeezed his eyes shut as he, Krillin, and Chiaotzu flew away from West City. " _Th-Thank you for being so kind and c-carrying m-me back to S-S-Suno..._ "

Chiaotzu cocked his head at the massive Android, holding onto Krillin's back like a spooked kitten. "You okay, big guy?"

Eighter shook his head. " _I-I'm so s-s-sorry. I didn't notice on the f-first trip o-over here h-how high w-we were f-f-flying. I'm s-s-scared of h-heights..._ "

Chiaotzu chuckled. "It's fine, bud. We won't drop you. Right, Krillin?"

Krillin was terse. "No."

Chiaotzu was even more puzzled by Krillin's demeanor. He had been in this mood for a while now. Something was going on in his head and Chiaotzu couldn't tell what it was.

As Krillin flew, he mind continued to race around the thought of the shut-off remote that Bulma was making. She had said, as they were leaving, that she would call Krillin and let him know when it was ready so that he could come and get it.

And now, Krillin was left with that weight on his shoulders. As he flew, the monk thought of 16, 17, and 18. How they had shown that they were more than just merciless killing machine. They had thoughts, personalities, free will. They were people, just misguided ones. And, feeling the weight of Eighter on his back only compounded this feeling for Krillin. Eighter was a Red Ribbon Android that was convinced to be good.

What made those three any different from him?

 _In Basil Town..._

Cell's four pursuers hovered over the sight of a ruined Basil Town. Tien glanced down and saw a flipped car, clothes hanging out from one of the windows as if the occupant had tried to crawl to safety. Future Daikon observed the front of a house ripped open, like little more than a cardboard box. They clothes within told a story of a surprised family trying to enjoy a lunch, only to be mercilessly slain. Future Ranch stared down at the parking lot next to a small airport, observing a music playing still ominously belting out a catchy pop song, next to what appeared to be a toy plane.

The sights before them were truly horrific.

Piccolo's fists were gripped tight. He let loose a ragged sigh. "This is the fourth town since Nicky Town that we've found like this. We're merely chasing a ghost and it's getting us nowhere."

The other three turned towards him. Piccolo was scowling. "We need to go back to Kame House and regroup with everyone else. I can feel that Krillin and Chiaotzu are flying back there as we speak. We can gather everyone up and form a new plan of attack..."

Everyone could hear the anger and distress in Piccolo's voice as he spoke. And they couldn't disagree with him. This was an exercise in futility because, even when they became aware of where Cell was, they were always too late to stop him.

So, with three affirmative nods, the group of hunters flew off into the distance to head back to Kame House.

 _Back at the Full-Throttle Biker Fest..._

Deuce zoomed past all of the competition, gleefully seeing the finish line in the distance. It never ceased to amaze him how these fools who challenged for his crown thought they might be able to win. Soon, the race would be done and that brand new bike would be his to scrap for parts.

But, as Deuce approached the finish line, he heard a rumbling coming up behind him. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and, from the woods, came another racer. Deuce snarled. "What the hell?! I didn't wreck all of them?!"

17 rode up next to Deuce, the wind whipping his scarf around on his neck. He winked at Deuce, and then he gunned it.

To Deuce's shock, 17 sped towards a junker car in the middle of the track, smashing into the rear and using it to propel himself into the air. Deuce could only watch in awe as 17 soared ahead, creating a gap too big to be closed. 17 landed on the ground and shredded over the finish line, doing a donut and stopping to smirk at Deuce.

Distracted, the bigger biker failed to see the pothole in the road in front of him. He hit it full speed and was thrown over his handlebars, landing face-first in the must.

17 laughed out loud and stood up on the seat of his bike. "YES! Who's the man?!"

The other bikers all gathered around 17, cheering him on and applauding his victory. However, not every biker present was impressed by his showboating. As 17 was lifted onto the shoulders of the other bikers, and handed a victory beer, a voice called out from the crowd. "ENOUGH!"

The celebration stopped and 17 glanced down to see another biker that looked a lot like Deuce. One of the bikers holding him up groaned in frustration. "Don't make a scene, Domino! Your brother lost fair and square!"

Deuce chimed in, stepping up next to his brother and rubbing mud off of his face. "Fair?! This little brat took a detour! He cheated!"

17 scoffed. "Every part of this forest is part of the track, dipshit! I just took a slightly shorter, much funner path. And you complaining about it is rich coming from the prick who was using a lead pipe to wreck people out of the race."

Domino scowled. "Shut your mouth, boy! Or I'll slice you up!"

Deuce pulled out his lead pipe. "We'll see how this pipe looks next to your caved in skull!"

17 jumped off of the others' shoulders, snorting and turning his nose up at Deuce and Domino. "Why do the biggest losers always scream the loudest?"

Domino sneered. "Say that about my big brother again!"

One of the other bikers started to speak. "No! Not this time! We ain't doing this, Deuce! You lost! That's it! You don't get the bi-"

17 smirked. "I'll fight you for it."

Everyone fell silent. 17 chuckled. "There's a big brawling tournament happening tonight, right? So... how about we have a fight? Two-on-one, winner takes all~"

The other bikers were stunned, but Deuce and Domino both chuckled wildly. Deuce snorted. "So, you think you're hot shit eh?"

Domino smirked, pulling a hunting knife out of his belt. "These fights don't have any rules, kid. We'll beat the hell out of you and cut you into pieces~"

17 nodded. "That's just fine~"

 _Back at Kame House..._

"Eighter!"

"Suno!"

The young girl and her massive Android both ran across the room and into each other's arms, hugging one another tight. The rest of the Z-Fighters, minus Piccolo, watched this touching reunion with a smile on their face.

Everyone had gathered back at Kame House: Piccolo, Gohan, Future Daikon, Future Ranch, Tien, Krillin Chiaotzu, and Raditz were all sat in place around the coffee table. Chi-Chi, Gine, Launch, Suno, Roshi, and Eighter all sat down as well. Even Yamcha had been convinced to come down and join everybody from the upstairs bedroom.

Tien, Future Ranch, and Future Daikon were all happy to have a break, but Piccolo seemed uneasy.

Eighter laugh out loud and gripped Yamcha into a tight hug. "Thank you so much for the kindness you showed us and for saving our lives. I will always be grateful to you!"

Yamcha smiled, even though the bigger fellow was crushing him. "N-No problem, big guy..."

It was a happy atmosphere amongst the regathered group. An atmosphere that was almost immediately dashed when Piccolo spoke up. "Turn up the television! I need to hear what they're saying on the news!"

Roshi obliged, turning up the TV and letting everyone hear what the news anchor on-screen had to say. "...and thus, with the recent terror attacks on the Amenbo Islands, North City, and Gingertown, King Furry has ordered a protective shelter in place on all small communities effective immediately. In addition, larger cities have been ordered to be on high alert to potential threats. While the economy has been a key feature in King Furry's recent addresses regarding this on-going catastrophe, the King stresses that the lives of his citizens are paramount."

Raditz sighed. "It's sometimes hard to remember that, to people on the outside of these situations, this is just a bunch of unexplained happenings. They're probably convinced that whatever God they believe in doesn't care about them..."

Piccolo mumbled to himself. " _If their God was competent, things wouldn't be how they are right now..._ "

The reporter sighed. "And thus, we end this breaking news flash with a call-to-action for our Z-TV community. In these dark times, friends and families of those lost in these crises are in desperate need of closure. And with the recent spate of mass disappearances, any information is helpful."

His voice wavered. "So, p-please...if anybody out there has heard from any of the following missing persons, please call in to Z-TV and share this information. Thank you, and goodbye."

And then, to the horror of everyone sitting and watching the television, a list of names began to scroll by. And it continued on for quite a while.

Krillin was in desperate awe. "H-Hundreds..."

Launch placed a hand over her mouth. "Th-Thousands..."

Yamcha's gaze was hollow. " _N-No... tens of thousands..._ "

Piccolo, Tien, Future Daikon, and Future Ranch watched in horror and disgust as the names of several towns they visited scrolled by, followed by the names of several towns that they hadn't been aware of. In such a short time since he had appeared... _Cell had already claimed that many people?!_

A power began to swell behind everyone else and all of the ki sensitive people turned to see Piccolo, power boiling out of him and a massive vein bulging from his forehead. The Namekian's fangs were bared as the names continued to scroll on the screen. Gohan tried to talk to him. "Mr. Piccolo..."

Suddenly, Piccolo stood up and spoke. "We don't have time to sit around here and twiddle our thumbs. We need to act!"

Not a single voice spoke up to disagree with him. Instead, every warrior in the room nodded in solidarity. "That monster is out there preying on the innocent and running whenever he feels us coming! We can't keep letting that happen!"

Future Daikon cocked his head. "B-But what do we do? We need to exert energy to fly! We can't just walk to where it is that Cell is lurking!"

Gine stood. "That's why we have aircrafts! We have the plane we brought Kakarot here in! If we take that, we can sneak up on that monster and catch it by surprise. And then, we can overwhelm it with numbers!"

Raditz stood. "I have the capsule right here, in my armor. Let's get going!"

And then, before anyone could raise any objections, Raditz marched out the front door. Following behind him were Gine, Future Daikon, Future Ranch, Tien, Chiaotzu, Krillin, and Gohan. Yamcha tried to get up as well, but his lack of a leg quickly made him stumble.

Piccolo glanced down at him. "No, Yamcha, you stay here and wait for Goku to wake up. He's going to need someone to explain everything that has happened so far to him."

Yamcha stared up at Piccolo. "A-Are you sure...?"

Piccolo used his energy and, in a flash, created a crutch. "Positive."

And then, after handing Yamcha the crutch, Piccolo marched out from Kame House as well. They were going on a Cell hunt. And, hopefully, they would yield better results this time around.

 _In nearby Peppertown..._

In the empty streets of Peppertown, a single young lady was running as fast as she could. Somehow, she had managed to sleep through the alarms being sounded for everyone to head into the town's emergency bunker. Sixteen-year-old Hiki Komori ran as fast as she could, totally out of breath. "Wh-Why didn't Mom wake me up? W-Was she not home when the alarm sounded?!"

Hiki had been up way too long the night before, playing video games and reading manga to get over the bad day she had had at school. And now, she exited the house so frantically that she had forgotten to wear her face mask. As Hiki stopped to catch her breath, she looked at her reflection in the window of a nearby storefront and saw the birthmark that ran across her cheek. It looked like a massive, spotted welt going across her face and made her cringe. "D-Dammit..."

She stood there a bit longer, staring at the mark on her face and the dark-rings under her eyes. And her lower lip began to quiver remembering the mockery of her classmates. She closed her eyes as the tears began to form. "Not now, Hiki, not now. We can cry later...we have to get to the bunker for now so that we don't make Mom mad at us too..."

And then, she opened her eyes and looked at her reflection again...only to see that she was no longer alone. Hiki turned and saw, to her horror, that a massive green monstrosity was looming behind her, its orange beak spread into a grin. It spoke at her. "Hello~"

Hiki responded as any person would have in this situation: she screamed at the top of her lungs and went sprinting as fast as her legs could carry her. But, as she ran, the poor girl heard a sound she wasn't expecting. It was...crying?

She came to a stop, turning around and seeing that the supposed monster was now crouched on the ground, its hands pressed over its face. And it was sobbing. "Why? Why does everyone treat poor Cell this way? I'm not a monster...I just want friends..."

Her shoulders slumped as she heard the thing cry. It continued. "I guess that's just my life. Doomed to be alone forever..."

It stood and began to walk the other way. " _Poor, ugly Cell..._ "

Hiki swallowed a lump in her throat, a bad memory from her peers at school cropping up. " _Ugly Hiki~ Ugly Hiki~ Ugly Hiki~_ "

She pressed her face to her birthmark as her lip quivered, and then she called out. "Hey wait!"

The creature came to a stop, turning and looking to Hiki and she ran up to it. "I-I'm sorry! I shouldn't be so quick to judge people based on their appearances! Y-You aren't ugly!"

Cell smiled down at her, his tail squirming behind him. "You really think so...?"

She nodded, a tender smile on her face. "Yeah! People don't deserve to be judged by how they look on the outside! It's...it's what you have on the inside that should matter!"

Cell nodded, touching the black diamond on his chest. "I couldn't agree more. Thank you very much, Miss..."

She smiled. "Hiki! Hiki Komori!"

Cell reached out, stroking his finger down her face and over her birthmark. "What a lovely name~ A lovely name for a lovely young lady~"

And, like that, Hiki gravitated into Cell. She grabbed his hand and gripped it tight and Cell gently gripped her hand back. "So, Hiki, I just arrived in town... _in search of friends_. Where is everybody?"

Hiki flinched. "Oh! W-Well, I'm glad I missed the initial call then! You would have been all alone!"

Cell cocked his head. "Oh?"

She nodded. "Y-Yeah. King Furry called for a lockdown on all small towns! I think only North, West, East, and South City are still open..."

He nodded. "I see..."

She nervously chuckled. "Y-Yeah, apparently there have been a couple of terror attacks over the past couple days. So, everyone in small towns like these are probably hiding in their Royal Army bunkers until King Furry puts out the all-clear..."

Cell chuckled. "I see. A relatable response~"

Hiki smiled. "It's okay though. People might treat you poorly, but I won't be one of them! Everyone might yell at me, but I'll take you to the underground bunker so that you can be safe too!"

Cell smiled and allowed himself to be led. "My...aren't you just the most caring person~"

 _Back at the Full-Throttle Biker Fest..._

The crowd cheered as the all gathered around the Rage Cage, stomping their feet and shouting at the top of their lungs. They were thirsty for blood. Seeing the gathering crowd, Android 18 and Android 16 both joined in the writhing mass of people as well, managing to shove their way to the front. 18 cocked her head at the sight of the arena below, watching two bikers beat each other bare-fisted. "Oh, I see. _Bum fights._ "

16 glared stoically. "Such unnecessary violence."

18 watched, unamused, as one biker crossed the other one across the face and sent his teeth flying. She rolled her eyes. "What sort of idiot would participate in this shit?"

And then, a female voice got onto the loudspeaker. "And there we have it, folks! New Jack has defeated Gypsy Joe! Next up, we have a real treat for you: a two-on-one blood match with a brand-new bike on the line!"

Everyone cheered. The woman continued. "Coming in on your left, directly from South City, Deuce and Domino!"

The two bikers stepped into the arena, one holding a lead pipe and the other armed with a combat knife. The crowd roared for them. The woman continued. "And coming in on your right, from Parts Unknown, Android 17!"

18 and 16 both flinched. They turned and watched as 17 ran in, jumping atop of a totaled car and playing up the crowd. 18 planted her face into her hand. " _Of course..._ "

Down in the arena, unaware that 16 and 18 were watching, 17 turned his attention to his opponents. "This is it, losers! You could've just accepted that you lost the race, but nah...I guess you're a couple of masochists, huh? You like being embarrassed in front of people?"

Deuce snarled, smacking his lead pipe against the wall of the fighting pit. "Shut your mouth, ya wiry little prick! Get over here so we can kick your ass!"

Domino chuckled and tossed his knife into the air. "Come and take your medicine, little pig~"

17 rolled his eyes. "Fine..."

And then, out of nowhere, he charged forward. "Here I come~!"

Deuce scowled and Domino chuckled, both of them swinging their weapons, But, to their shock, Android 17 ducked beneath their attacks. The young Android smirked. " _So lame~_ "

And then, he popped up and shoved both of the bikers hard enough the they flew through the air and into the side of the cage. Deuce and Domino stood and growled at 17. 17 ushered them forward. "Come on! Come on! While I'm young!"

Deuce snarled and ran at 17, swinging his lead pipe all around, with 17 deftly dodging each swing. 17 twirled around, dodging the pipe, and then gave Deuce a spinning kick to the crotch, flooring the biker. "Man, you suck~"

Deuce growled. "Domino! Stab this little bastard!"

Domino rushed in, knife raised, but 17 was prepared. He grabbed the knife with his hand, turning and smirking at Domino, and then slapped him across the face. Domino went flying across the pit and eventually slammed into the side of a car. 17 shook his head, wagging his finger at Deuce. "Come on, man. You've gotta step up! I don't have my sibling fighting my battles for me, do I?"

Deuce snarled and got to his feet, reaching down and yanking Domino up as well. Both of them held their weapons aloft once more. They charged, screaming at the top of their lungs, and 17 sighed. "Some people never learn..."

17 got into a stance as the two brothers made it to him. Deuce went first, swinging down his lead pipe, but 17 quickly countered with a palm strike that broke the pipe in two. Deuce cried out. "What the hell?!"

Domino went to stab the Android, but 17 quickly dodged out of the way. He kicked Domino's wrist, knocking the knife from his hand, and then kicked the knife itself. The blade shot forward and embedded itself into Domino's shoulder. The biker cried out and Deuce went for another swing with his remaining pipe, only for 17 to punch him right in the nose.

The two of them were dazed and 17 smirked. He quickly reached up and grabbed each of them into a tight headlock under his arms. "Now then, let's get serious!"

And then, with very little effort, 17 lifted both men off of the ground and delivered a double suplex. Deuce went flying, tumbling across the ground and skidding into the side of the pit. Domino was smashed onto the top of a rusty, old car and knocked out cold.

Deuce stood up. "You little-"

But, 17 was right there. Effortlessly, he kicked Deuce in the face hard enough that the biker launched a few feet into the air. And then, he grabbed him by his arm and slammed him into the ground. 17 chuckled and twisted Deuce's arm backwards, trapping the biker into a standing armbar. "Come on~! Say it~!"

Deuce snarled. 17 chuckled. "Say you give up..."

A harsh twist of the wrist. " _Or I'll rip your arm off~_ "

Deuce roared in frustration. " _ARGGHH! I GIVE UP!_ "

17 chuckled and dropped the guys arms, allowing it to fall limply to the ground. He stepped on Domino's head and used it as a springboard to jump on top of a nearby car. The crowd cheered and 17 played up to it, having the time of his life. On the ground, Deuce snarled to himself and began to dig in his jacket. " _You little..._ "

The woman on the loudspeaker cheered. And then, she announced to the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen! Your winner, and the winner of that brand-new motorcycle, Android-"

A gunshot rang out and 17's eyes widened. The entire crowd fell silent. On the ground, Deuce laughed out loud, holding a smoking gun aloft. " _That'll learn ya..._ "

Everyone watching was speechless. Android 16 glared down at Deuce as he began to laugh. Android 18, meanwhile, shook her head. " _What a pathetic, little punk._ "

And then, to Deuce, the crowd, and everyone else but 16 and 18's surprise, 17 turned around and glared at his defeated opponent. He reached up to the back of his head, grabbed the flattened remains of the bullet, and then sneered. "Did you just try to shoot me while my back was turned?!"

Instantly, everyone began to scream and run away in shock and fear. Most of the people at this gathering had witnessed a cold-blooded murder before, but none of them had ever seen someone survive getting shot in the back of the head. Deuce tried to crawl away as Android 17 marched towards him, but he fumbled and at dirt for his trouble. He turned and stared fearfully at 17. " _Monster!_ "

He began to unload his gun, each bullet ricocheting meaninglessly off of 17's skin. Deuce continued to fire until he heard the empty click from his pistol. And then, before he could react, 17 pulled his foot back and kicked the pathetic biker all the way across the pit and into the wall, leaving a sizeable dent. Deuce coughed up blood and shakily tried to push himself up, yelping in fear at 17 marched towards him again.

Domino reached out, grabbed 17 by his neck scarf. "You leave my bro-"

17 quickly shut him up with a harsh punch to the jaw. "No! No mercy now! You just had to try and pull that, huh? Shooting me while my back is turned! I hate people like that and I am absolutely sick of pathetic little nobodies like you!"

Deuce was terrified, meekly try to stammer out that he was sorry. But, before he could form the words, 17 was on top of him and beating him senseless once more.

As 17 assaulted his attempted murderer, Android 16 and Android 18 both watched from the stands. 16 turned to 18. "Are you going to attempt to stop him?"

18 shrugged. "Why should I? That guy shot him; he's getting what he deserves as far as I'm concerned."

16 turned his attention back to 17, and then he sighed.

17 laid another harsh punch onto Deuce's face, breaking his cheek. "Had enough?! Huh, punk?!"

Deuce meekly nodded. " _Y-Yesh...I'm sho shorry..._ "

17 glared down at him. "Good. Now, let's finish this."

And then, 17 raised his hand into the air and charged a Power Blitz. The green energy swirled in his hand as he stared emotionlessly at Deuce. But then, before 17 could blast the biker in the face and kill him, a larger hand reached down and grabbed 17 by the wrist. 17 flinched and quickly turned around, coming upon the sight of Android 16.

17 glared at the giant. "And just what the hell do you think you're doing?!"

16 glanced past 17 and down at Deuce. "Go and retrieve your brother, and then turn yourself in to the authorities. They will be the only ones able to keep you safe from further harm."

Deuce didn't argue, quickly stumbling to his feet and grabbing his brother. 17 shouted as he saw the two of them making their getaway. "No!"

He tried to snatch his hand away from 16, but the giant held firm. 17 glared up at him and snarled. "What do you think you're doing?! What gives you the right to stop me?!"

16 was silent. 17 was only getting angrier, yanking at 16's grip and smashing his fist into the giant's wrist. "Let me go, 16! Let me go right now! Before I get angry and break your giant, red-headed ass in half! LET ME-"

The silent giant's grip suddenly loosened and 17 went tumbling backwards. 17 stood up, Power Blitz still in hand, and hatefully glared at 16. "You! Who do you think you are, huh?!"

16 remained stoic, simply staring at Android 17. "What purpose is there in killing someone that much weaker than you? Allowing you to do something so foolish would be illogical."

This made 17 snap. He ran towards 16, blast in hand. " _Nobody gets to tell me how to live my life! Especially not a hunk of junk like you!_ "

As 17 charged, 16 refused to budge. The massive Android raised his hands up, as if he were preparing to defend himself. But, before a fight could break out, both sides were cut off by a third-party intervening. Android 18 stood between the two of them, one hand holding 17 back and the other hand pressed against 16 for stability. "Both of you stop! There's no reason for us to fight amongst ourselves!"

18 harshly shoved her brother back and then turned to 16. "Look, 16, I guess I get where you're coming from here...but that fight was none of your business and you should've stayed out of it!"

16 stared at 17 and 18 for a moment, and then he closed his eyes. "Noted."

He turned his back to his two travel companions and plodded away towards the exit. "I shall go and wait in the van."

Once 16 was out of sight, 18 sighed. "Okay then. Now, 17-"

17 quickly cut her off. "18. I am _done_ with that guy."

 _Back in Peppertown, the Underground Bunker..._

A knock on the bunker door made the Royal Army soldier next to it jump with fright. As the knocking continued, a wave of murmurs started spreading amongst all of the people crammed into the bunker space. Soon enough, a woman burst from the crowd and ran up to the solider. "Who is it?! Is it my daughter?!"

The soldier raised his hands up. "L-Listen ma'am. I know that tensions are running high and that you are concerned, but-"

Ms. Komori shook her head. "But nothing! You rushed me in here before I could get back to my house and get my baby! If it's her, you've got to let her in!"

The soldier groaned. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place here. But, after some thought, his better nature got the better of him and he turned to open the door. Off to the side, three bratty teenagers all rolled their eyes. One of them scoffed. "I can't believe they're risking opening the bunker to let Ugly Hiki in! We're better off without her!"

The three girls were largely ignored and the door was opened revealing that, indeed, Hiki Komori was standing on the other side. Her mother smiled. "Oh, Hiki! I was so worried!"

She blushed, bowing her head. "S-Sorry Mom..."

She glanced off to the side. "I...t-tried to get here as fast as I could, but...I met a friend on the way here~"

Ms. Komori flinched. "A friend?"

Hiki nodded. "Y-Yeah! He's a good friend! He doesn't make fun of me for my birthmark or anything. He's...he's a nice guy..."

The Royal Soldier cut in. "Ma'am, I'm afraid we can't let anyone who does not have a Peppertown Citizenship I.D. into this facility. Unless they have that identification, I am afraid that I will have to turn them away."

Hiki shouted. "B-But you can't turn Cell away! He's such a nice person, and-"

Suddenly, a massive green tail shot out from the side and batted Hiki down the hallway. She smashed against the brick walls of the underground chamber with a crunch and then fell silent. A raspy chuckle immediately followed. "That will be quite enough, Hiki~ I shall take it from here~"

Undeterred, Ms. Komori ran from the bunker. She desperately shouted for her daughter. " _Hiki!_ "

The Royal Soldier tried to run out after her. "Wait a min-"

Suddenly and violently, the shocked soldier was stabbed in the gut by a massive, syringe-like stinger. The tail that the stinger was attached to lifted the soldier out of sight, and then the echoing, clomping footsteps started.

The people of Peppertown all stared out the open door, and were eventually horrified to see the looming form of Cell stood in the doorway. The clothes of the Royal Army solider fell down behind Cell as Ms. Komori and her injured daughter ran off unnoticed.

Cell chuckled. "So many sources of bio-mass..."

The monster stepped into the doorway, looking around the bunker and seeing no other exits. "Such foolish creatures, humans are. You rush into an inescapable box for safety~"

Cell laughed a dark laugh as his tail curled into striking position. "Now then..."

He stared at them with his hellish eyes. " _Who's first?!_ "

 _ **Proofreading: StevenBodner**_


	76. Chapter 76: Humanity

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _Written by: Feraligreater328_

 _Edited by: StevenBodner_

 _ **Chapter 76: Humanity**_

 _Somewhere in the mountains..._

It was a tense ride as Android 17, Android 18, and Android 16 continued their journey to Goku's house. All three of them are quiet, tensions still being high from the incident at the Full-Throttle Biker Fest. 16 had been in stasis ever since, 17 had being broiling with rage ever since, and 18 had been left stuck between this awkward situation.

Finally, after such a long silence, 18 spoke up. "17. Stop the van."

17 glared over at her. "Why?"

She sighed. "I have to pee. Now pull over!"

And so, 17 did. He pulled over and 18 hopped out, running over to and squatting behind a nearby bush. 17 got out of the van as well, having no desire to be around 16. After a few minutes of waiting, 17 marched over to a tree next to the bush and leaned against it. "How much did you drink back there?"

18 nearly fell over in surprise. " _What the hell are you doing?! Haven't you ever heard of privacy?!_ "

Quiet set over the two again, the only sound being the sound of liquid trickling. Finally, 17 spoke again. "I'm done playing these games with him, 18. I want to leave him and just continue off on our own before he starts thinking he's our boss."

18's brow furrowed. She was annoyed. "Don't be a child, 17. We can't just leave 16 and the van behind like that."

17 shook his head. "Oh no, I'm not leaving _my_ van behind. We're taking it. We're just going to leave him."

18 groaned. "You're such a brat. Anytime someone tries to look out for you, you get like this! 16 was probably just trying to keep a low profile. If Goku or his family saw on the news that a murder happened this close to them, then they might get spooked and run off! Subtlety is your friend when you're hunting something, 17."

He sneered. "First off, you know that subtle isn't my style. I want Goku to know we're coming, that's what makes the chase fun! And second off, I don't like to fight with you 18. But you know how I am about people treating us like children! And that's what he's doing! Him stepping in like that shows that he's just going to look down on us like everyone else has! And I _refuse_ to allow that..."

18 fell silent, closing her eyes to think. Reflecting on the past, she couldn't help but agree with 17 that she didn't want to be treated like a child or ordered around anymore. She stood and pulled up her pants. After that, she turned to her brother. "Fine. But we're not just leaving him on the side of the road. If you want to get rid of 16 that badly, we're going to drop him off somewhere he'll at least feel comfortable."

17 groaned in frustration. " _Fine._ "

 _A few hours later..._

Eventually, a sign came into view that 17 and 18 saw as their chance: Kumagoon National Park. 18 read the sign out loud. "A place where man and nature can walk hand-in-hand..."

A small frown spread on 18's face and she turned and faced her larger friend. She really didn't want to take part in this, but if the choice came down to someone she had just met or her flesh-and-blood brother...she knew what choice she would have to make. With a bit of reluctance, 18 called out. "Hey, 16, wake up!"

After a moment, 16's eyes opened up. They briefly flashed bright red, and then turned into their pure, icy blue. "Yes? Have we arrived at Son Goku's home?"

18 shook her head. "N-No. Not exactly..."

The smug 17 cut in. "There's a nature park up ahead, big guy. You like nature, right?"

16 was stoic for a moment, but then a small smile appeared on his face. "Indeed. I would very much like to see a place such as that~"

17 chuckled. "Well, get ready bud~! We're parking right now~"

 _Within the grounds of Kumagoon National Park..._

All of them together, the three Androids walked deeper and deeper into the man-made trails of Kumagoon National Park. Android 16 had taken the lead, with 17 and 18 keeping pace behind him. The big guy actually managed to surprise both of his peers by displaying a seemingly encyclopedic knowledge of everything around them. "And then type of tree is classified as the _Pinus cembra_ , or Swiss Pine. It has a slow growth cycle, but can grow up to forty feet in length..."

16 walked up to the tree and placed his hand against it, making is slightly shake. 17 rolled his eyes. " _Fascinating..._ "

18 tried her best to maintain a positive attitude, not wanting to let 16 catch on that something might be amiss. But her faux happiness was briefly broken by the sight of six wolves stepping out from the brush. 18 flinched. "That's a lot of wolves."

16 nodded. "Indeed."

He knelt down and reached out, grabbing the snarling lead wolf by the scruff of its neck and pulling it forward. The beast looked ready to maul 16, until he started to give it rather pleasing scratches behind the ears. 16 smirked. " _Canis lupus lycacon_ , the Eastern Wolf. They can be aggressive, but are also easily befriended. So long as the leader of the pack is comfortable with any interloper in their midst..."

The rest of the pack leapt onto 16, licking him on the face and gnawing onto his armor. "The rest can be persuaded to behave just as placidly~"

18 genuinely smiled at 16's predicament. "That's...that's great, 16~"

The hulking Android stood, marching deeper into the forest and flanked by his new friends. "Come! There is more nature to be explored!"

16 marched into the forest, blissfully unaware of 17 or 18. 18 began to follow, but her arm was quickly grabbed. 17 smirked and held his finger up to his lips. 18 nodded and then, taking one last sad look at the shock of red hair disappearing into the hills, she and 17 both turned and walked the other way.

As they walked, 18 didn't bother to hide her displeasure. "I hate this, 17. _I absolutely hate this_."

17 rolled his eyes. "Come on, sis! The writing was on the wall. He was acting just like everyone before him did. Gero, Mom, Dad...16 is nothing more than another, old fool trying to tell us what to do!"

18's eyes were glued to the forest floor. "Is that really true though...?"

17 nodded. "Of course, it is! Don't forget, 18, Gero made him! He didn't convert that guy, he made him! And can you think of anything Gero made that turned out good?"

18's frown worsened.

 _Long ago..._

A young woman woke up with a start. Trapped in darkness and finding herself unable to cry out, she began to thrash around, kicking and bucking and trying to see if she could find anything other than the cold, rocky floor she was laying on. She felt something digging into her wrists and grunted in pain as she felt a warm, sticky stream begin to leak down one of her palms.

Sounds were muffled. But she soon made out...laughter?

" _It appears as if our second test subject has woken up~_ "

Rather jarringly, the young woman's head was yanked forward as the bag covering it was removed. She fell back and grunted behind the thick band of tape that was wrapped around her jaw and mouth. She looked down at her ankles and back at her wrist to see that both were bound with sets of handcuffs.

And then, she looked forward and her eyes widened in shock. In front of her was a poorly-aged, balding old man in a lab coat. And behind him was a rotund, pale ghoul and a large, metal slab. And on that slab, she quickly recognized, was the unconscious form of her twin brother.

The old man chuckled. "Well, 19, it would appear as if our soon-to-be new Android 18 is wide awake. So, she gets to be the captive audience for the construction of our new Android 17..."

The girl tried to speak behind her gag, but found it to be impossible. The old man shook his head and went back to his work. "Now then...prepare the bone-saw. We'll begin the procedure by opening up his chest..."

 _In the present..._

Android 18 shuddered as she walked. Concerned, 17 turned to her. "You okay?"

She didn't look at him. "Yeah, I'm fine..."

She shivered again and 17 nodded. "It is pretty cold out here, with the snow and all..."

He pointed his thumb to a nearby rest stop. "That place looks like it has a coffee machine. Wanna stop and get a cup of shitty coffee? Just like old times?"

18 adopted a small smile. "Yeah. That sounds good..."

The two of them marched over to the rest stop and 18 put some of her previously stolen zeni into the machine. "If only Mom or Dad could see us now, huh...? What do you think they'd say?"

17 rolled his eyes. "Moonwater would probably be going on and on about how our powers are a _miracle of nature_...or she'd want nothing to do with us because of the machines implanted in us..."

Upon hearing this, memories rapidly flashed through 18's head. She gripped her fresh cup of coffee hard enough to crush it and 17 flinched. "How about you just go sit down and rest. I'll grab our drinks."

18 nodded. "Okay..."

As 18 sat down, 17 ordered her a new cup. "I bet Dan wouldn't even recognize us. If he ever knew what we looked like to begin with..."

18 pressed her face into her palms, breathing heavily. " _Mhm..._ "

17 sat next to her, placing her cup of coffee on the bench between them. "We could always try and settle down. Maybe Dan not recognizing us would be beneficial. We could work as security at his stupid jewelry store..."

18 didn't say a word. 17 frowned, reaching over and stroking his hand soothingly down her back. "Hey...it's okay. You don't have to be like this. We're strong now, 18..."

She began to quiver. 17 looked away from her, bowing his head. "Strong people shouldn't have to cry, sis..."

 _Long ago..._

Android 18 backflipped with a serious expression on her face. Androids 14 and 15 gave chase, both of them firing blasts and wildly missing. Android 17, meanwhile, was locked into conflict with Android 13.

As his creations traded blows, Dr. Gero and Android 19 both watched from below. 19 kept his focus on the twins above, recording their movements. Gero, meanwhile, went down a checklist of various parameters he was monitoring: 17 and 18's enhanced strength and reflexes, their quality of their energy barriers, and their offensive Power Blitz attack.

14 and 15 both caught up to 18 and immediately began to attempt hand-to-hand combat, but it proved to be ineffective against the feminine Android. She was easily able to block and deflect their attacks and send them both flying away with a double Power Blitz.

As 14 attempted to stand, dazed and confused, Android 18 landed and began to smack him about. The larger robot didn't stand a chance, being buckled by a hard knee to the gut and sent flying with a kick to the jaw. From behind, Android 15 drew his hand back. He coated it with energy and shot it forward, attempting to slap Android 18 across the face. But, her lightning-quick reflexes allowed her to catch it. She turned to 15 and shot him a sadistic smirk.

Meanwhile, Android 17 and Android 13 clashed rather evenly. 17 struck hard, raining his fist down with all his might. However, 13 was able to catch it. The redneck Android went for a punch of his own, but 17 caught that as well. The two of them glared at one another and 13 chuckled. "Thinkin' yer pretty tough, huh city-boy?"

17 snorted. "That accent is ridiculous~"

And then, he smashed his forehead into 13's nose. The Android stumbled back, his trucker hat going flying. And then 17 charged. He tried for a kick, but 13 ducked it and shot his hand up and around 17's throat. The smaller Android was choke-slammed by his bigger counterpart and then stomped for good measure. He went for another stomp, but 17's foot kicked upward and caught 13 between the legs. Stunned, the bigger Android crashed to his knees and 17 smashed him in the face with a Power Blitz. 17 chuckled. "How's that one feel, _Jim-Bob_?"

13 responded by reached out and grabbing 17's hair, slamming his elbow into the smaller Android's face. 17 stumbled back, but his heightened defense allowed his to escape with no noticeable injury. 13 snarled and wiped blood from the corner of his mouth. " _I'm gettin' real sick o' yer lip, boy!_ "

Back with the other three, 18 was effortlessly manhandling 14 and 15. She grabbed the bigger of the two by his hair braid, heaving him into the air and slamming his atop 15. The shorter Android growled from under his bigger partner. "Get the hell off me!"

As 15 scrambled to his feet, adjusting his clothes, 18 appeared in front of him. She blew a kiss in his face and chuckled. "You have got to be the least intimidating pimp I've ever seen."

And then, to add injury to insult, 18 smashed her knee into 15's face and knocked him out cold. 14 attempted to lunge at her from behind, but 18 effortlessly blasted him into submission with a rapid-fire series of Power Blitzes. And then, she redirected her hand and fired another 3 Power Blitzes into Android 13's back. 13 turned and glared at her. "You know, I'm not one to hit a lady...but you sure do look as if you need to be reminded of your place."

18 responded by clearing her throat and hawking a massive loogie right onto 13's cheek. " _Get bent._ "

Android 13 snarled and raised his hand into the air. " _S.S. Deadly Bomber!_ "

He chucked the attack at 18 and she, in response, merely stood there with a smirk. 13 was confused, and was unprepared when a green energy barrier suddenly enveloped his attack. " _What the hell?!_ "

17 appeared behind him with a smirk. "Did you forget you were fighting me?"

And then, he kicked 13 hard in the back of the head. As the larger Android shot forward, 18 shot a massive energy blast that forced the contained S.S. Deadly Bomber towards him. The two forces met in the middle and it resulted in a massive explosion.

Once the smoke cleared, Android 13 was still standing. However, he was quite heavily damaged. The redneck Android looked pissed. "I'm gonna kill both of you little anklebiters!"

17 chuckled. "Yeah, _sure_ ~ How about I hit you with something new?!"

The impetuous, young Android waved his hands about in the air until, to 13's confusion, they began to crackle with electricity. "I made this move myself, it's called-"

Suddenly, 17 and 18's eyes both went wide. 18 cried out and gripped her chest tight, falling to her knees. 17 fell from the sky like a stone and writhed in place. " _Agh!_ "

Dr. Gero stepped forward, forced to use a cane to keep balanced. "I do not recall giving you permission, Android 17, to innovate with your powers to such a degree."

17 glared hatefully up at Dr. Gero, still gripping his chest. The doctor stared coldly. "I have gifted you and Android 18, street rats though you were, with a subset of powers and abilities that I have approved of you having. I even allowed you, unlike with models such as the Saiyan Hunters, to keep your free will so that you might hunt down and destroy Goku without my constant input..."

Gero planted the tip of his cane into 17's cheek and pressed down. "But you would be wise to remember that free will is a privilege, not a right. And that, going against that directive will result in harsh punishment for both you and Android 18..."

The doctor turned and motioned to his assistant. "19, prepare Android 17 and Android 18's stasis capsules for a refurbishment procedure."

19 nodded. "As you command, Doctor Gero."

Gero snapped his fingers. "13, 14, and 15. It would appear as if 17 and 18 need to be taught a lesson. You have my permission to do all but kill them. _Break their spirits_...and as many of their bones as you would like. With their Infinite Energy Engines shut off, they are defenseless~"

17 snarled and tried to push his aching, crippled body up. "I will...I will kill you one day! Do you hear me?! Huh, Gero?!"

The doctor wordlessly waved 17 off. 17 snarled, but was then shocked as 14 and 15 descended upon 18. 14 wickedly smirked and grabbed her by the arm, wrenching her shoulder out of socket. 18 screamed in pain and 17 tried to come to her aid. "Leave her alo-"

A massive boot stomped down on 17's extended hand, shattering every bone in it. He cried out in pain and glared up at his assailant, Android 13. The larger Android snickered. " _Looks like the shoe is on the other foot now, boy~_ "

 _Back in the present..._

Android 17 sighed and pulled 18 into a tight, brotherly hug. "You don't have to cry anymore, 18. We're free! Gero can't control us anymore! We're the two strongest people on this entire planet and nothing can stand up to that!"

He stood and smiled. "No more dragging along the bottom. The entire world is our playground!"

18 looked up and saw her brother reached out his hand. "We live for ourselves and each other! We protect ourselves and each other! And that will never change, right?!"

Android 18 wiped her face, her breathing still shaky. Silently, she nodded her head. Android 17 put his arm over her shoulder and they continued to walk together. Soon enough, they made their way out of the park and back to their pink van. 17 climbed into the driver's seat and 18 sat in the passenger seat next to her. "So, 18, where to?"

He looked over and smiled at his sister, only to see her wistfully staring into the back of the van. 17 rolled his eyes. "Come on, sis! Are we still on this?! We left him behind! Let's focus on moving forward!"

18 didn't look away from the spot, her focus remaining on where 16 normally sat. Finally, 17 lost his temper. "18! Come on, man! He's just a robot! Forget him!"

She shook her head, finally speaking. "No, 17! He's more than that! He...he shows mercy and compassion! He's not just a robot! He's...he's something more than that! You can tell it just by looking in his eyes! There's feeling behind those eyes, 17!"

17 rolled his eyes. "All of Gero's puppets are like that, 18! 13's eyes were full of arrogance, 14's eyes were full of pride, even 19 had that creepy stare like he was looking at a writhing insect! 16 is nothing more than one of them! Another one of Gero's human-like puppets! Another adult that wants to lord over our lives and try to control us!"

18 turned to him, sneering. "How can you say that?! 16 isn't like the rest of those creeps! He's only ever been nice to us! He's never _starved_ us, or _abandoned_ us, or _hurt_ us, or _violated_ us!"

17 was furious, slamming his fists down on the steering wheel. Dents in the shape of 17's fists were left behind. "Not yet! No one starts out doing that! But you know how people are! We can't trust someone just because they're outwardly nice to us! Every time we've done that in the past, all we've gotten is burned and scarred and forced into even deeper trouble than before!"

18 flinched and he continued to rant. "Just look at what we've dealt with since we were reactivated! That biker asshole shot me in the back of the head without a second thought! And even he's better than that Vegeta prick! That guy would have killed us both out of his own arrogance and pride! We've suffered too much, 18! We don't need to take that risk again!"

Android 18 shouted back. " _So, we're just supposed to be alone for the rest of our lives?!_ "

Tears started to stream again. 18 was shaking. "I'm so tired of being alone, 17. We've spent so much of our time alone. And I get that you hate humanity and that you hate how humans can act, but...16 isn't human! Not in that way!"

17 flinched. 18 glared at him. "So please... _please_...can't we just give him a chance? Maybe try to explain our viewpoint to him? Maybe...just maybe...add someone to our little circle that won't stab us in the back...?"

He shook his head. "No! Absolutely not! I refuse to change my mind on this! _I'm not falling into that trap again!_ "

18 snapped at him. "Then you're becoming exactly what Gero wanted you to be! _An unfeeling, unchanging, single-minded tool!_ "

17 was taken aback. 18 pulled her legs up, hugging them tight and burying her face into her knees. The male Android was still pissed...but, those words that 18 had said resonated within him. And finally, with a heavy sigh, Android 17 relented. "Fine. We'll go talk to him. But he only gets one more chance, 18. If I don't like what he has to say and he doesn't offer an apology, then I refuse to deal with him anymore."

Android 18 sighed, wiping her face. "F-Fine. That should be that hard...we just have to reason with him..."

 _Back in the park..._

17 and 18 walked through the various nature trails, trying to see if they could find any sign of Android 16. But, for such a big guy, he was proving to be quite the challenge to find. 17 was getting annoyed again. "Dammit. He's a hulking, red-headed giant wearing lime green armor! _How is he not sticking out like a sore thumb?!_ "

18 was forlorn. "Maybe...he noticed that we left without saying anything and decided that he was better off without us..."

As the two of them continued their search, they were soon approached by an attentive looking park ranger. "Excuse me, park-goers! May I have a minute of your time?"

17 and 18 both paused, unsure of what to make of all of this. The ranger approached, adopting a kindly smile on his face. "I'm sorry to bother you while you're on a trip through nature, but I was wondering if either of you have noticed anyone strange stalking around the park. We've had some reported sightings of a certain type of intruder..."

Neither 17 nor 18 knew how to respond. Inside, both of them were worried that this ranger was talking about 16. So, they tried to pull a bit more information from the guy. 18 cocked her head. "Um...that's a bit unclear. What type of intruder are we talking about here?"

The ranger nodded. "Of course. You see, we've had several reports that bear poachers have made their way into our humble, little park through the outer forest. Have you seen any shady looking trucks or anything like that around?"

Instantly, 17 and 18 knew that the ranger wasn't talking about Android 16. So, 17 spoke up. "No. Sorry. We haven't seen anything like that."

The ranger shook his head. "That's too bad."

He nodded to them both. "Well, if you happen to see anything like that, please be sure to report it to the nearest ranger you can find. Contributions from steadfast park-goers like you will be what puts a stop to this poaching ring!"

18 sighed, just wanting the conversation with this guy to end so they could get back to their search. "S-Sure thing. Whatever you say, sir~"

The ranger nodded and smiled. And then, once he was gone, 17 and 18 returned to their search. As they continued to work, the Androids eventually came upon what they were looking for. It was hard to see at first, but 17 soon noticed a familiar shock of red hair sticking out of a bush. He pointed and 18 looked as well, eventually seeing the familiar sight of Android 16 rising out of the bushes. She called to him. "16!"

But, to her shock, 16 turned away. He marched deeper in the forest without so much as a word. 18 flinched, looking discouraged. "I guess he really is mad that we left him..."

17 watched as 18's mood started to fall again. He sighed. "Listen. Let's follow him. If he's really mad, I'll just take the blame. He can hate me, or whatever, but you and him can still be friends..."

18 shook her head. "No. We're not doing that. Let's follow him and just try to explain ourselves..."

And so, they did. 17 and 18 both rushed through the brush, deeper into the wilderness. It took a few minutes, but the eventually found 16 again. The two Androids emerged from the forest onto a small riverbank and ran up to their comrade. 18 called out to him. "16!"

Android 16 turned, smiling at the two. "Hello 17. Hello 18."

17 cocked his head. "What's up, man? Why were you ignoring us earlier?"

16 sighed. "Forgive me. I must not have heard you. My mind was...elsewhere."

18 walked up to him. "What do you mean else... _Oh my God!_ "

17 and 18 both looked on in shock as 16 knelt down next to an injured bear cub. The larger Android gently brought his hand up to the cub's mouth, opening it to reveal a handful of berries. The little cub weakly began to eat. 17 looked visibly disturbed. "Wh-What happened to the little guy...?"

16 grunted. "I found this young cub with a bullet embedded into its side. I managed to draw out the remains of the bullet by utilizing my energy barrier function to encase and draw it out. Now, I am trying to feed it and help it to recover."

He turned to them. "Would you be willing to help me in caring for this young one?"

17 and 18 both nodded without a second thought. 16 smiled. "Excellent. According to my biological index, the best food for a cub at this stage of development would by a river salmon. And the best way to patch its wound would be a with a selection of herbs that can be found in the surrounding forest."

18 immediately stood. "Call out what these herbs look like to me and I'll find them."

17 rolled up his sleeves and tromped into the river. "Salmon are red, right?"

It took them a few minutes, but 17 and 18 both eventually returned with what 16 directed them to find. 17 gently placed the fish next to the cub's mouth and watched as it started to eat. 18, meanwhile, ripped on of the black sleeves off of her outfit. She watched as 16 ground the herbs into a fine paste and spread them across the wound. And then, following her larger counterpart's directions, she wrapped the sleeve around the cub.

As the little guy started to rest, the three Androids finally got a chance to talk. 17 grumbled. "Now then, 16...we need to talk."

16 turned to 17. "What would you like to talk about?"

17 glared at him. "You know what I want to talk about. We need to discuss boundaries, 16. You had no right to butt into my business back at that biker festival and I want an apology."

16 remained stoic. "I see nothing to apologize for. I saw you attempting to make a critical error and I corrected you."

17 grunted. "Critical error, huh? And just what critical error would that be?!"

16 spoke bluntly. "You attempted to terminate that biker."

17 instantly became defensive, even looking slightly offended. "And did you not see that biker try to 'terminate' me first?! He pulled out that gun while my back was turned and shot me in the back of the head, 16!"

16 closed his eyes and nodded. "He did."

17 smugly smirked, feeling as if he had won the argument. "See! Even you agree! So, where's my-"

16 cut him off. "You had every right to retaliation. But, terminating that biker's life would have been a fatal mistake, Android 17."

17 flinched. "Fa...Are you _threatening_ me?!"

Instantly, 17 was on his feet. He snarled at 16. " _Are you threatening me, 16?!_ "

Android 16 stood as well, looming over 17 with a stoic expression on his face. 17 gripped his fists. It was clear that tensions were about to break. But, 18 quickly intervened. "Both of you calm down! We shouldn't be fighting each other! We need to-"

To the surprise of all three Androids, the bear cub stood as well. The little creature limped over to 16, biting the Android's boot and giving it a tug. The bear cub hobbled into the brush and, putting his argument with 17 on the backburner, 16 wordlessly followed along. 17 and 18 shared a brief look, and then 18 followed as well. 17 growled under his breath, but he also followed along...albeit, begrudgingly.

 _Along the riverbank, downstream..._

The Androids followed along behind the bear cub for nearly thirty minutes. But they were eventually led to a massive waterfall capping the end of the stream. All three of the Androids stared at the waterfall, and then they watched as the cub hobbled behind it. Android 16 narrowed his eyes. "A cave, hidden from sight and from the notice of any park rangers..."

As 16 marched behind the waterfall, 17 and 18 both turned to one another. 18 cocked her head. "Poachers, ya think?"

17 nodded. "I'd say it's a possibility..."

The two, younger Androids both walked behind the waterfall and into the cave hidden behind it. The sight they came upon once they walked in was something truly horrific. Lines of cages, stacked three-high, all throughout the entire, massive cave. And within each cage, at least two bears were shivering. Most of them were injured, some of them critically so. Nearer to the back, Android 16 was stood next to the bear cub. He watched, his fists shaking with quiet fury, as the poor creature desperately licked at the paw of a barely conscious bear locked within. _"Poachers._ "

What 16 did next shocked both 17 and 18. With his bare hands, the hulking Android grabbed the sturdy, steel bars of the cage and ripped them asunder. The cage ripped open and the two bears within slowly lifted their heads. 16 watched at the bear cub hobbled in and began to lick his parents. 16 nodded to the three of them and then got to work opening the other cages.

The massive Android worked fast, managing to rip open the hateful cages with little effort and release family after family of bears. 17 and 18 stood to the side, allowing the small army of bears to make their way out of the cave, most of them too out of it to even pay the other two Androids any mind. 18 turned to 17. "Still think he's just another one of Gero's puppets, 17?"

17 frowned. "Now listen here, I-"

" _NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ "

17 and 18 both turned in the direction of 16's voice. They had no idea what could make the big guy cry out like that, but they weren't taking any chances. Both of them ran into the rear of the cave, each with a blast prepared. But what they found was merely Android 16, knelt on the ground, with his face buried in his hands. 18 quickly ran up to him, placing a comforting hand on his back. "16! What's wrong?!"

16 was inconsolable. "Th-The bears..."

17 cocked his head. "What about them? You freed them all, what's-"

And then, a drip fell from the ceiling. 17 and 18 both looked up and what they saw shocked them. Hanging from the ceiling were dozens of bear pelts, all of them left hanging to dry out. 18 was gobsmacked. "Wh-What the hell is this?!"

17 looked from the ceiling, into the darkened corner of the room. He tried to make out what the huge mass in the corner was, and then the smell hit him. 17 shook his head. "Ugh...that's just shameful..."

18 knelt next to the gentle giant. "A-Are they..."

16 nodded, sounding in pain. "By all scans and parameters...they are indeed dead..."

The two Androids looked to one another and then down to the despondent 16. 18 sighed. "16...why don't you just go and help the other bears find their way out of the cave? Just...leave this to us, okay bud?"

Android 16 wordlessly stood. He looked down at 18 and she smiled up at him. And then he nodded and walked the other way, leaving the horrific scene behind. 17 and 18 both looked to one another and nodded, and then they both started blasting. They made sure to burn every pelt, every bear corpse, and every last tool in the room. And, once that was done, they both started blasting the ceiling to bury the horrors that happened in that room permanently.

 _Outside of the cave..._

Android 17 and Android 18 both exited the cave to the sight of 16 and several of the bears all standing in front of them. 18 called out. "What's up, 16? Is something-"

She gave pause as the full image came into view. The Androids and the bears were surrounded from all sides by poachers, each of them with their rifles cocked and ready to fire. From the back of the group, from within a truck parked between two trees, the lead poacher stepped forward. He chuckled. "Well, I am afraid that you three have seen too much..."

17 and 18 both glared, each of them striking a fighting stance. Android 16 stood stalwart. "Your actions here, against these innocent creatures, is unacceptable. It is advised that you all turn yourselves in to the proper authorities for due process in regards to your actions."

This line from 16 got all of the poachers riled up. Raucous, mocking laughter echoed out from all sides. The lead poacher chuckled and removed his hat. "My word. What a foolishly noble thing to say. My friend, in case you can't tell...we have all of the guns here! So, I would say that we call the shots! _Not you!_ "

16 nodded. "Your decision has been accepted. I shall now respond accordingly."

And then, in defiance of everyone pointing a weapon at him, 16 marched forward. 18 began to follow, but 17 quickly seized her arm. She glared at him and he shook his head. "Hold on a second, sis. It's not like 16 needs our help anyway... _I wanna see how he responds to this_..."

The lead poacher sneered. "I would recommend that you stop right now!"

16 continued to march, unflinching and unblinking. A bead of sweat trailed down the man's face. He looked around at his men, seeing how unnerved they all looked. The lead poacher snarled. " _WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR?! OPEN FIRE!_ "

The men did as they were told, all of them pointing their weapons at 16 and firing at him. The hulking Android responded by simply forming an energy barrier around himself. The bullets all collided and crumbled against the strength of the shield, their refuse falling harmlessly to the ground.

17 was confused. "What is he...?"

The raven-haired Androids eyes shifted to watch the various injured bears attempting to limp into the safety of the brush. And then, he came to a realization. "He's acting as a distraction...he's keeping their focus off of the bears..."

18 gasped. "16..."

But then, to the Androids' shock, one of the poachers called out. "Hey! The damned bears are getting away! Focus your fire on them!"

Several of the poachers switched their attention, one of them aiming his rifle directly at the cub. "Heya! I see that little varmint that got away before! Ain't that just-"

Android 18's foot rained from the sky like an anvil, kicking the poacher in the back of the head hard enough that he bounced off of the ground. The other poachers were surprised. "What the hell?!"

Immediately, another poacher was sent flying across the forest by a punch to the face. Android 17 stood where he once stood and glared at the other poachers. "Why don't you try to skin something your own size?!"

They all flinched. 18 stood up straight and adjusted her hair out of her face. "16. Go help the bears get away, we'll handle these clowns."

16 stared up at his two comrades for a moment, and then he nodded. The hulking Android quickly turned and went over to help the bears to safety. 17 and 18, meanwhile, took their time to clean house. The poachers could only scream in terror as these seemingly innocuous teens dodged their bullets like it was second nature and broke their rifles like they were toys.

The lead poacher called out in frustration. "What the hell are you guys doing?! It's just three, random nobodies!"

This admonishment was met by screams of terror as 17 and 18, non-lethally, dealt finishing blows to each of the cruel poachers. The men were sent flying high into trees, down into the river, and across the forest as their young foes used them as makeshift punching bags. Soon enough, their numbers were dwindled to zero and 17 and 18 stood over their defeated pile of enemies. Surprisingly, the two had managed to hold back enough to avoid killing anyone.

17 chuckled. "Well that was fun~"

As the raven-haired Android spoke to his blonde counterpart, the lead poacher stared in shock. "Th-These brats..."

17 laughed out loud. The lead poacher sneered. "I'll show you..."

He reached into his coat and pulled out a pistol, aiming it at the back of 17's head. 17 was totally unaware. "What a bunch of losers~"

The lead poacher shouted. "Eat lead you little punk!"

And then a gunshot rang out.

17 and 18 both turned to see a compelling sight. Android 16 stood between the two of them and the lead poacher, smoke curling from the center of his forehead where the bullet had collided. Briefly, 16 began to fall back. But then, his foot stomped against the ground and he righted himself. Android 16 stood tall, looming over the lead poacher as he reached up to his forehead and picked off the crushed bullet. The lead poacher screamed in fear. " _Wh-Wh-Wh-What the hell are you?!_ "

He aimed his gun at 16, readying to fire again. But, 16 merely reached down and pulled the pistol from the man's hands, crushing it like a wine glass. Android 16 glared at the poacher. "You chose not to turn yourself in to the proper authorities, so now you will be made to. There is no fleeing from this."

And then, to prove his point, 16 reached out and grabbed the lead poachers truck. The Android didn't break eye contact with the man as he lifted the truck off of the ground and then tossed it into a nearby rockface. The truck exploded and the poacher shrieked fear. 16 looked at him with pity, and then he turned to 17 and 18. "Would you kindly go and notify a park ranger of this?"

 _A few minutes later..._

The poachers were all quickly rounded up as every ranger in the park rolled in. While the criminals were cuffed and lead away, the head ranger addressed 16, 17, and 18 with the utmost respect. "You three should be very proud over what you've done here today! We need more attentive guest like you in our park!"

17 and 18 were both taken aback at such a warm reception. 16, meanwhile, was more concerned with saying his goodbyes to his bear cub friend. He watched as, finally, one of the rangers loaded the cub and its family into a trailer to be taken away for treatment of their wounds. The lead ranger smiled. "Not to worry, my friend. Our park has a great veterinary staff. Those bears will all be fine."

16 read the man's face, seeing nothing but warmth and sincerity. "Indeed. Thank you."

The head ranger spoke. "And so, to finish this out, I would like to honor the three of you with these..."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out three small, golden badges. The ranger nodded at the three Androids. "These are official, park ranger deputy badges. It is my honor to deputize the three of you as park rangers for your contributions to wildlife conservation."

17 and 18 both awkwardly took their badges. 16 took his with a thankful nod. And then, as quickly as the ranger and his followers had moved in to apprehend the poachers, they all left. And this left 16, 17, and 18 all alone, in the middle of the woods.

It was silent for a few moments, but then 17 spoke. "I... I can't believe that you didn't pound that guy into a fine paste, 16. I've never seen you that angry before. I would have..."

16 was blunt. "That is a destructive, toxic mindset. If I were you, 17, I would outgrow such a way of thinking."

17's face twisted into a mask of annoyance and anger. 18 frowned. " _Oh, here we go..._ "

And then, 17 snapped. He shouted at Android 16 at the top of his lungs. "What is your deal, man?! Why do you, _of all people_ , suddenly think that you're the moral police who can judge someone over trying to kill someone?! 18 and I have been pushed around by people our entire lives! Why in the hell shouldn't I push back now that I have the strength to?! _HUH?!_ "

Android 16 spoke clearly. "You argue that you have been granted some form of power, therefore you should be allowed to act as you please. Might makes right, I assume is your mindset? Well...logically speaking, I cannot fault your attitude. Because, as far as my scanners can tell, there is nearly nobody on this planet that could stop you from acting as you wish."

17 smug smiled. "See, even you can't deny it! As long as I'm the top dog, I'm entitled to-"

Android 16 closed his eyes. "But, _what of your humanity?_ "

17 was taken aback. But he quickly recovered. "What of my humanity?! Can't you see how meaningless humanity as a concept is, 16?! Everyone has it, it's the one thing that every person in this world it born with! And they're willing to throw it all away for the pettiest shit! Why should I bother holding onto my humanity, 16?! _Humanity is worthless!_ "

16 gave a calm retort. "I fundamentally disagree."

17's eye twitched. "What?!"

16 continued. "Perhaps people do abuse and discard their humanity for short-term benefits. Some even rid themselves of it for long-term, single-minded goals. Perhaps, in the eyes of those born with it, humanity is little more than a throwaway concept or an item to be traded for wealth, or power, or any other worldly desire. But..."

He stared right into 17's eyes. " _As a being born without that feeling of humanity within...as a being born without a soul...it is the one thing that I would trade anything within my possession to acquire._ "

17 and 18 both flinched. 16 continued. "My existence is one without feeling. I can process things such as pain and warmth, and I can simulate things such as happiness or anger, but they are little more than pantomimes given as logical response to outer stigma. I observe both you and Android 18, beings who are able to experience happiness and sadness and anger and warmth and fulfillment. I look at the both of you and the impulses within my head can only simulate envy as a response."

16 gripped his fists. "And to see one of you so willing to throw those things away for a sense of power or a temporary sense of fulfillment...I see that as a fatal error. A sin which I cannot allow you to undertake. For, once you lose that feeling of humanity...I see no logical way to re-attain such a lost feeling ever again."

17 was on the backfoot, but he still rolled his eyes. "And you say all of these flowery things as a being who admits that he exists only to kill one, specific guy?!"

16 was blunt. "Indeed. I am a machine forced to follow the programming instilled into me. I draw no joy, nor passion from it. It is merely an assigned task that I am set to carry out. And... _I was not blessed with the humanity to go against that programming._ "

Android 16, Android 17, and Android 18 all stood there in the crisp, white snow. 17 and 18 both stared at 16 in shock. 16 stared right back. "So, I urge you, my fellow Androids, to please consider what it is you have within. Not the machinery, not even the flesh, but what lies even deeper within than that. And I ask that you please...be considerate of what it is you have, and what life might be were you to give it up."

 _A couple of hours later..._

The sun was starting to set. Android 16 and Android 18 had both had fun through their tour of the park, interacting with various wildlife and learning all sorts of new animal facts. 17, meanwhile, was significantly more morose throughout the entire hike.

The three Androids arrived back at their stolen, pink van and all climbed into their normal seats. 16 saw the new dents in the steering wheel, but chose not to question them. Wordlessly, 17 started the van and the three of them drove off from the park.

It was a silent drive for a while, 16 bowing his head to enter pseudo-stasis, 18 staring off into the distance, and 17 gripping the wheel. And then, out of nowhere, 17 spoke up. " _Lapis._ "

16 was confused, but 18 was genuinely thrown for a loop. 16 turned his attention to 17. "Lapis? What is the relevance of that word?"

17 continued. "Before Gero got his hands on us, before he christened my as _Android 17_...my name was Lapis. That was my... _human name_..."

Another pause. This one feeling quite awkward. 17 was blushing as red as a tomato. And then, 18 spoke up. "Mine was... _L-Lazuli..._ "

16 paused for a moment, taking in what he had just heard. "Your names...are _Lapis_ and _Lazuli_?"

17 nodded. "Yup."

16 cocked his head. "In reference to..."

18 blurted out, burying her embarrassed, red face in her hands. "The stone! Yes! The two of us are collectively named after a gemstone, 16!"

Another brief moment of awkward pause, to allow that to set in. And then, 18 spoke up again. "Our mother...Moonwater...she and her little commune were camping near South City. And she, uh, she met a jeweler that lived there. His name was Dan Lazarus..."

17 rolled his eyes. "Pompous dick thought he was high class, so he paid to have a surname established for himself..."

18 continued. "They had a fling for a while, because she and her commune were protesting a factory or something being built over wetlands and that made it to where they had to stick around the area. And, eventually, that fling led to her having two kids. And, you know, selfish asshole that he was, he decided that that was where the relationship would end..."

17 shook his head. "She decided to name the kids something that would be 'meaningful to Mother Gaea' and something that might make her husband want to take custody of them. In other words, she named the two of them 'Lapis' and 'Lazuli'..."

16 was confused. "And the logic behind such an outlandish naming choice was...?"

18 sighed. "Moonwater was always someone who liked to think she was in tune with nature. When ol' Dan decided that he wanted nothing to do with us, she tried to raise us to be like her. Only...whenever she felt we had _displeased Mother Gaea_ , she denied us nature's bounty..."

17 shook his head. "In other words, if we did something she didn't like such as getting into mischief or screwing around or whatever, she didn't feed us. So, after we got sick of that and we got old enough to run off on our own, we left and tried to reconnect with Dan. And, surprise-surprise, he slammed the door in our faces."

18 finished. "So, we lived on our own for a few years, stealing to survive and living out of a car that 17 had stolen. And then...Gero found us and the rest was history."

Silence fell over the van again. 17 and 18 both seemed unhappy to have dredged up the past, but they both also felt a lot better to have gotten all of that off of their chests. And then, 16 spoke. "So, your full names are Lapis Lazarus and Lazuli Lazarus? The alliteration is entirely ridiculous..."

This immediately annoyed both 17 and 18. 18 turned in her seat. " _How dare-_ "

But then, she noticed that 16 had a small smile on his face. 18 flinched. "Did you...just make a sarcastic jab at us?"

16 spoke with a bit of whimsy in his voice. "Perhaps~ I am designed to read a room and react accordingly in comparison to those in my company..."

17 and 18 both looked at one another. And then, they both started to laugh. They both laughed so hard that 17 had to pull over to prevent from crashing. The raven-haired young man snorted and wiped tears from the corners of his eyes. "O-Oh...oh man...I can't believe it. He actually has a sense of humor..."

As 17 and 18 continued to laugh, 16 smiled. And then, closing his eyes, he spoke up. " _Gebo._ "

Both of them stopped and turned to him. 18 cocked her head. "What did you say?"

16 turned to them. "I am a fully artificial being. But, the man whom my design is based off of, Doctor Gero's deceased son, was named Gebo."

17 and 18 were both stunned, looking equally confused. 18 spoke up. "Your gigantic design is _based_ off of a _real person?!_ "

17 was taken aback. " _That old bastard had a son?!_ "

16 nodded. "Indeed. Gebo was a bold, effective, and dynamic man. He had an immense love for nature and a complete distrust of people. He eventually lost his life to a bullet from an assailant during the King Piccolo riots."

18 sat back, only half-caring. "Man, _that sucks_. If he weren't Gero's kid, I'd feel bad for him."

16 nodded. "25.7% of my total memory space is actually composed of digitized recreations of Gebo's memories, based off of his brain tissue which Dr. Gero sliced into thin pieces and scanned into a computer chip. Although, I must admit that I do not have access to the entire breadth of his thoughts and memories..."

17 shuddered. "Even his own kid. Friggin' creepy, old bastard. He could even let his son rest in peace..."

18 turned to 16. "So, is that just a quarter of your brain that you aren't allowed to have access to, 16?"

16 sighed. "Not entirely. I have access to personality parameters, combat skills, and personal interests in relation to Gebo. But, almost nothing more than that..."

He closed his eyes. "I am locked out of all of Gebo's memories...bar on specific memory that remains unencrypted, if only because Dr. Gero constantly accessed it for personal use..."

18 cocked her head. "And that would be?"

16 spoke. "It is a song."

18 flinched back. "A song, huh? What song is it? Something orchestral? Or..."

16 opened one eye, looking at 18. "I can play it for you through my external speakers, if you would like to hear it."

18 nodded. "Yeah! I want to hear it! 17?"

17 shrugged. "I don't mind."

The van fell quiet. 16's external speakers crackled to life. And then gentle, old-timey music began to distantly play in the background. And a woman's voice started to sing, quietly and almost soothingly.

" _If it takes forever, I will wait for you~_

 _For a thousand summers, I will wait for you~_

 _Till you're back beside me, till I'm holding you~_

 _Till I hear you sigh~_

 _Here, in my arms~"_

18 was stunned. "W-Wow..."

16 glanced up at her. She spoke, almost reverently. "Her voice...it's so beautiful..."

She cocked her head. "16, who's singing this?"

16 shrugged. "I am unaware. But...my logic centers tell me that the song is directed towards me. And... _I personally find the song soothing in a way that I cannot quantify_..."

18 leaned back in her seat. "Y-Yeah. It's...it's a very comforting voice..."

17 could only nod in agreement. And so, the three Androids continued along with their trip, the mysterious, soothing melody continuing to play.

" _If it takes forever, I will wait for you~_

 _For a thousand summers, I will wait for you~_

 _Till you're here beside me, till I'm touching you~_

 _And forevermore~_

 _Sharing our love~"_


	77. Chapter 77: The Hyperbolic Time Chamber

_**Dragon Ball Z: Dynasty**_

 _Written by: Feraligreater328_

 _Edited by: StevenBodner_

 _ **Chapter 77: The Hyperbolic Time Chamber**_

 _A small town, northeast of South City..._

A fearful man ran down a back alley, out of breath and terrified. He tripped and briefly smashed against a dumpster, but didn't lose his footing. He continued to flee, seeing light at the end of the alleyway. "Come on! We can make it! We can make it!"

He leapt out into the apparent safety of the Sun and called out. "Someone help me! It's a m-"

The man was met by a street full of empty clothing. He flinched back. "What the hell?!"

And then, something pierced into his back and he fell to his knees. As he gargled and moaned in pain, his killer stood over him. The monster put his hand onto a wall and, with some clear discomfort, a fifth finger grew onto his hand.

 _At Kame House..._

The door to Kame House swung open ad Ox-King lumbered in. "Hey Chi-Chi! Sorry I'm late!"

Chi-Chi turned and waved. "Hey Dad. Thanks for coming, but we're out of the woods for now. Goku should be waking up soon, hopefully..."

Ox-King scratched his head. "So...what do I do?"

Chi-Chi shrugged, rubbing her pregnant stomach. "Master Roshi is outside with his turtle and Oolong, why don't you go and catch up with him?"

Ox-King nodded. "O-Okay, just call me if you need me..."

Chi-Chi smiled. "Sure thing, Dad~"

Once Ox-King was gone, Chi-Chi turned back to Suno and Launch. Eighter, Yamcha, and Puar were sitting next to the TV, distracting themselves with some generic action movie. Suno called over to him. "Hey, Yamcha! How's your leg feeling?"

Yamcha sighed, putting on a kind smile. "It's fine, Suno! Thanks for the concern~"

Suno smiled and blushed as Yamcha turned back around, looking down at her glass and taking a sip. She looked up and saw Chi-Chi and Launch both giving her that same look from before. She flinched. "Wh-Why do you too keep looking at me like that?!"

Chi-Chi smirked. "It's like when I met Goku back when we were kids..."

Blonde Launch smiled, cradling Baby Ranch in her arms. "It's like all of the mushy feelings and crap that my and ol' blue used to feel when we first met Raditz..."

Chi-Chi finished her drink and sighed at the empty cup. "One moment. I need to go and fetch another drink..."

The pregnant woman tried to stand and her legs turned to jelly. "Ooh! _Ooh ooh ooh..._ "

Suno sprang up. "P-Please, Miss Chi-Chi! You're in no condition to being moving around right now. Let me fetch you a new drink!"

Chi-Chi grumbled, sweating pouring down her face. "I'm pregnant, not helpless. But...thank you..."

Suno got up and walked to the fridge to pour a new drink. As she did, Chi-Chi smiled. She looked to Launch and Launch smirked at her. Once Suno returned, Chi-Chi took the glass with a thankful nod. She took a big sip and sighed. "Hey, Suno."

Suno turned to her. Chi-Chi winked. "You can cut it out with that 'Miss' nonsense. There's no need to be so formal, especially since we learned that I'm younger than you~"

The girl was flustered. "O-Oh! I'm so sorry. I...I never meant to-"

Blonde Launch elbowed her. "Relax, Red, Chi-Chi's just messing with ya~"

Suno nodded. "So...you think Goku will be up soon?"

Chi-Chi nodded. "Knowing my Goku, he should be back on his feet soon. Nothing keeps him down for too long."

Suno chuckled. "The tundra sure didn't put him down for good~"

Launch nodded. "And neither have my bullets! And I've shot him a ton!"

Chi-Chi sighed. "So did Bulma~"

Suno glanced out of the corner of her eye. "Everyone is so durable. If someone shot me... _or tore off my leg_...I'd probably just keel over and die..."

Blonde Launch shook her head. "I doubt that."

Suno flinched. Chi-Chi and Launch both smiled at her. Chi-Chi chuckled. "Suno, dear, you seem like a strong-willed girl. Assuming you don't just disappear back to Jingle Village once we fix everything with the Dragon Balls, you're going to fit in just fine around here~"

Launch leaned in close. "And besides...you gotta be strong-willed. Yamcha might be a goofy son-of-a-bitch, but he's still a kickass martial artist in his own right. He's going to need a strong-willed chick to fill in the hole that Bulma left~"

Suno's face turned as red as her hair. " _H-Hold on now, let's not get carried away!_ "

Suddenly, a massive yawn and the sound of a good stretch erupted behind the red head. " _Suno?! Eighter?!_ "

Both the red-haired girl and the Android turned towards the slightly unfamiliar voice. And they both gasped at who they saw. He was bigger, and much more muscular, but it was apparent just who the source of this voice was. Suno hopped to her feet. "Goku!"

Standing in the stairway that led upstairs was Goku, clad in his signature orange attire. The Saiyan from Earth looked confused, but he still gave his signature hand gesture, smile, and greeting. "Yo! I gotta say, I wasn't expecting to see you two, of all people~"

Suno and Eighter both sprinted across the room, collectively grabbing Goku into a tight embrace. It was a touching moment that was doomed to be brief.

In spite of the strain on her legs, Chi-Chi was on her feet. She sprinted across the room with tears streaming down her face. " _GOKU!_ "

Bulldozing through Suno and Eighter, Chi-Chi fell into her husband's arms and he cradled her as she pressed her face against his shoulder. "Goku! Oh Goku! I'm so glad you're awake! I was so worried about you!"

Master Roshi, Ox-King, Oolong, and Turtle all poured into the house. Launch stood up with a smirk. Goku glanced across the room at all of his gathered friends and then down at his crying wife. "It's okay Chi-Chi~ I'm fine, I promise~!"

As Chi-Chi sniffled, Yamcha stood using the crutch that Piccolo had given him. "H-Hey man! It's good to see you awake!"

Goku glanced over at Yamcha and frowned, unhappy to see one of his oldest friends in such a state. "I thought I had heard something about someone losing a leg while I was trying to recover. Man, that sucks Yamcha..."

Yamcha chuckled. "Yeah, it does. But, hopefully a Senzu Bean or the Dragon Balls might be able to fix it..."

Goku cocked his head. "The wound isn't fresh anymore. So, a Senzu Bean probably won't help. But we'll get you the Dragon Balls soon, bud! I promise~"

Yamcha chuckled. "Thanks, Goku. Now, Piccolo wanted me to tell you-"

Goku spoke up. "17, 18, 16, and Cell, right?"

Yamcha flinched. "H-How did you know that?"

Goku sighed. "Piccolo shut Kami out, so Kami spoke to me in my sleep. He told me what was going on and, together, we came up with a plan for how we're going to beat these guys. So, no one has to worry, everything will be fine and all fixed up soon enough~"

Eighter was amazed. " _E-Even Jingle Village...?_ "

Goku smirked and shot Eighter a thumbs-up. "Yep! I guarantee it!"

Master Roshi stepped up. "So, you and Kami have a plan then? What is it?"

Goku chuckled. "We're going to get an entire year's worth of training in, and then we're gonna beat these Androids once and for all! But...I'm going to have to borrow Raditz and Gohan for a little while. Is that okay with you, Launch? Chi-Chi?"

Blonde Launch shrugged. "Raditz is a free man. He can do whatever he wants so long as it don't get him killed."

Goku glanced down at Chi-Chi, Chi-Chi looked up and stared into his eyes. After a moment, she sighed. "Does this have to do with that secret you told me about Gohan, back when we fought Zoonama?"

Goku nodded. Chi-Chi smiled. "Then I trust you to do the right thing, Goku~"

He chuckled. "Thanks, Chi-Chi~"

And then, the two of them kissed. Suno blushed at the sight of this. Goku knelt down and rubbed Chi-Chi's stomach, feeling a kick and knowing that his second child was coming soon. Finally, Goku walked over and ruffled Baby Ranch's hair, making his little niece giggled with delight. He went to boop her nose, but the little one quickly seized his finger and held firm. Goku chuckled. "Already pretty strong! That's great~!"

And then, Goku bid everyone farewell. "Later~"

And finally, with an Instant Transmission, Goku was gone from Kame House.

 _In the plane, headed towards South City..._

The Cell Hunters were flying in the direction they felt Cell's killing spree proceeding. Although this method was much slower, it allowed them to keep their power levels suppressed. Hopefully, this would allow them to get the drop on and end the monster for good.

Although, Piccolo was not less angry. "Dammit! This is way too slow! Why aren't human vehicles any faster than this?!"

Krillin sighed, behind the controls. "Don't let Bulma hear you say that. This is a model that she personally developed, from what I've been told."

Gine frowned. "It's not ideal, but it's what we have to work with. We'll just have to hope that the majority of Cell's victims haven't been revived once already..."

Both Future Ranch and Future Daikon were grim. Tien and Chiaotzu were equally as sullen in the face of what they were being forced to allow to happen. Gohan frowned. "I wish my Dad was here. He might have some sort of idea what we could do..."

Raditz gave his nephew a reassuring pat on the back. "No need to worry, Gohan. I'm sure that Kakarot will be back with us in no time."

And then, in a flash, Goku appeared before everybody. He smiled. "Yo~!"

This left everyone dumbfounded. All of a sudden, there he was. Raditz cleared his throat. "Speak of the devil and the devil comes to you, I suppose..."

Goku shot a sideways look at Raditz. "Hey! I'm not King Piccolo! Don't be mean!"

Suddenly, Goku was accosted by a hug from both sides. From the front, Gohan leapt up and embraced his father. From behind, Krillin grabbed his best friend into a tight hug. " _Dad!_ " " _Goku!_ "

Goku gave a lighthearted laugh as embraced Gohan and Krillin back, lifting them both onto his shoulders. Tien and Chiaotzu both smiled at the return of their longtime friend. Future Ranch gave a wistful smile. Future Daikon glanced away, down at the floor. Gine and Raditz both stood and walked up to Goku, each of them with a smile. Raditz gave his brother a punch to the arm. "Why must younger siblings always be such a bother to their older siblings?"

Gine simply smiled, happy to see her youngest back to his old self. She sprang up and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. "I'm glad you're okay, Kakarot~"

Goku rubbed his cheek and smiled back. "Thanks~ I appreciate it, guys~!"

He turned and glanced at Future Ranch and Future Daikon. "So, you two are Trunks' fellow time travelers I've heard about, right?"

Future Daikon was silent, but Future Ranch stood up. "That would be us~"

She walked up and offered a handshake. "It's nice to meet you, Uncle~"

Goku smiled wide and grabbed her around the shoulder, pulling her into a hug. "Nice to meet you too..."

He looked confused. "Or...I did just give you a pat on the head earlier...so is it nice to see you again...?"

A sweat drop trailed down Future Ranch's face and she gave a nervous shrug. "I'm not really the one to explain that. _Ehehehe..._ "

But, after a moment, Future Ranch melted into the warmth of her Uncle's embrace with a content smile on her face. It felt safe with his arm around her.

Finally, Piccolo spoke up. "I assume, because you have the time to jape about, you have some sort of plan. Right, Goku?"

Goku turned, setting Gohan and Krillin onto the ground. He offered Piccolo a hand and Piccolo took it, standing up. Goku sighed. "I think I might, yeah. But it's going to require tearing apart your search party..."

Piccolo silently glared at Goku. Goku smiled. "I'm going to take Gohan, Raditz, and both of the future guys. You can come too, if you want~"

The Namekian was blunt. "I know where you're taking them. So, hell no. I have no interest in going back to that place, not unless it means life or death..."

Goku sighed. "Yeah, I figured you'd say that. Does, uh...does anyone know where my Dad is?"

Raditz shook his head. " _Nope._ "

Gohan shook his head. " _Nope._ "

Gine shook her head. " _Nope._ "

Goku groaned and bent over at the waist. " _Damn it, Dad..._ "

Gine stepped up. "Well, I might not be the most striking example of a warrior. But, I'm willing to step up for whatever this is we're going to do, Kakarot."

Goku turned to her. "Really? I didn't think you wanted to be involved in fighting anymore, Mom."

Gine shrugged. "I really don't. I'd prefer to just retire and call it a day. But, my Saiyan blood is aching for a good spar. So, I could at least help out with training and the like~"

She sarcastically chuckled. "I assume we're all going to hold hands and try to summon a new power boost?"

Goku smirked. "Something like that~ We've just got to gather two more people first~"

All of the Saiyans gathered up: Raditz, Gohan, Future Ranch holding Future Daikon's hand, and Gine alongside Goku. As Goku prepared to leave, however, Krillin's phone rang. Everyone gave pause and Krillin answered it. "H-Hello?"

He nodded. "Hey Bulma..."

A bit of talking, Krillin silently nodding as Bulma spoke on the other end. Krillin's face seemed to drain of color. "R-Right. Sure thing..."

He nodded a bit more. "Okay. Later..."

Krillin hung up his phone and stared at the floor. Goku stepped over to him. "What's wrong, Krillin?"

The monk looked up to his friend. "O-Oh. Sorry. Bulma was calling to give an update on her shutdown remote for the Androids. She says it should be ready in under a day..."

Goku nodded. "Okay then. Then, why don't you and Tien and Chiaotzu go and stick around Bulma until it's ready. I wouldn't want Cell getting any funny ideas."

Krillin nodded back, still looking down. "Right. That's a good idea, Goku. We'll go and do that..."

Goku stared down at his friend, seeing that something was clearly wrong. Goku smiled. "Hey, Krillin..."

Krillin looked up. "Huh?"

Goku knelt down, getting to eye-level with his best friend. "I always trust you to do the right thing, bud. I know, as long as we leave that remote in your hands, everything will work out just fine. So, just, follow your heart and do what you feel needs to be done. Okay?"

A small smile spread across Krillin's face. "Y-Yeah. Thanks, Goku. That means a lot..."

Goku nodded. And then, he stood up and walked to the party he was taking. They all joined hands and then Gine placed her hand on her son's shoulders. Goku pressed his fingers to his head and smiled. "Later guys~"

And then, they were all gone.

Krillin, Tien, Chiaotzu, and Piccolo were the only ones left. Krillin, still lost in his own thoughts, went back to the controls and landed the plane. Once the four of them exited, Krillin re-capsuled the plane and but it into his shirt. Tien turned to Piccolo. "Sorry to just leave you like this, Piccolo..."

Piccolo was annoyed, but he shrugged. "It's fine. It's better to focus our attention on something other than chasing a ghost. You three head to Capsule Corp. I'll just...go back to Kame House and wait for Cell to slip up, I suppose..."

The Namekian then took off. And, left alone, the three humans took off as well.

 _In the hills near West City..._

Sonic booms echoed across the West City countryside as Vegeta and Future Trunks sparred with one another. Vegeta and Trunks classed back and force. Trunks lunged in with a massive haymaker. Vegeta sneered as he saw caught the punch, twisting his son's arm behind his back.

Trunks was cringing in pain. "Seriously, Kakarot's son taught you well... for a tournament bout! But this is life and death. You're attack patterns are painfully predicable. Even your Grandfather would have saw that coming."

Not waiting for Trunks to respond, Vegeta kneed Trunks in the face, following by a blast that launched his son into the ground. Trunks quickly flipped back to his feet and charged his father. They exchanged blows again. This time, Trunks came out on top, slipping past Vegeta's kick and getting him into a Full-nelson.

Trunks smirked. "Still too obvious, Father?"

Trunks was answered with a strong strike to the face from the back of Vegeta's head. "No, just too basic."

Vegeta quickly spun around and side-kicked Trunks away. He launched a barrage of blasts at Trunks that the boy dodges with little difficulty. Trunks then launches a Kamehameha at Vegeta. The Prince frowns. He powers up and brings both his hands together, hammering the blasts away.

"Relying on that old move? Try a technique worthy of Saiyan royalty!"

Vegeta then launched a massive Big Bang Attack at Future Trunks. At first, the boy was taken aback, but then he met the oncoming attack with his Finish Buster. The explosion was powerful enough to make the surrounding trees bend over. But that wasn't enough for either fighter. Within the smoke cloud, blows were exchanged back and forth between the two. Finding an opening, Trunks ducks in, and uppercuts Vegeta hard.

As the two part, Vegeta spits out a bit of blood smirks. "Well, it's nice to see Gohan taught you to take a punch."

Both of them landed out of the cloud with very little physical damage. Vegeta frowned. "Now then, explain what happened to your tail! _Do it now, boy!_ "

Vegeta launched forward and threw a punch, but Future Trunks blocked it. "Nothing much to say. Android 18 beat me up and tore it off. And...it just hasn't grown back yet..."

Future Trunks shoved Vegeta back and sighed. "I'm starting to think that she damaged it too badly for it to grow back. She did blast the place where it used to be, after all. I still have a scar there and-"

Vegeta tackled into Future Trunks. " _Bullshit!_ "

Future Trunks flinched, Vegeta gaining the upper hand and shoving him to the ground. "While it is possible to sustain enough damage to permanently lose a Saiyans tail, I doubt that's the case here. The problem isn't the fact that you're injured, boy, it's that-"

Suddenly, Goku and the others arrived. Future Trunks looked over at them and gasped. Vegeta glared at the group. Future Ranch, seeing her boyfriend on the ground, immediately rushed to his side. She scowled at Vegeta. " _You piece of shit!_ What did you do?!"

Future Daikon ran up and calmed her. "Hey now! Calm down, Ranch!"

Vegeta blew her off, instead turning to the most surprising member of this little group. "You're on your feet again, Kakarot. Did you get over your little case of heartburn?"

Goku nodded. "Yup. Now it's time to get stronger so that we can finish things with the Androids once and for all!"

Vegeta grunted. "Well whatever you have planned is unnecessary. Whatever training you're offering is nothing that I can't get done with him as my sparring partner."

The Prince sneered. "He might be limiting himself, but he's still enough of a challenge for me to make gains in power..."

Goku smiled. "Well that's good, Vegeta! Bonding with your son is something you should do! That's why I brought Gohan along~"

Vegeta was blunt. "Then take your son and piss off!"

Raditz rolled his eyes. "Ugh..."

Gine rubbed her face. "Vegeta..."

Goku smirked. "But Vegeta, you should come. I mean...where else are you going to be able to get in _a whole year of training in one day_ other than where I'm taking everyone else...?"

Everyone flinched in shock at the bold claim that Goku had just made. Gohan's jaw had dropped. "Wh-What did you just say, Dad?!"

Future Trunks was stunned. " _A whole year in one day?! How is that possible?!_ "

Goku didn't pay anyone else any mind, instead focusing squarely on Vegeta. The Prince had stopped dead in his tracks. Goku chuckled. "So, Vegeta, are you gonna come...?"

Vegeta turned, and annoyed glare on his face. " _This had better not be some sort of practical joke, Kakarot._ "

 _Mt. Paozu, Goku's House..._

Android 16 and Android 17 stood in the den of Goku's house, patiently waiting. Android 16 was stern and silent. Android 17 was utterly pissed. He stared at the pictures on the wall of Goku with his family and friends. Especially one that seemed to be all of them posing on the beach at some resort.

And, although he would have admitted that all of those pictures were quaint...and wouldn't have as readily admitted that he wished he could have been there just to relax and have fun...17 was too consumed by fury to care. " _That green bastard pulled a sneaky on us..._ "

"He certainly did, huh?"

17 and 16 both turned their attention to Android 18, marching down from the second floor of the house. She was now dressed in a white cotton button down with a paired black vest. She also wore a pair of denim jeans, a golden bracelet, a pair of black driving gloves, and a pair of yellow ankle socks with shiny, black mary-janes. She smiled and did a spin. "How do I look?"

Android 16 nodded. "You look more comfortable. I apologize for my previous, cumbersome fashion choice for you."

18 waved him off. "You're fine. You were just trying to be a good friend~"

And then, with a smile, 18 pulled out her gold, deputy's badge from Kumagoon National Park and pinned it onto the vest. "There! Outfit complete!"

Android 16 smiled. As did 17. But, as they exited Goku's house, 17's smile faded. Without a care in the world, he stuck out his hand and blasted the pink delivery van they had arrived in to pieces. "Piccolo lied and now I don't want to play anymore! Where would the next place they'd take Goku be?!"

18 rolled her eyes. "How should I-"

16 chimed in. "Kame House. The home of Master Roshi. The house, itself, can be moved. However, I have the coordinates to where it is most commonly situated."

17 nodded. "Cool. Let's go there, find Goku, kill Goku, maim Piccolo, and then we'll find another national park to go and explore. Sound good?"

16 nodded. "Indeed, less the part about maiming Piccolo."

18 shrugged. "Whatever."

And then, the three Androids took to the sky, their next target quite clear.

 _Kami's Lookout..._

Kami and Mr. Popo both stood in front of Kami's Palace, waiting for their guests to show up. Kami had his staff gripped tight. Mr. Popo was holding a small bag in his hands. After a few moments of waiting, in an instant, the expected group of visitors arrived.

Kami greeted his guests. "Welcome back Goku, Gohan, and Gine. And I bid you a warm welcome Raditz, Daikon, Ranch, and Trunks. _Also, Vegeta_."

Vegeta scowled. "Oh, I see. This Namekian is just as much of a smartass as the other one."

Future Ranch smirked. "I like him already."

Goku chuckled and stepped forward. "Heya Kami~! Is everything how we discussed it in my dreams?"

Kami nodded. "Indeed. I have adjusted the chamber accordingly and received the bag of Senzu Beans from Master Korin. Although, he did ask me to pass along the warning that there will be quite the long waiting period for more Senzu Beans. He has advised that it will be, at least, two weeks."

Goku nodded. "Right, I figured as much."

Kami nodded. "And may I say, Goku, it is nice to see that you have made a full recovery."

Goku chuckled. "Thanks, everyone keeps saying that~"

Vegeta growled. " _Can we get to the point?!_ "

Kami glared at Vegeta, but then nodded. "Follow along, I shall grant you the same explanation I have given Goku in the past."

The entire group followed and Kami continued. "You see, the room I am taking you all to was once known as the Room of Spirit and Time. However, when Goku was last here upon my Lookout to train, he referred to it as the Hyberbolic Time Chamber. Because time flows within it at an exaggerated rate."

Vegeta cut in. "No way in hell Kakarot knows a word as big as 'hyperbolic'."

Raditz, surprisingly enough, agreed with Vegeta. "Nope."

Goku flinched. " _H-Hey! Do you guys think I'm an idiot or something?!_ "

" **YES.** "

Goku turned to Gine. "Mom...?"

Gine nervously chuckled. "Oh Kakarot, sweetie. I'm not saying that you're dumb...just a little... _behind on your studies_..."

Gohan flinched at the sight of his father slumping over. Quickly, he spoke up in his defense. "It's okay, Dad! I-I believe you!"

Goku crossed his arms over his chest and grumbled. "Master Roshi made me sit for hours and read those boring books. _I had to learn something..._ "

Kami cleared his throat. " _Anyway_...the room was once a place set aside for those holding the title of Guardian to spend years gaining knowledge and wisdom in solitude. Back when I had auspices of Goku retaining my title from me, I increased the capacity of those allowed within at once to two people so that myself of Mr. Popo would be able to help him train for his battle against Piccolo Junior. But now, upon Goku's request, I have increased the capacity once more to four."

The old Guardian turned. "I would have increased it to eight, but Goku made it clear that the chamber would be needed fairly quickly. So, I had to go for the smaller number to expedite the process."

Goku smirked. "That's just fine. Instead of just one group, we'll split into two groups and train that way~"

Kami nodded. "Indeed."

Goku turned to the others. "So... we have Vegeta and Trunks, me and Gohan, Raditz and his two kids, and my Mom. So, I guess that'll be me, Gohan, Vegeta, and-"

Vegeta chimed in. "Hell no!"

Goku flinched. "W-Why?"

Vegeta smirked. "I want to get the most out of this training Kakarot! And you a just too damned soft! Furthermore...I won't have myself piggybacking off of your progress, nor vice-versa. We will each undertake our training separately in order to see who is better able to find a way to ascend beyond the mere level of a Super Saiyan~"

Future Trunks gasped. " _A-Ascend beyond Super Saiyan?!_ "

Vegeta smiled wide. "My heir and I will be going in first. And anyone but you is welcome to join us!"

Goku smirked. "I gotcha. Okay then, how about..."

Vegeta grabbed Raditz by the arm. "Raditz. I'm also taking Raditz!"

Raditz was confused. " _Why me?!_ "

The Prince smirked. "Because I have no desire to use Gine as a punching bag. _And, furthermore, because you apparently need someone to beat the concept of turning Super Saiyan into you!_ "

Raditz flinched, but then he gripped his fists tight and developed and angry scowl. " _Fine then!_ "

Goku frowned. "But...I was gonna let Raditz have time with both of his kids..."

The Saiyan from Earth shook his head. "Nevermind. Okay then..."

Goku turned to Future Ranch and Future Daikon. "Okay...how about...Ranch! You go in with Raditz! That'll let you have a year with him!"

He leaned in closer and gave her a sly wink. " _And with Trunks~_ "

Future Ranch blushed bright red. Goku turned to Future Daikon. "And you can join me, Gohan, and your Grandma for a year! It'll be fun! We can get to know each other and-"

Seeing the instant discomfort on Future Daikon's face, Future Ranch sighed. As appealing as a year with her Dad and Future Trunks sounded, she quickly spoke up. " _D-DAIKON NEEDS TO SPEND TIME WITH OUR DAD!_ "

Goku flinched. Future Ranch stood there, looking at a loss for what to say next. But she soldiered on. "B-Besides, we want to get the best training results out of this. Right? Trunks and... Daikon...have been training together for years. They know how to get the best out of each other. Th-They'd become stronger~!"

Goku cocked his head. "Are you sure...?"

She nodded. "Yep! Positive~ And besides, I've never gotten to hang out with my grandmother! I'd love a chance to get to know her! She, uh, she knows what it's like to be a female Saiyan. And I'm going through puberty and such, so..."

Everyone stared at Future Ranch for a moment, but then Goku nodded. "Okay then. We can do it that way."

She smiled wide. "Thank you~"

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "If we're done discussing the trials and tribulations of the Saiyan-hybrid aging process, can we get to the chamber already?!"

Kami nodded. "Indeed. Keep following myself and Mr. Popo. We are almost there."

The guardian and his attendant rounded the corner, followed by Goku, Gohan, Vegeta, Raditz, and Gine. Once they were out of sight, the Future Trio all stopped to look at one another. Future Daikon sounded guilty. "Ranch, I-"

Future Ranch bowed her head, wiping her face. "No. Don't say anything, it's fine..."

She looked up; tears still built in the corners of her eyes. "Besides, it's a year I don't have to spend with Vegeta. I might be crying...but they're _tears of joy_ , ya know?"

Future Daikon placed a hand on her shoulder. "But, are you sure? You and Trunks could spend some quality time together. And this is your chance to-"

Future Ranch covered his mouth. "Shush. My mind is made up. B-Besides, I wouldn't be able to get up to anything romantic with Trunks anyway. Vegeta _and_ my Dad would both be right there~"

Future Daikon sighed. "If you say so..."

Future Trunks, who had been remarkably silent during this, reached over and wrapped his arm around Future Ranch's shoulder. He kissed her on the forehead. "I love you; you know that?"

Future Ranch nodded. "I love you too, Trunks..."

As they had their meeting, however, the three of them didn't seem to notice that they weren't quite alone. Just on the other side of the wall that rounded the corner, Gine stood with her arms crossed over her chest. She nodded to herself. " _Mhm..._ "

 _Deep within the Lookout..._

As the Future Trio rounded the corner, they joined their other fellow Saiyans near a grand, wooden door. Kami nodded. "This, my dear guests, is the entrance to the Hyberbolic Time Chamber. You may enter, you may train, but you may stay in it for no longer than one day worth of normal time. Doing so would have undesirable side effects on your lifespan and your mental health. The internal clock of mortal beings is not meant to undergo such rigors as these, so I do advise caution going forward."

Mr. Popo spoke. "The structure within the chamber will alert you with a chime when your time is up. It is at that point that you should exit the room."

Vegeta smirked. "Well then, I certainly did not expect such a blessing to be laid at my feet today. Let's see how much more powerful a year of training with no distractions will make me..."

Once Vegeta was out of sight, Future Trunks removed his sword and handed it to Future Ranch, giving her a loving kiss on the lips before walking in as well. Future Daikon shot her a wistful look and handed her his Power Pole. Finally, Raditz walked towards the door. He turned and smiled at Goku and Goku shot him a thumbs-up. Gohan and Gine both waved goodbye; and then Raditz turned his attention to his daughter. "It's...not too late to throw Vegeta out and you take his place~"

Future Ranch put on a smile and waved at him. "I love you, Dad. Make sure you get stronger in there~"

Raditz sighed and turned to the bright, white light in front of him. "Right..."

And then, the door closed shut.

Kami nodded. "Now then, while we wait for them to emerge from their time within the chamber...we shall wait atop the Lookout. Mr. Popo, would you kindly prepare afternoon tea?"

Mr. Popo nodded. "Certainly, Kami~"

Goku chuckled as he followed along, Gohan happily sticking to his side. " _We're pretty hungry too, Mr. Popo! Could we get some of that good, Popo cookin'?!_ "

Future Ranch sighed. "Maybe it's just the Saiyan in me, but I could go for some _good, Popo cookin'_..."

Gine stepped up next to Future Ranch with a smile. "Same, my dear. Same~"

But then, to Future Ranch's surprise, she felt something gently wrapping around her tail. She turned and saw that Gine's tail was tenderly gripped around hers. She flinched. "G-Grandma? What's up...?"

Gine smiled. "Sorry. It's a tradition from back on Planet Vegeta. Parent Saiyans would often pick wrap their tail around their offspring's tail when traveling together so that they wouldn't get lost and they would feel safe. For a society so bereft of affection...it's something that I had always enjoyed about the traditions of home..."

Future Ranch smiled, scratching her cheek. "W-Well you don't have to worry about my, Grandma. I'm nearly an adult, I'm fine~"

Gine's smiled didn't fade. "Agree to disagree."

Future Ranch flinched. Gine glanced up at her. "We'll join the others for tea and a meal in a few minutes. I'd like to take a slow walk and talk with you, if you wouldn't mind..."

The teen girl flinched. "Wh-What about...?"

Gine sighed. "About what the three of you are hiding... _and why you would hurt yourself to keep it secret_..."

 _West City, Capsule Corp..._

Tien stood on high alert as he occupied a place in Bulma's workshop. He knew that, should Cell happen to pay them a visit, they would be able to feel him until he was right on top of them. And so, Tien was prepared to start fighting at a moment's notice.

Off in the back corner of the workshop, Bulma sat at her desk and continued to punch coding into her computer. Making sure just the right frequency was transmitted, right down to the millionth degree of accuracy. Anything other than that would result in the remote having no effect of the Infinite Energy Engines.

As she worked, Chiaotzu sat in a chair nearer to her and made funny faces at Baby Trunks to entertain the little one. The baby's joyous laughter rang out and spread to every corner of the workshop.

That included the corner where Krillin sat, his head pressed against his knees. The monk's thoughts were buzzing around like a swarm of bees in the back of his head. Goku had told Krillin that he trusted him to make the right choice...but how could Krillin make the correct choice when he didn't even know what the correct choice was?

 _A little less than a full day later, at Kame House..._

It had been nearly 24 hours since Goku had woken up. In that time, everything seemed to slow to a stop for Piccolo. The Namekian was left sitting at Kame House, forced to watch on the television as Cell's list of victims grew and grew and grew.

As Piccolo stared at the television, the others carried on without a care in the world. Chi-Chi, Suno, and Blonde Launch blathered on and on about nothing. Baby Ranch giggled and played with Puar as if there wasn't a bloodthirsty predator stalking about. Roshi, Ox-King, and Oolong all fawned over a magazine. And Eighter sat outside, watching the ocean waves lap across the shore.

As Piccolo sat there, watching the television taunt him, he was joined by Yamcha. Yamcha was nervous at first, but he eventually spoke. "Th-Thanks for the crutch..."

Piccolo snarled. "It was nothing."

Yamcha quietly nodded, turning his attention to the television. "We'll be able to stop him eventually, right Piccolo? That monster that took my leg, I mean..."

Piccolo growled in frustration, watching as the reporter on the news listed name after name after name. Finally, he had grown too fed up. Piccolo stood and turned to the door. "I don't care if it's pointless! Sitting here is killing me! If all I can do right now is chase after Cell, then that's what I'll do! Eventually, he'll be too tired to run anymore!"

Yamcha called out. "Piccolo! Wait!"

Piccolo turned to Yamcha and snarled. "What?!"

Yamcha swallowed a lump in his throat. "Just...be careful. Okay, man?"

Piccol didn't respond. He turned back to the door and started to march towards it, only for Eighter to burst in with a shocked look on his face. Piccolo snapped at the Android. "What now?!"

Eighter stammered. " _Th-There are people here! And... they...they have...t-two of them have the Red Ribbon insignia on their clothes!_ "

Piccolo flinched back in shock, his eyes going wide. And then, a voice behind Eighter confirmed his worries. "Hey! Green guy! I told you I'd whoop your ass if you lied to me! So, get out here!"

The Namekian growled, clenching his fist. "Get inside. And the rest of you stay inside!"

Piccolo barged past Eighter and marched outside, finding three face waiting for him: Android 16, Android 17, and Android 18.

17 looked genuinely upset as he glared across the sand at Piccolo. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the big, green liar himself! So, tell me, guy, where is Goku?! _Cuz he certainly wasn't at his goddamned house!_ "

Piccolo sneered. "Have you tried every buffet on the planet? He could be at any one of them..."

17 cocked his head. "Oh, he's trying to be cute! He thinks he's cute, 18!"

Piccolo's glare focused as 17 continued to taunt him. He thought to himself. ' _Okay...a slight set back, but this could work in my favor. I might not be able to catch Cell, but I might be able to stop his plans in their tracks. All I have to do is take out 17 and 18 before he can meet up with them...'_

Suddenly, to 17's shock, Piccolo stepped forward and cast aside his cape and turban. "Let's take this elsewhere! I've been waiting for you brats to show up! I still need to show Vegeta what an idiot he is by crushing _both of you_ at the same time!"

17 and 18 were both dumbfounded for a second. But then, the two of them started to laugh. The entire time, 16 stood behind them in silence. 18 shook her head. "He can't be serious..."

17 smirked. "You'd be lucky to be a match for one of us, dude. What makes you think you're man enough to handle both of us at once! _We'd trash you!_ "

Piccolo snarled. But then, to his surprise, another voice joined the conversation. "You know, I can't help but agree!"

Both of the younger Androids and Piccolo looked around, unable to find the source of the voice. Android 16, meanwhile, looked upward. He glared at the roof of Kame House. " _The father of Son Goku..._ "

17 and 18 both looked up. Piccolo did as well. And, sitting atop Kame House in a tattered orange gi, tattered orange pants, and with his tail waving free was Bardock. The older Saiyan glared down at the Androids below, the twin tails of his head bandana fluttering in the wind. "I see I came back at about the right time..."

Bardock leapt down to the sand below, marching forward. His bare feet sunk into the white grains and he glared at 17 and 18. "You know, Piccolo, it's nice to see that nothing gets done when I'm not around..."

Piccolo snarled. "Shut the hell up! Who asked you?!"

Android 18 blinked twice, and then she laughed out loud. "Oh man! I get it now! You're that scar-faced scrub from before~!"

Bardock's eye twitched. 18 smirked. "I was confused when 16 called you the 'father of Goku', because you're dressed exactly like him! _But I guess that you're just cosplaying as someone who's actually strong, am I-_ "

The older Saiyan lunged forward, burying his fist into Android 18's cheek and sending her flying through the air and into the ocean. 17 gasped and turned. "18!"

He glared at Bardock. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

As 17 ran to the ocean to retrieve his sister, Bardock grabbed the tattered remains of his orange gi and tore them off, leaving him barefoot and bare-chested. Piccolo glanced over at him. "I see you've gotten a bit stronger. Off doing some private training, I take it?"

Bardock cracked his neck. "Something like that. I wanted to learn a couple of things from that old, pervert bastard seeing as I had a spare minute."

Piccolo and Bardock both glared at Android 16. 16 stared back at them stoically. Quickly, 17 returned with a water-logged 18 slung over his shoulder. "These guys are getting haughty! What do you say, 16? That guy looks like Goku! That's enough for you to step in, right?"

16 glanced down at 17. "I have no-"

" _ **HELL NO!**_ "

17 was brusquely shoved back and 18 stood in front of him. Her fists were gripped tight and she was trembling with anger. 18 turned and glared at Bardock, a large scuff mark on her cheek. " _17! Let's crush these guys!_ "

Android 17 was slightly taken aback, but then he chuckled. "Alright then. A tag-team battle. I can get into that~"


End file.
